Research productivity of sociology PhD candidates at interdisciplinary schools of social science at elite Australian universities, 2013–17: A gender perspective

2020 ◽  
pp. 144078332092709
Author(s):  
Adam Rajčan ◽  
Edgar A. Burns
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Doctoral Students ◽  
Research Productivity ◽  
Research Output ◽  
Gender Composition ◽  
Academic Leaders ◽  
Students First ◽  
Phd Theses ◽  
Methodological Approaches ◽  
Australian Universities

Gender data are presented from a study into sociology PhD completions and student research outputs during enrolment at Australian ‘Group of Eight’ interdisciplinary schools of social science. Findings confirm views and impressions offered by Australian sociology academic leaders. The present data contributes to this wider discussion by describing patterns in the contemporary cohort of sociology PhD students. First, we document a stable gender composition of the discipline in Australia reflective of the literature across several decades rather than a recent feminisation process. Second, we report for this cohort of contemporary PhD sociology completions in Australia women and men publish at similar rates during candidacy. Third, there is no significant gendered difference between students at any level of research output production. Fourth, methodological approaches used by sociology doctoral students confirm the epistemological domination of qualitative analysis in this current cohort of sociology PhD theses.

The Education of Research Psychologists in Sweden

2003 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 34-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Knut Larsson ◽  
Josef Frischer
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Doctoral Students ◽  
Doctoral Programs ◽  
Science Department ◽  
Research Education ◽  
The Core ◽  
Social Science Department ◽  
Learning Alliance ◽  
Laissez Faire ◽  
The Government

The education of researchers in Sweden is regulated by a nationwide reform implemented in 1969, which intended to limit doctoral programs to 4 years without diminishing quality. In an audit performed by the government in 1996, however, it was concluded that the reform had failed. Some 80% of the doctoral students admitted had dropped out, and only 1% finished their PhD degree within the stipulated 4 years. In an attempt to determine the causes of this situation, we singled out a social-science department at a major Swedish university and interviewed those doctoral students who had dropped out of the program. This department was found to be representative of the nationwide figures found in the audit. The students interviewed had all completed at least 50% of their PhD studies and had declared themselves as dropouts from this department. We conclude that the entire research education was characterized by a laissez-faire attitude where supervisors were nominated but abdicated. To correct this situation, we suggest that a learning alliance should be established between the supervisor and the student. At the core of the learning alliance is the notion of mutually forming a platform form which work can emerge in common collaboration. The learning alliance implies a contract for work, stating its goals, the tasks to reach these goals, and the interpersonal bonding needed to give force and endurance to the endeavor. Constant scrutiny of this contract and a mutual concern for the learning alliance alone can contribute to its strength.

Doctoral capital and well-being amongst Australian PhD students: exploring capital and habitus of doctoral students

2021 ◽  
Vol 121 (3) ◽  
pp. 322-336
Author(s):  
Wayne Usher ◽  
Brittany A. McCormack
Keyword(s):  
Doctoral Students ◽  
Social Reproduction ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Reproduction Theory ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
The Right ◽  
Australian Universities

PurposeThe Higher Degree Research (HDR) journey is known for its difficulties, complexities and challenges (Lees-Deutsch, 2020), with many students experiencing multi-faceted issues and concerns (Skopek et al., 2020). Therefore, the purpose of this research is to investigate the relationships that exist between variables, vulnerability factors and doctorial capital of candidates (n = 532) studying at Australian universities (2019).Design/methodology/approachA quantitative cross-sectional correlational research design and Bronfenbrenner's socio – ecological framework (personal, home, university, community) was utilised to collect participants' (n = 532) descriptive statistics. Bourdieu's social reproduction theory was used as a lens to examine how experiences, across the PhD candidature, are influenced by several psychosocial factors and doctoral capital.FindingsFrom such a dual methodological approach, the findings from this study suggests that (1) age, (2) gender, (3) nationality, (4) financial/work status, (5) years of PhD and (6) attending postgraduate (PG) student events, go to significantly (p < 0.001) impact (positively and negatively) on students' experiences and correspondingly, impacts on their self-confidence, motivation and mental health and well-being status.Research limitations/implicationsResearch limitations are related to the recruitment of more doctoral students across more Australian universities. Further research is required from HDR supervisors, so as to “balance” the experiences of the PhD journey in higher education.Practical implicationsIn order to succeed in academia and HDR programs, students need to identify with and develop the “right kind of capital” to successfully navigate fields of social and scholarly play. Investigating how the participants perceive their social and scholarly habitus is seen as crucial in helping students to develop positive dispositions relevant to being a doctoral student.Social implicationsThe concept of doctoral capital and well-being, amongst Australian PhD students, is under researched and requires further investigation as a precursor to developing more specific policy designs aimed at providing heightened positive learning environments/HDR programs tailored to support doctoral students.Originality/valueWhilst reforms to improve PhD experiences are well established across the international literature (Geven et al., 2018; Skopek et al., 2020), evidence for Australia is largely missing. It is envisaged, that findings from this research will further assist in the development of quality policies that would go to provide effective services and support for doctoral students within Australian universities.

Gender moderation of intrinsic research productivity antecedents in South African academia

2017 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 572-592
Author(s):  
Chris Callaghan
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Job Performance ◽  
South African ◽  
Developing Country ◽  
Gender Inequality ◽  
Research Productivity ◽  
Research Output ◽  
Test Theory ◽  
Critical Ratio ◽  
Content Type

Purpose Ascription theory together with human capital theory both predict that, over time, the scarcity of knowledge and skills in increasingly complex working contexts will “crowd out” the influence of arbitrary characteristics such as gender. The purpose of this paper is to test the extent to which job performance determinants of research productivity differ by gender in their contributions to research productivity, in the developing country (South Africa) context, in which gender and other forms of historical discrimination were previously endemic. Design/methodology/approach Research output was measured as published journal articles indexed by Thomson Reuters Institute for Scientific Information, ProQuest’s International Bibliography of the Social Sciences and the South African Department of Higher Education and Training, as well as conference proceedings publications, conference papers presented and published books and book chapters. Structural equation modelling, with critical ratio and χ2 tests of path moderation were used to test theory predicting gender (sex) differences moderate the potential influence of certain intrinsic determinants of job performance on research productivity, as a form of academic job performance. Findings Gender is found to moderate the relationship between experience and research productivity, with this relationship stronger for men, who are also found to have higher research output. This is considered a paradox of sorts, as English and African home languages, which proxy racial differences in societal and economic disadvantages and unequal opportunities, are not significantly associated with research output differences. Findings further suggest none of the tested intrinsic effects are moderated by gender, contesting theory from general work contexts. Research limitations/implications This research applied a cross-sectional design, and did not apply causal methods, instrumental variables or controls for endogeneity. Nevertheless, these are limitations shared with most research in the human resources field, which is constrained by the type of data available in organisational contexts. Further research might do well to investigate non-intrinsic influences on research productivity which may be vulnerable to differences in societal gender roles. Originality/value This research offers a novel perspective of research productivity and gender inequality in a developing country context of increasing diversity, which might offer useful insights into other contexts facing increasing diversity in higher education. The problem of gender-based inequality in research productivity is empirically identified, and little evidence is found to support the notion that intrinsic effects, including core self-evaluations, are at the heart of this problem. Arguably, these findings reduce the problem space around gender inequality in research productivity, in a context in which other forms of disadvantage might no longer manifest in research productivity inequality.

scholarly journals RESEARCH PRODUCTIVITY OF PANDIT DEENDAYAL PETROLEUM UNIVERSITY AT GANDHINAGAR DURING 2008-2019: A BIBLIOMETRIC STUDY

2020 ◽  
pp. 167-180
Author(s):  
Priyanki Vyas ◽  
Sandip Pathak ◽  
Mahendra Patel
Keyword(s):  
Conference Proceedings ◽  
Research Productivity ◽  
Research Output ◽  
Research Performance ◽  
Steady Increase ◽  
Prolific Author ◽  
Current Trends ◽  
Research Publications ◽  
Number Of Publications ◽  
Prolific Authors

This study endeavours to embrace a bibliometric analysis of the research publications of Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University (PDPU) from 2008-2019. It is in this context that the present study aims to audit the exploration execution the research performance of PDPU based on the papers published in journals that have indexed in Scopus for as far back as eleven years. The total number of 931 publications has retrieved from the Scopus database. Amongst them, 64.44 % are research articles published in scholarly journals and 28.89 % in Conference proceedings. The paper also analyzed the publication trend of Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University and found that from 2008 onwards there was a steady increase in the number of publications. The authors attempt to identify the current trends in research output by PDPU, which includes the most prolific authors, institutional collaborative works, research productivity in terms of publications, highest citations papers, most preferred publications, etc.… The research publications was found highest numbers of publications in the year 2019. Findings of this study also reveal that the “AIP Conference Proceedings” is the most preferred journal, and Mukhopadhyay, I, is the most prolific author and has made the highest number of publications.

scholarly journals Research Productivity and Citation Impact of Indian institutes of Science Education and Research

2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (6) ◽  
pp. 455-462
Author(s):  
Jyotshna Sahoo ◽  
Sudam Charan Sahu ◽  
Basudev Mohanty
Keyword(s):  
Science Education ◽  
Research Productivity ◽  
Basic Science ◽  
Research Output ◽  
Citation Impact ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Publication Patterns ◽  
Research Outcomes ◽  
Basic Science Research ◽  
Research Publications

The paper’s main objective is to investigate the trends of basic science research in India using a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches. It examines the publication patterns and impact of research productivity of five basic science institutions, i.e., “Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research” (IISER), namely IISER Kolkata, IISER Pune, IISER Mohali, IISER Bhopal, and IISER Thiruvananthapuram. The research output indexed in the SCOPUS bibliographic database of these five established IISERs was obtained from 2015 to 2019. A total number of 7329 research publications were analysed using various scientometric dimensions. This paper makes a concerted effort to present a comprehensive picture of the assessment of research outcomes at the five older IISERs, which are ostensibly India’s most active and prominent basic science research institutions. The findings reveal that these institutions are accountable for important research outcomes, such as a high number of citations, preferences towards open access (OA) publications, a rise in research publication year over year, a strong author network, a high degree of collaboration, and a high impact in terms of other scientometrics indicators. This paper discusses the findings of the research publications on the position of IISERs in basic sciences research and draws some conclusions about their effects.

scholarly journals Qualitative Research in Communication. Introductory Remarks

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Mireia Fernández-Ardèvol ◽  
Corina Daba-Buzoianu ◽  
Loredana Ivan
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Social Problems ◽  
Communication Practices ◽  
Methodological Approaches

<p>Questions regarding communication practices in everyday interactions and how people attribute meanings to the communication acts are issues frequently addressed by social-science researchers and practitioners. Qualitative research may reveal possible answers, as it tends to be concerned with meanings (Willig, 2013). This approach can also contribute to addressing social problems from a perspective that might complement other methodological approaches.</p>

Research Productivity and International Collaboration: A Study of Ecuadorian Science

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 369-387 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Antonio Castillo ◽  
Michael A. Powell
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Latin American ◽  
International Collaboration ◽  
Research Productivity ◽  
Research Output ◽  
Scientific Productivity ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Government ◽  
Latin American Countries

Ecuador’s research output relative to other Latin American countries has been low historically; however, over the last 10 years, the government has put various policies in place to help remedy this situation. This is an analysis of Ecuadorian research productivity from 2006 to 2015. The scientific productivity of Ecuador has increased 5.16 times over the past years, exceeding Latin American growth. Over 80% of Ecuadorian publications include international collaboration mainly with the United States and some European and Latin American countries.

Unravelling the Web of Qualitative Dissertation Writing!

2022 ◽  
pp. 260-282
Author(s):  
Nirupama R. Akella
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Doctoral Students ◽  
Critical Literacy ◽  
Research Method ◽  
Analytical Approach ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Social Science Discipline ◽  
Dissertation Writing ◽  
Qualitative Dissertation ◽  
The Web

This chapter, written in the first person, uses the research method of autoethnography to identify, explore, and discuss six key elements essential for writing a qualitative dissertation in a social science discipline. The author bases her autoethnographic account of reflections, dialogue, and theory within a conceptual framework of critical literacy and a grounded theory analytical approach to detail six foundational elements of qualitative dissertation writing which must be present in the doctoral student's arsenal before beginning to write the dissertation and/or draft. The chapter attempts to solve a dilemma of paucity of empirical research by doctoral students/candidates about how to write qualitative dissertations. The purpose of the chapter is to showcase and unravel the dissertation writing web from a doctoral student/candidate's active learning experience and perspective.

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