A Exploring Research Students’ Experiences related to Supervisory Support: A Cross-Case Analysis
Abstract
The main purpose of this qualitative case study was to develop an understanding of the perspectives of research students on supervisory support. This study employed the interpretive case study methodology, and the criterion sampling technique was used to select participants. Eleven research students of the
Department of History and Pakistan Studies who were currently enrolled at MPhil level and who had experienced the supervisory support for at least 3-6 months participated in this study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to understand the perspectives of the participants. All research students provided rich descriptions about supervisory support approaches. They all reported that their supervisors provided support related to directing, research planning, attaining resources, and project management. Most of the research students reported that their supervisors made efforts to introduce them to the disciplinary community, that is, provided the material for the research study and motivated them to participate in conferences, seminars, and workshops. Few
research students gave negative responses to it by saying that their supervisors never talked about participation in any conferences or seminars. All eleven participants provided strong perspectives about the critical thinking approach. They stated that their supervisors helped them critically evaluate research literature related to their topics. Some students did not see the emancipation approach as an ideal. Some students’ categorized their experiences as non-friendly and harsh. From the perspectives of research students, it can be inferred that every supervisor used five approaches of supervisory support with an unequal emphasis on each approach. Moreover, the supervisors were more inclined towards helping research students in project management and coaching but less in developing skills related to evaluation, argument analysis and emotional intelligence.
