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Becoming a Self-Directed Researcher
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Becoming a Self-Directed Researcher
These three practices highlighted support the development of a doctoral identity and aid
doctoral learners in meeting their academic goals. It is true that passion for research is important;
however, being self-motivated is key to guiding one to be consistent in realizing the objectives of
the chosen research study. Without self-motivation, one is more likely to struggle to realize their
goals, as one will easily be distracted by various challenges they encounter. Engaging in
reflective scholarly practice is another important strategy to realize research and academic goals
because it trains doctoral students to recognize their mistakes and work towards achieving their
goals. One would be better positioned to develop their doctoral identity and succeed
academically by reflecting on various activities during research and taking away vital lessons.
Accepting feedback is another essential practice that showcases one's willingness to be corrected
and thus ensures that the doctoral researcher is heading in the right direction. Listening to
positive praise and criticism will help doctoral students learn a lot about their strengths and
weaknesses, thus setting them up for improvement.
Doubting Objectivity
There are different types of biases, including the author's affiliations with other particular
entities or the writing that serves a particular purpose. For instance, an article on the impact of
climate change conducted under the financial support of an oil company may contain material
that portrays man as having a minimal influence on the environment, which may make readers
question its credibility.
Detail and Specificity
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Specific evidence and examples are more credible than general narration or narration with
hypothetical information and figures with references. For example, a research article that gives
concrete findings and tools regarding climate change that appeared in Nature in 2020 is more
accurate than an article that offers plain and unprofessional statements (Hansen et al., 2020).
Potential challenges with incorporating these practices include maintaining self-motivation
and engaging in continuous self-directed research. Another challenge is being able to frequently
engage in reflective scholarly practice, as this might sometimes be forgotten, and thus, doctoral
students might not effectively benefit from this practice. To overcome these challenges, the first
step would be to find ways to be self-motivated in their actions, such as through effective time
management and planning about the research. Engaging in a lot of networking and making
friends with other doctoral researchers who will offer feedback and help improve my doctoral
identity are some adjustments that would help me overcome these challenges.
