Socialinės aplinkos palaikymas doktoranto kaip tyrėjo formavimuisi
LTŠiame straipsnyje pristatomu tyrimu siekiama atskleisti svarbiausius socialinio palaikymo bruožus, padedančius doktorantų kaip tyrėjų formavimuisi studijų metu. Teorinė socialinių veiksnių analizė padėjo apžvelgti socialines grupes, kurių palaikymas ir parama yra išskirtinai svarbūs studijų baigimo sėkmei ir jų kaip tyrėjų formavimuisi. Duomenų analizės metu suformuluotos temos padėjo atskleisti svarbius momentus tyrėjo formavimosi skatinimui.
ENPreparation for the implementation of researcher' activities is seen as the vital component for creating the dynamic knowledge society in the world. In this process, research has to demonstrate scientific excellence, be globally competitive and at the same time correspond to societal challenges. As it is emphasized in international documents regulating tertiary education in Europe (LERU, 2017; Bologna working group, 2005), doctoral studies are oriented towards research implementation and training of doctoral students, who demonstrate critical and analytic thinking skills, provide insights, plan, project and conduct international and national scientific or applied projects. Moreover, doctoral students are expected to demonstrate high communication skills, actively participate in scientific events, and share their research results within scientific and non-scientific communities. Social support and recognition from other academic or non-academic people help doctoral students to identify themselves as researchers. Main actors participating in doctoral students' study process and providing social support are supervisor, peers, communities of practice and family (Janta, Lugosi & Brown, 2014). This article aims to reveal the most important aspects of social support for doctoral students helping to develop their researchers' identities. Theoretical analysis of social factors allowed to overview social groups, whose support is important tremendously for students’ success and researcher development. Narrative interviews were conducted with 8 last year doctoral students representing different study fields and universities. Content analysis allowed to construct categories which reveal the most important moments promoting researcher development.The categories constructed were: family support when aiming for the goal; involvement into communities and development of community networks; encouraging or regaining self-confidence; overcoming negative situations for better progress; and destructive support. Data analysis revealed that family support has very important impact on student's emotional wellbeing and acts as a strong motivating factor when aiming for the life goals. Wall (2008) distinguished support of a life partner or spouse as a very important factor when balancing between studies and family, as partners' emotional and practical support help to sustain through the doctoral study process, especially if the partner has PhD or is a PhD student. This research reveals another very important aspect - it is early experience of research and science culture and environment. It confirms to the results presented by Maher, Fond and Htompson (2004) that family support may become crucial factor especially when it is related to the planning of financial stability and time resources. Support, consultations and encouragement provided by the supervisor (Tenenbum, Crosby, & Gliner, 2001) presuppose supervision strategy chosen by supervisor. Experiences of research participants disclosed that supervisors tend to push doctoral students outside their comfort zone and in those 'uncomfortable' situations perceive possibilities for new experiences and ideas in the research field. Moreover, constructive and timely feedback, and encouragement for self-confidence, allow students to experiment, search for self in the research theme, and develop critical and analytic skills that are needed for researcher activities.Participation in international and national scientific activities disclosed dual experiences. Firstly, it is a great environment to develop cognitive knowledge, share research results and develop collaboration networks (Attia & Edge, 2017). At the same time, it is important part for researcher development process. Hence, research reveal that integration into international scientific communities and their events, had more positive impact on learners' experiences and progress for doctoral research than collaboration with national scientific communities. It was noted, that it depends on the research field, but nevertheless, feedback provided by international experts was seen as more constructive and oriented towards the development of doctoral research. In some cases, these experiences had significant impact for informants' decisions regarding their plans to continue research and academic activities inside or outside the University.
