A model of research group microclimate: environmental and cultural factors affecting the experiences of overseas research students in the UK

Walsh, Elaine

doi:10.1080/03075070903243092

Cited by 64 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…According to these studies, the ecological niches that are available for doctoral students influence the completion of the PhD project. In addition, Louis et al (Louis et al, 2007) and Walsh (Walsh, 2010) suggest that the ecological niches in doctoral education and especially the microclimate of these niches most likely influence the doctoral student's burgeoning career as a researcher. In a study on research group microclimate, Walsh (2010) describes a model with a continuum from the most to the least cohesive microclimate: inclusive, structured, granular, and fragmented microclimate.…”

Section: Microclimate and The Ecological Niches Of Doctoral Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, Louis et al (Louis et al, 2007) and Walsh (Walsh, 2010) suggest that the ecological niches in doctoral education and especially the microclimate of these niches most likely influence the doctoral student's burgeoning career as a researcher. In a study on research group microclimate, Walsh (2010) describes a model with a continuum from the most to the least cohesive microclimate: inclusive, structured, granular, and fragmented microclimate. Walsh developed the model of group microclimate from qualitative analysis of the subjective accounts of a small group of overseas PhD students in the UK in science and engineering disciplines, and she concluded that doctoral students in groups with an inclusive microclimate reported fewer problems.…”

Section: Microclimate and The Ecological Niches Of Doctoral Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To the best of our knowledge, these two studies (Louis et al, 2007;Walsh, 2010) are fairly singular instances of sociological explorations of the microclimate related to doctoral education. Although neither of the two studies offers theoretically sound definitions of the concept of microclimate, they provide rare but highly interesting examples of ways in which doctoral education is interwoven in an ecological niche and how the microclimate in a particular ecological niche affects the doctoral student's development as a researcher.…”

Section: Microclimate and The Ecological Niches Of Doctoral Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The microclimate distinguishes itself by generating a different feel than neighboring climates. As already mentioned, the concept of microclimate is also applied to describe the way the interpersonal relationship within research groups makes group members feel (Walsh, 2010) or constitutes a shared mood within the group (Jacobsen, 2001). Hence we define the concept of microclimate as an emotional atmosphere and shared emotionality existing between members of a research environment, which ties the members together and affects their actions.…”

Section: Microclimate As Shared Emotionalitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Doctoral Education in a Successful Ecological Niche: A Qualitative Exploratory Case Study of the Relationship between the Microclimate and Doctoral Students’ Learning to Become a Researcher

Christensen

Lund

2014

IJHE

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Scholarly communities are dependent on and often measured by their ability to attract and develop doctoral students. Recent literature suggests that most scholarly communities entail ecological niches in which the doctoral students learn the codes and practices of research. In this article, we explore the microclimate in an ecological niche of doctoral education. Based on a theoretical definition of microclimate as the emotional atmosphere that ties group members together and affects their actions, we conducted a case study that aimed to describe the key features of the microclimate in a successful ecological niche of doctoral education, and the ways in which the microclimate support the doctoral students' learning. The methods we applied in the case study were based on short-term ethnographic fieldwork. The results reveal four key features of the emotional atmosphere in the microclimate: mutual appreciation, balancing seriousness and humor, desire, and ambition. These features constitute the shared emotionality that sets the scene for the microclimate, and affects and guides the doctoral students' daily practices. Furthermore, the results indicate that the microclimate supports successful doctoral education because it: 1) fleshes out the professional attitude that is necessary for becoming a successful researcher in the department, 2) shapes and adapts the doctoral students' desires to grasp and identify with the department's practices, and 3) provides the doctoral students with access to flow zones that drive their education. These results may suggest practical implications for fostering and cultivating successful ecological niches in medical education at doctoral level.

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Section: Microclimate and The Ecological Niches Of Doctoral Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Microclimate and The Ecological Niches Of Doctoral Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Microclimate and The Ecological Niches Of Doctoral Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Microclimate As Shared Emotionalitymentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Doctoral Education in a Successful Ecological Niche: A Qualitative Exploratory Case Study of the Relationship between the Microclimate and Doctoral Students’ Learning to Become a Researcher

Christensen

Lund

2014

IJHE

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“…(Oliver) [ Figure 4 near here]. It was argued that language and cultural competence are a foundation for a successful study sojourn (Cotterall 2013;Walsh 2010). As expected, language intelligibility made Kelly apprehensive due to the unfamiliar and difficult to grasp local accent.…”

Section: Symbolic Photographsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Capturing visual metaphors and tales: innovative or elusive?

Elliot

Reid

Baumfield

2016

International Journal of Research & Method in Education

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Engineering graduate students' critical events as catalysts of attrition

Zerbe

Sallai

Shanachilubwa

et al. 2022

J of Engineering Edu

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Background: While attrition from the PhD has been attributed to many high-level causal factors, such as funding, advisor relationship, and "fit" into a department, few studies have closely examined the mechanisms of attrition or why and how graduate engineering students begin to consider attrition from their doctoral programs.Design/Method: This study analyzed interviews with current and former doctoral engineering students at research universities across the United States, collected through two closely-related studies on graduate engineering experiences and attrition consideration. We used critical event analysis as a methodological approach to understand the experiences of a subset of 13 participants, who, at some point in their graduate career, experienced a singular event that caused them to question whether to persist in their PhD program.Purpose/Hypothesis: The purpose of the present paper is to investigate how graduate engineering students begin to question whether they should remain in their PhD programs of study.Results: We categorized the environments in which critical events occurred into four quadrants along the lines of University and Nonuniversity Settings and Routine versus Unexpected Contexts, mapping critical events and supporting events to themes from prior literature. The findings demonstrate how seemingly mundane experiences for faculty can be cataclysmic in the eyes of the student; how critical events serve to magnify other issues that had been accumulating over time; and how students may not self-reflect on their rationale for pursuing a PhD until a critical juncture occurs. Conclusions: Critical events are one mechanism by which students may begin considering departure from their engineering PhD programs. Some critical events masquerade within mundane contexts, like conversations or conferences (although, in retrospect, students can identify other relevant features contributing to dissatisfaction). From this work, we provide implications geared toward administrators, advisors, and graduate students on how to address and potentially mitigate critical events or their effects, including engaging in conversations about leaving.

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A model of research group microclimate: environmental and cultural factors affecting the experiences of overseas research students in the UK

Cited by 64 publications

References 18 publications

Doctoral Education in a Successful Ecological Niche: A Qualitative Exploratory Case Study of the Relationship between the Microclimate and Doctoral Students’ Learning to Become a Researcher

Doctoral Education in a Successful Ecological Niche: A Qualitative Exploratory Case Study of the Relationship between the Microclimate and Doctoral Students’ Learning to Become a Researcher

Capturing visual metaphors and tales: innovative or elusive?

Engineering graduate students' critical events as catalysts of attrition

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