Student Welfare Support Services University of Oxford Student

Student Welfare & Support Services University of Oxford Student Counselling Service Alan Percy: Head of Counselling Service

Student Welfare & Support Services Identifying and Overcoming the Psychological Challenges of doing a Post Graduate Degree

Student Welfare & Support Services Why are the Psychological Challenges of Post Graduate Research a Problem? • Worldwide concerns about rates of Ph. D completion and speed of completion • University of Oxford Post Graduates represent 40% of all students contacting Counselling Service (this represents exact proportion of student body as a whole and has been a constant figure for the past 15 years)

Student Welfare & Support Services Why are the Psychological Challenges of Post Graduate Research a Problem? • Common patterns of presenting problems at university counselling services of post graduate students • Little therapeutic or counselling literature on the specific problems for post graduate students

Student Welfare & Support Services Research into the Key Factors Affecting Non-completion and Delayed Completion of Research Doctorates In summary: There is no magic answer! Multiple variables which often act in combination

Student Welfare & Support Services Completion Rates • 57% of full time UK students completed their Ph. D after five years. 71% completed after 7 years (HEFCE 2005). • 40%-60% in USA (results vary widely) • After 7 years 53% students in Australia completed.

Student Welfare & Support Services Variables Affecting Doctoral Research Student Completion rates • Wright and Cochrane (2000) break these down into three categories in the literature: • Institutional and Structural issues • Individual Non-Psychological characteristics / demographics such as age, gender, ethnicity, national/international status and sources of funding • Individual factors intrinsic to the student, psychological factors such as motivation, ego strength, self efficacy, independence/dependency and anxiety

Student Welfare & Support Services Academic Discipline One significant factor is that of academic discipline; where studies worldwide show science students have higher and speedier rates of doctoral completion than those students in social sciences and arts / humanities subjects UK HEFCE study showed 81% science students complete after 7 yrs, compared with 61% social science and 62% humanities students.

Student Welfare & Support Services Academic Discipline UK Completion Rates • UK HEFCE study showed 81% science students complete after 7 yrs • This compares with 61% social science and 62% humanities students

Student Welfare & Support Services Academic Discipline Science subjects key factors and structure: • Stability of funding. • Higher degree of structure in science subjects, patterns of laboratory based work. • Close relationship with supervisor or advisor. • Team work, thereby helping the student work in a more task focussed and structured way.

Student Welfare & Support Services Academic Discipline Social sciences, humanities and arts based subject key factors and structure: • less structure, with the student usually working on their own • less contact with their supervisor or adviser • feelings of isolation and a lack of socialisation into the academic community

Student Welfare & Support Services Academic Discipline • These conditions of isolation, a lack of external structures and work targets can increase rumination, seriously impact on the individual qualities and psychological factors which have a negative impact on work efficiency and therefore completion rates and times. This can create or exacerbate mental health problems (Golde 1998, 2000 and 2005, Lovitts 2001)

Student Welfare & Support Services External and Internal Structure? • The external structures which are integral to science research acts in a psychologically ‘contain’ capacity for many of the emotional challenges of post graduate research • This psychologically containing structure is lacking in humanities, arts and social science subjects • Task to develop ‘internal’ skills to promote self efficacy and emotional resilience

Student Welfare & Support Services Academic Procrastination • A number of studies have shown high levels of academic procrastination, as defined by putting off academic tasks, in doctoral students with associated anxieties, such as fear of failure and maladaptive perfectionism, leading to a range of self sabotaging behaviours (Muszynski and Akamatsu 1991, Johnson et al 2000, Ahern and Manathunga 2004, Onwuegbuzie 2004, Alexander and Onwuegbuzie 2007).

Student Welfare & Support Services Procrastination • “I’ll start when I feel motivated!” • Most people procrastinate, putting off difficult things, things we don’t like, or don’t interest us. Becomes a problem if it seriously affects our work, makes us guilty and anxious. • Difference between ‘functioning’ procrastinators and ‘paralysed’ procrastinators. • Motivation leads to action? • Action leads to motivation and then further action creating momentum

Student Welfare & Support Services Self Sabotaging Behaviours • Process of (deliberately but not consciously) creating obstacles to your goals. Unconsciously creating an alibi for not fulfilling your potential. • Costs: Risk failure, self doubt, anxiety, reduced self confidence, missed opportunities, delay, etc

Student Welfare & Support Services Self Sabotaging Behaviours • Over-committing: study, family, friends, teaching…. . still take on more? • Procrastination: last minute panic • Perfectionism: unrealistic and impossible expectations. “Best is the enemy of good” • Busyness: look and feel very busy, but is it what really needs to be done? Do you prioritise? • Disorganisation: No routine or system to help manage your work, time, making life easier

Student Welfare & Support Services Defeating Self Sabotage • Be aware: review your thoughts and behaviours to identify unhelpful patterns, such as being perfectionist or over-committing • Take Action: set achievable deadlines (procrastination), realistic goals (perfectionist) get rid of extra demands (over-committing) • Challenge your thinking: Thinking determines our behaviour, so challenge your assumptions, beliefs and thoughts that aren’t working. “I can’t do that…. . Why not? ”

Student Welfare & Support Services Strategies for Defeating Self Sabotage Over-committing: • Use a diary to ‘audit’ actual time commitments • Free yourself up from commitments, if taking on new things give up something else • Don’t automatically say ‘yes’, give yourself time to check and get back, working out reality of commitment, allow yourself to ‘just say no’ • Watch out for ‘Elephants on the horizon’

Student Welfare & Support Services Strategies for Defeating Self Sabotage Procrastination: • Make a plan, set deadlines (short, medium and longer term) and tell someone (supervisor, colleagues, friends? ) to hold you to them • Break work down into small steps. Make small starts when blocked • Stick to plans, give yourself rewards when achieved • Set up routines, treat academic research as a job, fixed hours (with breaks), not just when you feel motivated

Student Welfare & Support Services Strategies for Defeating Self Sabotage Perfectionism: • Set realistic and attainable standards. Remember this is a Ph. D not a Nobel prize, original work means a small, even miniscule, step in advancing knowledge • You are not your thesis…separate the two. Whatever you do will not be perfect. Write whatever comes, to have something to refine and work on • Get an objective viewpoint from others in department, supervisor and conferences

Student Welfare & Support Services Strategies to Improve Emotional Resilience • Confidence/Self-efficacy – Having a strong sense of self-worth, being selfreliant and having confidence in your ability to solve problems – Knowing what your strengths and weaknesses are and that you can rely on your strengths to cope when things get difficult

Student Welfare & Support Services Strategies to Improve Emotional Resilience • Adaptability – People who can deal with ambiguity, think flexibly, recognize thinking errors and ‘reframe’ unhelpful, negative or inaccurate thoughts are more resilient. As are those who face challenge reflectively rather than reactively

Student Welfare & Support Services Strategies to Improve Emotional Resilience • Purposefulness – Research shows that having a sense of meaning and purpose in what we do, having healthy expectations and motivation provides us with a foundation that allows us to be more resilient in the face of stress and adversity and a sense of hopefulness. – It Is associated with higher levels of happiness and satisfaction and lower rates of depressive symptoms.

Student Welfare & Support Services Strategies to Improve Emotional Resilience Social support • People with high emotional awareness who understand their own emotions tend also to be high on empathy - the ability to read and understand the emotions of others • This is important for resilience as it helps us to build relationships with others - creating social support • High levels of social support are associated with good health and foster adaptive coping strategies. Practise asking for help and be receptive when it is offered • Maintain high-quality relationships by telling people how much you value their support • Return favors and thoughtfulness—the principle of reciprocity

Student Welfare & Support Services Strategies to Improve Emotional Resilience • Perspective • All or nothing thinking – Undermining satisfaction and self esteem • Management of work / life balance • Self Agency – Need to take some degree of control • Perspective of time

Student Welfare & Support Services Imposter Syndrome • Common in Post Graduate Students • Fear of being a fraud • All previous achievements are accidental, easy, lucky, etc • This time I will finally be ‘found out’. • “This is the final academic achievement that will make everything in my life alright”

Student Welfare & Support Services Academic Developmental Stages • Parent / Child or Teacher / Pupil • ‘Adult’ independent academic / researcher • Is a research doctorate stage a period of ‘academic adolescence’ ? • Same uncomfortable tension of moving from dependency to relative independence • Capacity to tolerate uncertainty and ‘not knowing’

Student Welfare & Support Services Any Questions or Comments ?

Student Welfare & Support Services Thank You for Listening