Baby Steps

Today I want to remind you of the importance of doing even a small amount on your dissertation project each day. Reading an article, writing a paragraph, writing in your research journal all count. Even the smallest baby steps will help you to move forward.

Think of it as there are thousands of steps necessary to complete a dissertation, take one more of those steps today, and get that much closer to the finish line

Next time I will post an updated blog index. Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Send me an email with your ideas. leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu 

Researcher Mentor Interview: Dr. Anne Morris

1.          Please briefly describe your current mentees' research.

I have 3 current mentees. One of my students has just defended her dissertation and is now awaiting URR approval of her final dissertation. Her dissertation was a mixed methods study that evaluated the impact of a positive psychology curriculum in a career college that enrolls nontraditional students in Colorado. She found significant changes in student reports of well-being from pre-to-post assessment, and also integrated rich descriptive data on student reflections about their experiences with the curriculum and the impact that it had on them.

A second student is evaluating the impact of a mindfulness meditation intervention in a community program for survivors of interpersonal violence, and is also employing a mixed methods design with a non-equivalent dependent variable as part of the quantitative component. She is at the proposal stage.

My third student is at the proposal stage and will assess the role of organizational climate in moderating or mediating the association of cumulative exposure to trauma among child services professional to stress and turnover. She will use a quantitative design to address questions about exposure to trauma, stress, and turnover, and how organizational climate may moderate/mediate these relationships.

2.          How did you come to be a mentor?

This was a natural evolution from teaching to mentoring for me. I have had a lot of experience as a researcher in academic, community, and other settings. I realized that I could contribute to the development of a dissertation and that I enjoy working with students in this capacity.

3.          What do like best about mentoring research? 

What I enjoy most is providing guidance and support to a student and helping them to realize their objectives of conducting and completing a dissertation. It is a joy for me when students finish their PhDs. I have had 4 students complete their dissertation to date. Students need support along the way to keep going when there are inevitable setbacks or the goal seems far off on the horizon.

4.          What do you dislike the most about mentoring research?

I wish students would always spell check at a minimum and make use of the Writing Center and the librarians and other Walden resources more often than they do. When a student turns in a draft that is full of typos and does not follow APA format, it detracts from an otherwise good proposal and also reflects poorly on them.

I have also had challenges working with other committee members when we do not align completely on the best approach for concepts or methods. This requires a lot of discussion and back and forth, but I like to have a clear path for the student to follow and this requires that everyone is on the same page about important aspects of the study. I see myself as running interference on behalf of my students to ensure that there is unity within the committee and between the committee and the URR. That takes a lot of work at times, but is essential for the student to have the benefit of a strongly aligned committee, all working toward the same end: the successful completion of the dissertation.

5.          Advice for students to complete their dissertation? 

I always tell students that this is a marathon and not a sprint. You just have to take it step by step and keep going. At times you may be tired, but then you can switch to doing something more pedestrian, like formatting your tables, updating your references, etc. Try to work a little bit each day, even just around the edges. Reach out for help when you need it, don’t spin on your own. Keep your eyes on the prize, and you will get there for sure.

Researcher Mentor Interview: Dr. Tony Perry

Dr. Perry was formerly the program director for General, Social, Educational, and Health Psychology. He is now a core faculty member in psychology.

1.     Please briefly describe your current mentees' research

I currently serve as chair for over 30 students in SoP.  I have students from every specialization covering a wide variety of topics.  Most of the students are doing quantitative studies.  Here are some example dissertation topics my students are working on at the proposal/final dissertation stage:

·       Effects of long term lead exposure  on verbal comprehension and perceptual reasoning

·       The relationship between nutrient intake and social-emotional functioning in preschool children

·       Impact of family support on recidivism rates of formerly incarcerated individuals

·       Factors related to muscle dysmorphia symptomology in adolescent males

·       Transformational leadership, job engagement, and professional isolation among online university faculty

·       Barriers to caregiver medication adherence for foster children

·       Predicting occupational stress levels in professional pilots with commercial and airline transport pilot licenses

·       Work-family conflict, job burnout, and couple burnout in high stress occupations

·       Social intelligence of undergraduates enrolled in traditional vs. distance higher education learning programs

·       Consumer attitudes and behavior as a function of self-monitoring among civilian and military personnel

2.              How did you come to be a mentor?

I began mentoring Walden doctoral students when I joined Walden University in 2009 (as Program Director for General, Health, and Organizational Psychology).  Mentoring was definitely something I wanted to do even though my job was an administrative one.  In addition, it’s been the most rewarding part of working at Walden for the last 8 years.  I began to learn the mentoring process/role while I was a graduate student.  For many of us who went to a traditional university (brick and mortar), we were involved in research from the beginning of our graduate program.  My faculty mentor maintained a very active research laboratory where undergraduate and graduate students worked together with faculty.  In my graduate program, one of my roles was to train and mentor newer students in the program.  I was literally in the lab almost every day of the week working on research, designing studies, collecting data, analyzing data, collaborating with peers, etc.  Mentoring students has been a large part of my professional life ever since.

3.              What do like best about mentoring research? 

·       I think anyone who enjoys mentoring in psychology certainly values the scientific process.  Working with students in that journey of discovery is exciting.

·       Oral defenses!  One of the first real celebratory milestones during the doctoral process where the student and the committee discuss, share ideas, critique, think about next steps with regards to the student’s proposal and final dissertation.  This is not a test (okay, it is), but again, you are the expert demonstrating your knowledge, expertise, and ability to think about research issues and they relate to your dissertation.

·       Hooding students!  It is extremely rewarding to share the experience of accomplishment with students when they reach their goal.  For many of my students, it’s the first time I get to meet them in person. 

4.              What do you dislike the most about mentoring research?

·       I never like giving a U grade.

·       Students who withdraw before finishing (ABD – all but dissertation).  Most research has found students who do not finish the dissertation do so for reasons unrelated to ability to finish.  At all universities (online, traditional), there are students who despite the ability to finish their dissertation decide to withdraw.  It’s very discouraging to have a student withdraw when they are close to reaching their goal.

5.              Advice for students to complete their dissertation? 

·       Talk to your Program Director, Research Coordinator, and/or full-time

faculty (in your specialization) about the dissertation process before you finish your coursework.  Email them, schedule phones calls, talk to them at residency, ask questions, etc.

·       Students should come to the dissertation stage understanding that POS coursework and the dissertation process are completely different animals.  Dissertation work requires a different mindset.  When you are completing coursework (even graduate coursework) you are essentially spoon fed what to read, what questions to think about, what to write, etc.  Your instructors are the experts in your content courses.   When you begin the dissertation process, you (the student) are the expert.  In the dissertation, you (the student) are expected to make a new and creative contribution to a field of psychology study and demonstrate your ability to plan and conduct an independent research study.

Researcher Mentor Interview: Dr. Martha Giles

Over the next few posts, I am going have a special series with some interviews from Walden dissertation faculty in psychology. Here is a great chance to hear about how different faculty perceive the dissertation process. Today, we begin with Dr. Martha Giles.

1. Please briefly describe your current mentees' research.

Their research is on a myriad of topics and all three research methodologies.  My mentees are looking at breast cancer, parolee experience of reentry, why youth stay in childhood churches, treatment evaluation, and quality of life in the oldest old, to name a few.

2. How did you come to be a mentor?

Part of it due to my job description, but I take on new students because I love the topics they are studying.  It allows me to be involved in current research and learn about the latest research through their work.

3. What do like best about mentoring research?

The thing that really excites me is seeing an idea become a research question and then finally a completed study.  It is like reading a mystery story and actually being a part of the happy ending.

4. What do you dislike the most about mentoring research?

When students do not do their part… by that I mean students who do not look at previous dissertation, look at IRB documents, look at the templates, etc.  They are wasting their time and money, which makes me very sad.

5. Advice for students to complete their dissertation? 

Do everything in your power to inform yourself about the process, what to do, when to do it, and talk with your mentor.  Most important: work a bit each week!!! Never let a week go by without doing something on the dissertation.

New researcher interview!!

Check out the new researcher interview with Walden's own Dr. Jesus Tanguma: http://jsbhseditorblog.blogspot.com/

Accountability

It is easy to blame others when things go wrong, isn’t it? Your chair is compulsive about APA…. The URR is mean and impossible to please. However, today I want to remind you how important it is to be accountable for your own actions in general. Part of being a professional is recognizing that you make your own choices, and ultimately there really is no one else to blame. Accepting your own responsibility that contributed to a problem is part of your growth. No one expects you to be perfect, it is ok to say that you messed up and you will try to correct it.

Let me give you some examples. If you are having many problems with a committee member, perhaps there are communication issues and you each are not expressing yourself clearly. Try other forms of communication such as the phone. If this doesn't work, you must accept that it is your responsibility to do something about the situation. Contact your coordinator or program director and lay out the issues as neutrally as possible. Admit that you are probably equally responsible for the problems, but you would like some help in resolving it.

Why should you take responsibility? First, it shows maturity and professionalism to understand that both parties contributed to a problem. Second, when students start playing the blame game, whining, and complaining, it comes across as the student is probably the real source of the issue- is that what you want?

An illustration:

Dr. Stadtlander,

I need your help! My URR is being totally unreasonable, she wants me to rewrite my paper again for the third time. I have so much going on in my life, I simply do not have the time to respond to her OCD problems. Please how can I rid of her??

Compare the above to this one:

Dr. Stadtlander,

I need some advice, please. My proposal has been rejected by the URR now for the third time. I accept that my writing may be at issue; however, I am not sure how best to resolve the problem. I have spoken to my chair and he acknowledges there are still issues in the paper but is not sure how I can best address them. Do you have any suggestions?

The second student is obviously open to suggestions and will be willing to follow through with them. The first one does not come across as recognizing that he/she could be part of the problem and will probably fight any suggestions I make. 

Finally, I want to remind you that being accountable gives you back control. When you recognize that you are part of the problem you can then become part of the solution. Next time I will begin a series interviewing Walden psychology mentors. Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Send me an email with your ideas. leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu

Getting Feedback

From Paula: I do not understand why on this level (Ph.D.) – you do not get any feedback about the content of your paper. I am very passionate about my dissertation topic, but no faculty member/committee member ever commented on the subject. For me this was/is weird. I do not advocate for more feedback, but it would help to know this in advance and to understand the reasons for it.

Interesting issue, Paula, I had to stop and think about it for a while. I think there are a number of factors involved. First, unless you just happen to have a chair or committee member very knowledgeable about the topic (I have only a couple that I can think of), the faculty may not know a great deal about the subject. This means that their comments will tend to be related to the logic of the arguments you make and if you appear to have covered the necessary literature.

A second factor is that there is an underlying assumption that you are an expert in the area you are addressing. As a committee member, even if I know something about the topic, in all likelihood I have not gone into a great deal of depth in the literature of your specific subtopic. As someone reading the paper, I will look for the student's understanding of the areas that I do know. I will also look at the type of references used – are they primarily books or textbooks? This shows the student has not dug deep enough into the literature.

A third comment, I know for me (and probably most faculty) I tend to be a generalist in my knowledge, I seem to know a little about many topics and a great deal about some narrow ones. After teaching many different psychology courses over the last 25 years (icky to realize that!), I have learned quite a bit about most areas of psychology. This means I can generally judge if the content seems adequate or if the student has misunderstood something important. Also, I find most faculty will ask questions of the student in the paper rather than make comments on what is written- the idea is to make you think it through not to provide the answers.

A final observation, in general I think what I look for in content is a logical argument. If you think back to the posts, where I discussed writing from broad subjects to narrowing it to the subtopics, this makes sense. An example, if John sends me a draft of his proposal, examining the elderly's opinion of their medical care, there are certain content areas I expect to be addressed. He should discuss aging in general, aging and medical care, patient satisfaction, etc. I want to be educated on the topic/ subtopics, if I don’t feel like I really understand the rationale, there is something missing in content.

Next time we will look at being accountable for your actions. Do you have an issue or a question that you would like me to discuss in a future post? Send me an email with your ideas. leann.stadtlander@waldenu.edu