Open AccessJournal Conversations: Building the Research Self-Efficacy of an Aboriginal Early Career Academic
Author(s) -
Michelle Dickson
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
the qualitative report
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.335
H-Index - 35
ISSN - 2160-3715
DOI - 10.46743/2160-3715/2017.2799
Subject(s) - cognitive dissonance , objectivity (philosophy) , subjectivity , sociology , psychology , epistemology , social psychology , philosophy
This paper shows how I used my research journal mainly as a reflective tool throughout the process of applying for and completing a PhD. Embarking on a PhD can be daunting for anyone and I was challenged by my lack of academic self-efficacy. In the absence of a formal academic mentor my research journal became my confidante, a tool that helped me make progress at times when barriers to research seemed insurmountable. It helped me decrease the cognitive dissonance I was experiencing about issues of subjectivity/objectivity and the positioning of my self in the research. This paper shares research journal entries as I take you on my research journey. The entries make public some of the values I uphold for my research and show how I found ways to embed my own epistemology as an Australian Aboriginal (Koori) researcher into a PhD that also meets a Western academic research paradigm.