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Early career training and development of academic independence: a case of life sciences in Japan

Yoshioka-Kobayashi, Tohru and Shibayama, Sotaro LU (2021) In Studies in Higher Education 46(12). p.2751-2773
Abstract
Academic training is the initial step for junior scientists to learn to develop into independent scientists. This study investigates how supervisors decide to employ different approaches of early-career research training, and how these approaches influence the degree of trainees’ independence in their later careers. Drawing on survey and bibliometric data of life scientists in Japanese universities, this study presents the following findings. First, if scientists are allowed higher autonomy in upstream research functions in early-career training, they later tend to attain greater organizational independence with higher organizational ranks. Second, if scientists are encouraged to deviate from conventional research topics during... (More)
Academic training is the initial step for junior scientists to learn to develop into independent scientists. This study investigates how supervisors decide to employ different approaches of early-career research training, and how these approaches influence the degree of trainees’ independence in their later careers. Drawing on survey and bibliometric data of life scientists in Japanese universities, this study presents the following findings. First, if scientists are allowed higher autonomy in upstream research functions in early-career training, they later tend to attain greater organizational independence with higher organizational ranks. Second, if scientists are encouraged to deviate from conventional research topics during early-career training, they later tend to achieve greater cognitive independence by producing original research output. Third, the differences in the training approaches chosen by individual supervisors are influenced by the training that they had received in their early-career training. Overall, the study suggests that training approaches and independence of scientists are socialized in the local training context and passed down from one generation to the next. (Less)
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author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Academic training, graduate education, independence, autonomy, PhD, postdoctoral researcher
in
Studies in Higher Education
volume
46
issue
12
pages
2751 - 2773
publisher
Taylor & Francis
external identifiers
  • scopus:85090940713
ISSN
0307-5079
DOI
10.1080/03075079.2020.1817889
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
462cdad1-5858-45dc-856b-209f9b773013
date added to LUP
2020-09-12 00:17:52
date last changed
2022-04-19 00:39:22
@article{462cdad1-5858-45dc-856b-209f9b773013,
  abstract     = {{Academic training is the initial step for junior scientists to learn to develop into independent scientists. This study investigates how supervisors decide to employ different approaches of early-career research training, and how these approaches influence the degree of trainees’ independence in their later careers. Drawing on survey and bibliometric data of life scientists in Japanese universities, this study presents the following findings. First, if scientists are allowed higher autonomy in upstream research functions in early-career training, they later tend to attain greater organizational independence with higher organizational ranks. Second, if scientists are encouraged to deviate from conventional research topics during early-career training, they later tend to achieve greater cognitive independence by producing original research output. Third, the differences in the training approaches chosen by individual supervisors are influenced by the training that they had received in their early-career training. Overall, the study suggests that training approaches and independence of scientists are socialized in the local training context and passed down from one generation to the next.}},
  author       = {{Yoshioka-Kobayashi, Tohru and Shibayama, Sotaro}},
  issn         = {{0307-5079}},
  keywords     = {{Academic training; graduate education; independence; autonomy; PhD; postdoctoral researcher}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{12}},
  pages        = {{2751--2773}},
  publisher    = {{Taylor & Francis}},
  series       = {{Studies in Higher Education}},
  title        = {{Early career training and development of academic independence: a case of life sciences in Japan}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2020.1817889}},
  doi          = {{10.1080/03075079.2020.1817889}},
  volume       = {{46}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}