The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on early career researcher activity, development, career, and well-being: the state of the art

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to identify the documented effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on early career researcher (ECR) activity, development, career prospects and well-being. Design/methodology/approach This is a systematic literature review of English language peer-reviewed studies published between 2020 and 2021, which provided empirical evidence of the impact of the pandemic on ECR activity and development. The search strategy involved online databases (Scopus, Web of Science and Overton); well-established higher education journals (based on Scopus classification) and references in the retained articles (snowballing). The final sample included 11 papers. Findings The evidence shows that ECRs have been affected in terms of research activity, researcher development, career prospects and well-being. Although many negative consequences were identified, some promising learning practices have arisen; however, these opportunities were not always fully realised. The results raise questions about differential effects across fields and possible long-term consequences where some fields and some scholars may be worse off due to priorities established as societies struggle to recover. Practical implications There is a need for revised institutional and national policies to ensure that sufficient measures are implemented to support ECRs’ research work in a situation where new duties and chores were added during the pandemic. Originality/value This paper provides insights into the impacts of the initial societal challenges of the pandemic on ECRs across disciplines that may have long-lasting effects on their academic development and well-being.

What Young Lecturers in Indonesia Perceived Covid-19 Handling Related to Their Anxiety and Continuing Study Plan: A Multiple Regression Analysis

“…The answer may be that they are currently not prioritizing further studies. The workload and pressures of the pandemic have made studying not a choice, which means it's not really a concern, after all this is still the beginning of their careers (Harun et al, 2020;Lokhtina et al, 2022;Mursidi & Sundiman, 2014;Pratikno & Sujarwo, 2018).…”

“…First, the role that is demanded by the senior teaching staff to conduct online learning since it requires sufficient IT skills the senior lack of (Ogundele, 2019;Saripudin et al, 2021;Soysal et al, 2019). Second, there is a potential disruption to their careers due to the pandemic circumstances and the recovery process in the years ahead (Gewin, 2021;Herman et al, 2021;Lokhtina et al, 2022;Wakit & Rhain, 2021).…”

Is there a fit between PhD candidates’ and their supervisors’ perceptions on the impact of COVID-19 on doctoral education?

“…There is growing body of evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic has had its toll on research and researchers. Most of the reported pandemic influences have been negative, though a few positive ones have been described (review by Lokhtina et al , 2022). The effects of COVID-19 have not been evenly distributed across the disciplines nor researchers at different stages of their careers (Lee and Haupt, 2021).…”

“…The effects of COVID-19 have not been evenly distributed across the disciplines nor researchers at different stages of their careers (Lee and Haupt, 2021). In particular, PhD candidates have been found to suffer from negative pandemic effects (Andersen et al , 2021; Donohue et al , 2021; Krukowski et al , 2021; Viglione, 2020; Lokhtina et al , 2022). Among the influences detected are reduced productivity (Cui, Ding, and Zhu, 2021), delays in timelines (Adarmouch et al , 2020; Atkinson et al , 2021; Ramvilas et al , 2021), expiry of research funding (Stamp et al , 2021), lack of or limited access to the data and participants (Pyhältö et al , 2022), erosion of research support networks (Guintivano et al , 2021), restrained access to the resources provided by the institution and a reduction in well-being (Atkinson et al , 2021; Donohue et al , 2021).…”

The U.S. faculty job market survives the SARS-CoV-2 global pandemic

“…The US administration announced an official end to the national and public health emergency as of May 2023, and data is beginning to emerge on how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted early career academics across numerous fields. Recently reviewed by Lokhtina et al, the four main areas affected by COVID-19 include 1) research activity, 2) researcher development, 3) career prospects, and 4) well-being (Lokhtina et al ., 2022). Of note, a vast majority of studies included in this review, and others (Herman et al ., 2021) focus on self-reported perceptions in these listed areas.…”