recommendation in research about working students

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Can social identities improve working students’ academic and social outcomes lessons from three studies.

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Grozev, V.H.; Easterbrook, M.J. Can Social Identities Improve Working Students’ Academic and Social Outcomes? Lessons from Three Studies. Educ. Sci. 2024 , 14 , 939. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14090939

Grozev VH, Easterbrook MJ. Can Social Identities Improve Working Students’ Academic and Social Outcomes? Lessons from Three Studies. Education Sciences . 2024; 14(9):939. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14090939

Grozev, Vladislav H., and Matthew J. Easterbrook. 2024. "Can Social Identities Improve Working Students’ Academic and Social Outcomes? Lessons from Three Studies" Education Sciences 14, no. 9: 939. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14090939

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Understanding the Working College Student

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How appropriate for today and for the future are the policies and practices of higher education that largely assume a norm of traditional-age students with minimal on-campus, or no, work commitments?Despite the fact that work is a fundamental part of life for nearly half of all undergraduate students – with a substantial number of “traditional” dependent undergraduates in employment, and working independent undergraduates averaging 34.5 hours per week – little attention has been given to how working influences the integration and engagement experiences of students who work, especially those who work full-time, or how the benefits and costs of working differ between traditional age-students and adult students.The high, and increasing, prevalence and intensity of working among both dependent and independent students raises a number of important questions for public policymakers, college administrators, faculty, academic advisors, student services and financial aid staff, and institutional and educational researchers, including: Why do so many college students work so many hours? What are the characteristics of undergraduates who work? What are the implications of working for students’ educational experiences and outcomes? And, how can public and institutional policymakers promote the educational success of undergraduate students who work? This book offers the most complete and comprehensive conceptualization of the “working college student” available. It provides a multi-faceted picture of the characteristics, experiences, and challenges of working college students and a more complete understanding of the heterogeneity underlying the label “undergraduates who work” and the implications of working for undergraduate students’ educational experiences and outcomes. The volume stresses the importance of recognizing the value and contribution of adult learners to higher education, and takes issue with the appropriateness of the term “non-traditional” itself, both because of the prevalence of this group, and because it allows higher education institutions to avoid considering changes that will meet the needs of this population, including changes in course offerings, course scheduling, financial aid, and pedagogy.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Part section one | 20  pages, work as a form of financial aid, chapter 1 | 18  pages, student work and the financial aid system, part section two | 92  pages, work as a component of student identity, chapter 2 | 20  pages, adult workers as undergraduate students, chapter 3 | 24  pages, overcoming adversity, chapter 4 | 26  pages, mobile working students, chapter 5 | 20  pages, academic success for working adult students, part section three | 64  pages, work as a vehicle for promoting cognitive development and learning, chapter 6 | 19  pages, using economics to illuminate the dynamic higher education landscape, chapter 7 | 21  pages, of a mind to labor, chapter 8 | 22  pages, part section four | 81  pages, work as a vehicle for improving student engagement, chapter 9 | 34  pages, working during college, chapter 10 | 21  pages, effects of work on african american college students' engagement, chapter 11 | 24  pages, impact of working on undergraduate students' interactions with faculty, part section five | 49  pages, work as a vehicle for improving educational and economic attainment, chapter 12 | 22  pages, understanding the relationship between working while in college and future salaries, chapter | 25  pages, conclusions and recommendations for policy, practice, and future research.

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Balancing Work, School, and Personal Life among Graduate Students: a Positive Psychology Approach

• Published: 24 July 2018
• Volume 14 , pages 1265–1286, ( 2019 )

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• Jessica M. Nicklin 1 ,
• Emily J. Meachon 1 &
• Laurel A. McNall 2  

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Graduate students are faced with an array of responsibilities in their personal and professional lives, yet little research has explored how working students maintain a sense of well-being while managing work, school, and personal-life. Drawing on conservation of resources theory and work-family enrichment theory, we explored personal, psychological resources that increase enrichment and decrease conflict, and in turn decrease perceptions of stress. In a study of 231 employed graduate students, we found that mindfulness was negatively related to stress via perceptions of conflict and enrichment, whereas self-compassion, resilience, and recovery experience were negatively related to stress, but only through conflict, not enrichment. These findings suggest that graduate students who are able to be “in the moment” may experience higher levels of well-being, in part due to greater enrichment and lower conflict.

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Nicklin, J.M., Meachon, E.J. & McNall, L.A. Balancing Work, School, and Personal Life among Graduate Students: a Positive Psychology Approach. Applied Research Quality Life 14 , 1265–1286 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-018-9650-z

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Impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on working students: Results from the Labour Force Survey and the student lifestyle survey

Shinobu tsurugano.

1 Health Care Center, The University of Electro‐Communications, Tokyo Japan

2 Diversified Employment and Work‐Style Research Team, Japan Society for Occupational Health, Tokyo Japan

Mariko Nishikitani

3 Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University, New York NY, USA

4 Medical Information Center, Kyushu University Hospital, Fukuoka Japan

Mariko Inoue

5 Graduate School of Public Health, Teikyo University, Tokyo Japan

The COVID‐19 pandemic has caused devastating damage to employment globally, particularly among the non‐standard workforce. The objective of this study was to identify the effects of the pandemic on the employment status and lives of working students in Japan.

The Labour Force Survey (January 2019 to May 2020) was used to examine changes in students’ work situations. In addition, to investigate the economic and health conditions of university students during the pandemic, the Student Lifestyle Survey was conducted in late May 2020. This survey asked students at a national university in Tokyo about recent changes in their studies, work, and lives.

The number of working students reported in the Labour Force Survey has declined sharply since March 2020, falling by 780,000 (46%) in April. According to a survey of university students’ living conditions, 37% were concerned about living expenses and tuition fees, and a higher percentage of students who were aware of financial insecurity had poor self‐rated health.

Nearly half of working students have lost their jobs during the pandemic in Japan, which has affected their lives, studies, and health. There is a need to monitor the impact of economic insecurity on students’ studies and health over time, and to expand the safety net for disadvantaged students.

1. INTRODUCTION

Layoffs and suspension of workers have sharply increased during the COVID‐19 pandemic, particularly among non‐standard workers. About 40% of all workers in Japan are non‐standard, including part‐time and temporary workers. 1 All students who work while attending college, university, or graduate school are in part‐time or other non‐standard employment. Therefore, for students who make a living from part‐time income, loss of employment would have a significant impact on their lives and studies.

The deprivations of working students started even before the pandemic and their difficult student life has been noted in recent years. A major cause is the increasing cost of tuition, with the reduction of government subsidies to universities and tuition hikes in both the national and private sectors. 2 At the same time, benefits provided by families have been declining for the past decade. Many students borrow scholarship funds, with 47.5% of university students receiving scholarships from the Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) and other loan‐based scholarships. However, many students are hesitant to borrow because there is no guarantee that they will have a stable income after graduation due to declining wages and increasing non‐standard employment in recent years. As a result of these social factors, the percentage of working students is increasing every year, and the amount of part‐time work as a percentage of college students’ monthly income is also increasing. 3

Non‐standard work and unemployment are important social determinants of health. 4 Previous research on the health of working students has shown that working part‐time for long periods of time can lead to mental health problems, and it has often been noted that this can lead to lower academic performance. 5 The employment situation in Japan has been relatively stable since 2010, but the deterioration in employment caused by COVID‐19 was an unexpected event. Thus, the impact of the pandemic on workers’ employment and lives may not be the same as that of a usual recession.

This study investigated the employment conditions and lives of working students during the pandemic, using official statistics and a university student lifestyle survey.

2. SUBJECTS AND METHODS

This study used publicly available aggregate data from the Labour Force Survey (Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications), an official national statistics repository. 6 Working students were defined as those employed in non‐agriculture and forestry industries whose activity status was “working while attending school.” For chronological changes in the number of working students, the monthly number of working students from January 2019 to May 2020, including during the spread of COVID‐19 infection, was explored by sex and age group. During this period, the Japanese government declared a nationwide state of emergency on April 16, 2020 that was lifted on May 16, 2020.

Student employment and living conditions were investigated using a survey of living conditions conducted in late May 2020 (during the declaration of a state of emergency) at a national science and engineering university in Tokyo, using the university's online enrollment system. The number of students was 5102 (3452 undergraduates, of which 11.2% were women, 1375 were graduate students, and 275 were research students), and we obtained 2530 responses (49.5% response rate).

The survey items included respondents’ information (ie, name, ID number, sex, and student category), residence situation (ie, family home location, current residence, and household type), socioeconomic status (financial hardships such as living expenses and school fees, economic insecurity, and current or future part‐time work), remote instruction (ie, class attendance and class satisfaction), university life (ie, presence of close friends on campus, membership in clubs or other extracurricular activities, and participation in clubs or extracurricular activities on campus or remotely), health status (ie, current health, anxiety and/or worry, and sports or muscle training routine), and job search (ie, anxiety or worry about job searches). Free descriptions were permitted concerning socioeconomic status, remote instruction, and job search categories.

In this study, students who responded that their financial situation was “ pretty tough ” or “ I’m worried about the future, but for now, I think I’m alright .” were included in the “economic insecurity” group, while those who responded “ no problem ” were included in the “no economic insecurity” group. The study respondents included 1381 undergraduate and 423 graduate students who answered questions about economic insecurity. Based on this grouping, comparisons were made involving the above survey items. The chi‐squared test was used to compare the proportions of each item between the groups. Voluntary statements concerning economic insecurity and job searches were used to categorize the students’ problems and to examine the impact of the pandemic on students’ academic activities, lives, and health.

All procedures were conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and later amendments thereof. The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of the University of Electro‐Communications (approval number, 20013). Students consented to participate by choosing to not opt‐out when that option was widely publicized. The opt‐out material is available on the website https://www.uec.ac.jp/news/announcement/2020/20201224_2984.html .

The number of working students in the Labour Force Survey is shown in Figure  1 . The number of working students was 2.14 million in January 2020. This number decreased sharply after March, reaching 920 000 (450 000 men and 470 000 women) in April 2020, when the declaration of a state of emergency was announced nationwide. Although the number of workers was increasing in May, it remained 610 000 (32.7%) lower than in the same month in 2019. An analysis according to age group revealed significant reductions in the numbers of young working students aged 15‐19 and 20‐24 in April 2020, down 340 000 (−49%) and 400 000 (−45%), respectively, compared to the same month in 2019.

Changes in working students in Japan from January 2019 to May 2020. Upper panel: Numbers of working students stratified according to sex (15‐64 years old). Male working students are shown as solid lines and female students as dotted lines. Arrows in the figure indicate the “Declaration of Emergency” period. Lower panels: Numbers of working students stratified according to sex and age group (15‐29 years old)

The findings from the survey of university living conditions are shown in Table  1 . Of the 1,804 participants in this study, 741 (41.1%) were engaged in part‐time work at the time of the survey. Of the 1,063 students who were not working, 605 (56.9%) wanted to work after reopening of the university. The group of 674 respondents (37.4%) who answered that living expenses and tuition fees were “ pretty tough ” or “ I’m worried about the future , but for now , I think I’m alright .” were included in the economic insecurity group. Compared to respondents without economic insecurity, those with economic insecurity included more part‐time workers (36.3% vs 49.1%), more who wanted to work after reopening of the school (50.0% vs 72.0%), more graduate students than undergraduate (20.6% vs 28.2%), and more living alone (58.5% vs 73.0%).

Socioeconomic and health status among university students (n = 1,804)

Economic insecurity “ Yes ”: Respondents who answered that tuition, living expenses, and other financial aspects are “ pretty tough ” or “ I’m worried about the future , but for now , I’m alright .” Economic insecurity “ No ”: Respondents who answered that tuition, living expenses, and other financial aspects are “No problem.” The chi‐squared test was used to examine differences between groups.

In terms of health status, a significantly greater percentage of the economic insecurity group reported poor self‐rated health (those who answered that their current health was “not good” or “bad”) and increased anxiety and worry, compared to those without economic insecurity (10.8% vs 5.7%, P  <.00001; 42.0% vs 28.2%, P  <.00001). There was no difference between the two groups regarding remote instruction, university life, or job search concerns.

There were 1,105 free descriptions. From the statements, we extracted the most frequently appearing words and phrases then categorized them based on context. The students’ voluntary statements were classified into five broad categories:

• Income (847 descriptions): Many students were struggling to make ends meet due to a sudden decrease or disruption in their or their parents’ household income. “ I’m a freshman , but I can't even start a part‐time job because of the coronavirus . My parents don't send me much money and I’m worried about my life .” (1st year undergraduate). “ My father , a stage designer , hasn't had any work since late February , and my mother can't work because she is taking care of her grandfather . My family is currently supported by my part‐time job and my father's savings .” (1st year master's student). Several respondents stated that the expenses associated with taking virtual classes were a burden on their household budget. “ The purchase of equipment and Internet service to use for virtual classes was expensive, and because I spent more time at home, my utility bills increased considerably. I make very little income from part‐time work, so in 2 months I will run out of money to live on .” (3rd year undergraduate).
• Job search (354 descriptions): Many students expressed concern about their future employment prospects and their current job search. “ I fear that the negative effects of the spread of the new coronavirus will extend to our employment period .” (2nd year undergraduate). “ The number of companies accepting internships has decreased significantly and we may not be able to participate .” (3rd year undergraduate student). “ I received a job offer from a company , but I’m worried that it might be cancelled due to the recession .” (2nd year master's student). “ My friends have told me that some people have had their job offers rescinded and others have been unable to find a job because the industry they want to work in has stopped hiring altogether . I worry that the effects of the pandemic are so severe that it will not be easy for me to find a job .” (4th year undergraduate). “ I can't have the opportunity to conduct an active job search , such as going directly to the university's job search office and proactively communicating with the staff to obtain information about graduates working at the company in which I want to work .” (5th year undergraduate).
• Financial support (90 descriptions): Many students complained about problems related to compensation from companies for suspension of part‐time work and lack of financial support from the government for needy students. “ My part‐time employer ordered me to take a leave of absence from work , without pay, and I have not received any income since April .” (2nd year undergraduate). “ I pay my own rent , living expenses , and so forth , but my parents pay school fees , so I am not eligible for the government's special benefit for students .” (4th year undergraduate). “ I used to work at an event every spring and summer only , but when I lost that part‐time job , my annual income was cut in half . However , I was not working all year round , so I am not eligible for special student benefits .” (1st year master's student).
• Continuing studies (82 descriptions): In some cases, students described that they had difficulty continuing their studies and balancing their research activities due to financial hardships. “ My parents’ income is low , so I have to make ends meet for tuition , textbooks , and food with part‐time work and scholarships , but I’ve lost my part‐time job due to the Coronavirus disaster and I’m on the edge of making ends meet . At this rate , I’m going to have to draw down my savings for graduate school .” (3rd year undergraduate student). “ In recent months , the hotel where my mother works to pay my tuition has experienced a significant decline in earnings . As a result , I have taken out new debt to pay for my school fees . If I or my mother's employment situation worsens in the future , I will have to give up my studies .” (4th year undergraduate). “ Because of the loss of part‐time work , they will have to earn quite a bit of money once the state of emergency is lifted , but science and engineering students will not be able to focus on their research .” (2nd year master's student).
• Health (12 descriptions): With regard to health, several students commented that they were eating less frequently because of a decrease in part‐time income. “ My part‐time job income has been drastically reduced due to the effects of the coronavirus , so I’ve been forced to cut back on food and other expenses .” (3rd year undergraduate). “ My income has been reduced because of the reduced shifts at my part‐time job … Anyway , I’m home all of the time now , so I’m eating one meal a day . I’ve gotten used to it , but I’m worried about my nutrition …” (4th year undergraduate).

4. DISCUSSION

Our results indicate that the number of working students in Japan as of April 2020 had decreased by 780 000 (−45.9%), compared to the same month in 2019. In addition, in the student lifestyle survey, about one‐third of the students were aware of economic insecurity and reported concerns about low income, job searches, continuing studies, and financial support. Students with economic anxiety were also more likely to report poor self‐rated health and increased anxiety.

In the Labour Force Survey, the total number of part‐time workers as of April 2020 was 14.02 million, of which only a small percentage were working students (6.5%, 920 000). However, when comparing the percentage decrease in workers to the same month in 2019, the percentage decrease in all part‐time workers was 9.5% (780 000) compared to 45% (870 000) for working students. Furthermore, the industries with the largest decline in the number of working students at the same time were the accommodation and food service industry (−460 000), wholesale and retail trade (−330 000), manufacturing industry (−170 000), lifestyle‐related services industry (−110 000), and education and learning support industry (−110 000). 6 According to a survey by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the most common industries in which students work part‐time are the sales industry (eg, supermarket), the restaurant industry (eg, restaurant chains), and the education industry (eg, cram school and tutoring), all of which are industries where the number of workers decreased significantly due to the pandemic. 7 Based on the results of these surveys, the risk of student part‐time workers losing their jobs as a result of the COVID‐19 pandemic is considered to be greater than the risk in the general part‐time workforce.

Large‐scale unemployment of nonregular workers in Japan in recent years is attributable to the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September 2008, when nonregular workers (dispatch workers in particular) were laid off. 8 Research on the impact of the collapse on student employment has focused on the job market for new graduates and the labor difficulties encountered by young people 9 , 10 ; few studies have explored the impact on part‐time student workers.

Using official statistics from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (“Report on employment service” 11 data), we compared the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on the employment of part‐time workers to that of the Lehman Brothers crisis. The decline in the active job vacancy/application ratio was 0.28% (falling from 1.59% to 1.31%) during the COVID‐19 pandemic (February to May 2020) compared to 0.15% (from 0.91% to 0.76%) during the Lehman Brothers collapse (February to May 2009). When we compared the April 2020 job vacancy levels to those in the same month of the previous year, we found that the accommodation, food and beverage (−53.6%), manufacturing (−43.3%), education (−42.0%), and retail and sales (−35.4%) industries revealed remarkable declines in the numbers of new jobs. Six months after the Lehman Brothers collapse (April 2009), the manufacturing industry exhibited the largest decline in that number (−39.6%) (data not shown). These findings suggest that the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on student part‐time work may be greater than that of the Lehman Brothers collapse, at least soon after the crisis passed.

For working students who have lost work or have become unemployed due to COVID‐19, the possibility of being able to return to work in the future is an important matter. Although the Labour Force Survey showed that the increase in the unemployment rate in May 2020 was only slightly higher than the previous month, the number of people out of work jumped to 5.97 million, such that 24.1% of part‐time workers were out of work. The food service and retail industries damaged by COVID‐19 include a large number of part‐time workers who are now out of work. 6 If the employment rate is slow to recover, these workers could shift to unemployed status, which would lead to a significant increase in the unemployment rate. Importantly, according to interviews conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare at various workplaces, the number of COVID‐19‐related layoffs has continued to increase since June, when the government lifted the state of emergency, which differs from the situation indicated by the Labour Force Survey. 12 Given that employment of young people is highly sensitive to economic trends, it may take considerable time for the number of working students to recover to the pre‐COVID‐19 level.

In the lifestyle survey, 37.4% of students were financially insecure. About 40% of the students who responded to the survey had part‐time jobs. However, considering that about 60% of the students who were not working due to COVID‐19 wanted to work and were unable to do so, about 75% of the students should normally be working part‐time jobs. Because the university we studied is a science and engineering university in the metropolitan area, many students leave their hometowns and live on their own, and about half of the undergraduates go on to graduate school for a master's degree. For those students, the economic impact of COVID‐19 is likely to be even greater than for students attending college locally. Even among students who were not in obvious poverty at the time of the survey, many may have feared that they would face financial difficulties during their long student tenure before completing graduate school, and it is possible that these factors may have further increased financial insecurity.

In this study, students with economic insecurity were shown to have higher rates of poor self‐rated health, compared to those who were financially stable. Previous research has reported that self‐rated health is linked to employment status, particularly unemployment, 13 and that poor self‐rated health is associated with increased mortality and worse mental health, such as depression. 14 In addition, the COVID‐19 pandemic has resulted in financial losses and an extreme lack of the social capital normally gained in daily college life and friendships. In addition, many students might be prone to psychological stress because they do not have access to real information about their studies and job search. The survey instrument did not include a reliable questionnaire or open‐ended statements that would assess the mental and physical health of the students, so it was difficult to fully assess the mental health of the respondents. Nevertheless, persistent socioeconomic stresses, such as income instability, may increase the risks of poor mental health and other problems.

Based on the voluntary entries in this study, many working students reported that they were ordered to take a leave of absence from work by their employers as a result of COVID‐19, but did not receive the leave of absence benefits required by the labour law. 15 Leave allowances for non‐employee insured workers, such as student part‐time workers, are eligible for subsidies under the Emergency Employment Security Subsidy, but few retailers and restaurants take advantage of these schemes, and support for part‐time workers, including students, is not widespread. To provide urgent support for disadvantaged students during the COVID‐19 pandemic, the government launched a scholarship program for students in need in April 2020, and JASSO’s loan‐type scholarships for households with sudden changes in household finances have been implemented. However, the number of students eligible for these scholarships is very limited. For example, graduate students are not eligible for benefit scholarships, and scholarships for a sudden change in family finances are not available to students whose incomes have fallen considerably. Thus, public support for needy students can be disparate depending on the category of student and his/her income.

There were several limitations to this study. First, because the survey was conducted at a single science and engineering university, it may not be representative of the overall situation of university students in Japan. Second, because the survey was cross‐sectional and the questionnaire was general in nature, it was difficult to extract the specific effects of COVID‐19. A future longitudinal study is needed. Finally, because the survey was conducted using students’ university accounts, it is possible that many students were hesitant to answer questions about their personal financial situation, which may have contributed to the low response rate.

5. CONCLUSIONS

Our results demonstrate that working students are a vulnerable group at risk for employment loss during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Our study also indicates that a number of students in Japan are living precariously to pursue a higher education. The economic insecurity is having a devastating effect on their studies and possibly their health. Public support should be expanded to improve students’ academic difficulties and address the health problems caused by economic hardship.

The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of the University of Electro‐Communications (approval number, 20013). Informed Consent : N/A. Registry and Registration No. of the Study/trial : N/A. Animal Studies: N/A. Conflict of interest : The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS

ST and EY conceptualized the study; ST, MN, and MI established the methodology; ST and MN collected the data and performed the analyses; ST wrote a draft of the paper; and EY, MN, and MI reviewed and edited the paper.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors thank JN and KY from the University of Electro‐Communications for designing the student survey questionnaire and for conducting the survey. This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Numbers JP19K02523 and JP19K10565.

Tsurugano S, Nishikitani M, Inoue M, Yano E. Impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on working students: Results from the Labour Force Survey and the student lifestyle survey . J Occup Health . 2021; 63 :e12209. 10.1002/1348-9585.12209 [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]

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• How to Write Recommendations in Research | Examples & Tips

How to Write Recommendations in Research | Examples & Tips

Published on September 15, 2022 by Tegan George . Revised on July 18, 2023.

Recommendations in research are a crucial component of your discussion section and the conclusion of your thesis , dissertation , or research paper .

As you conduct your research and analyze the data you collected , perhaps there are ideas or results that don’t quite fit the scope of your research topic. Or, maybe your results suggest that there are further implications of your results or the causal relationships between previously-studied variables than covered in extant research.

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What should recommendations look like, building your research recommendation, how should your recommendations be written, recommendation in research example, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about recommendations.

Recommendations for future research should be:

• Concrete and specific
• Supported with a clear rationale
• Directly connected to your research

Overall, strive to highlight ways other researchers can reproduce or replicate your results to draw further conclusions, and suggest different directions that future research can take, if applicable.

Relatedly, when making these recommendations, avoid:

• Undermining your own work, but rather offer suggestions on how future studies can build upon it
• Suggesting recommendations actually needed to complete your argument, but rather ensure that your research stands alone on its own merits
• Using recommendations as a place for self-criticism, but rather as a natural extension point for your work

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There are many different ways to frame recommendations, but the easiest is perhaps to follow the formula of research question   conclusion  recommendation. Here’s an example.

Conclusion An important condition for controlling many social skills is mastering language. If children have a better command of language, they can express themselves better and are better able to understand their peers. Opportunities to practice social skills are thus dependent on the development of language skills.

As a rule of thumb, try to limit yourself to only the most relevant future recommendations: ones that stem directly from your work. While you can have multiple recommendations for each research conclusion, it is also acceptable to have one recommendation that is connected to more than one conclusion.

These recommendations should be targeted at your audience, specifically toward peers or colleagues in your field that work on similar subjects to your paper or dissertation topic . They can flow directly from any limitations you found while conducting your work, offering concrete and actionable possibilities for how future research can build on anything that your own work was unable to address at the time of your writing.

See below for a full research recommendation example that you can use as a template to write your own.

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While it may be tempting to present new arguments or evidence in your thesis or disseration conclusion , especially if you have a particularly striking argument you’d like to finish your analysis with, you shouldn’t. Theses and dissertations follow a more formal structure than this.

All your findings and arguments should be presented in the body of the text (more specifically in the discussion section and results section .) The conclusion is meant to summarize and reflect on the evidence and arguments you have already presented, not introduce new ones.

The conclusion of your thesis or dissertation should include the following:

• A restatement of your research question
• A summary of your key arguments and/or results
• A short discussion of the implications of your research

For a stronger dissertation conclusion , avoid including:

• Important evidence or analysis that wasn’t mentioned in the discussion section and results section
• Generic concluding phrases (e.g. “In conclusion …”)
• Weak statements that undermine your argument (e.g., “There are good points on both sides of this issue.”)

Your conclusion should leave the reader with a strong, decisive impression of your work.

In a thesis or dissertation, the discussion is an in-depth exploration of the results, going into detail about the meaning of your findings and citing relevant sources to put them in context.

The conclusion is more shorter and more general: it concisely answers your main research question and makes recommendations based on your overall findings.

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Undergraduate Research Experiences for STEM Students: Successes, Challenges, and Opportunities (2017)

Chapter: 9 conclusions and recommendations, 9 conclusions and recommendations.

Practitioners designing or improving undergraduate research experiences (UREs) can build on the experiences of colleagues and learn from the increasingly robust literature about UREs and the considerable body of evidence about how students learn. The questions practitioners ask themselves during the design process should include questions about the goals of the campus, program, faculty, and students. Other factors to consider when designing a URE include the issues raised in the conceptual framework for learning and instruction, the available resources, how the program or experience will be evaluated or studied, and how to design the program from the outset to incorporate these considerations, as well as how to build in opportunities to improve the experience over time in light of new evidence. (Some of these topics are addressed in Chapter 8 .)

Colleges and universities that offer or wish to offer UREs to their students should undertake baseline evaluations of their current offerings and create plans to develop a culture of improvement in which faculty are supported in their efforts to continuously refine UREs based on the evidence currently available and evidence that they and others generate in the future. While much of the evidence to date is descriptive, it forms a body of knowledge that can be used to identify research questions about UREs, both those designed around the apprenticeship model and those designed using the more recent course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) model. Internships and other avenues by which undergraduates do research provide many of the same sorts of experiences but are not well studied. In any case, it is clear that students value these experiences; that many faculty do as well; and that they contribute to broadening participation in science,

technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and careers. The findings from the research literature reported in Chapter 4 provide guidance to those designing both opportunities to improve practical and academic skills and opportunities for students to “try out” a professional role of interest.

Little research has been done that provides answers to mechanistic questions about how UREs work. Additional studies are needed to know which features of UREs are most important for positive outcomes with which students and to gain information about other questions of this type. This additional research is needed to better understand and compare different strategies for UREs designed for a diversity of students, mentors, and institutions. Therefore, the committee recommends steps that could increase the quantity and quality of evidence available in the future and makes recommendations for how faculty, departments, and institutions might approach decisions about UREs using currently available information. Multiple detailed recommendations about the kinds of research that might be useful are provided in the research agenda in Chapter 7 .

In addition to the specific research recommended in Chapter 7 , in this chapter the committee provides a series of interrelated conclusions and recommendations related to UREs for the STEM disciplines and intended to highlight the issues of primary importance to administrators, URE program designers, mentors to URE students, funders of UREs, those leading the departments and institutions offering UREs, and those conducting research about UREs. These conclusions and recommendations are based on the expert views of the committee and informed by their review of the available research, the papers commissioned for this report, and input from presenters during committee meetings. Table 9-1 defines categories of these URE “actors,” gives examples of specific roles included in each category, specifies key URE actions for which that category is responsible, and lists the conclusions and recommendations the committee views as most relevant to that actor category.

RESEARCH ON URES

Conclusion 1: The current and emerging landscape of what constitutes UREs is diverse and complex. Students can engage in STEM-based undergraduate research in many different ways, across a variety of settings, and along a continuum that extends and expands upon learning opportunities in other educational settings. The following characteristics define UREs. Due to the variation in the types of UREs, not all experiences include all of the following characteristics in the same way; experiences vary in how much a particular characteristic is emphasized.

TABLE 9-1 Audiences for Committee’s Conclusions and Recommendations

• They engage students in research practices including the ability to argue from evidence.
• They aim to generate novel information with an emphasis on discovery and innovation or to determine whether recent preliminary results can be replicated.
• They focus on significant, relevant problems of interest to STEM researchers and, in some cases, a broader community (e.g., civic engagement).
• They emphasize and expect collaboration and teamwork.
• They involve iterative refinement of experimental design, experimental questions, or data obtained.
• They allow students to master specific research techniques.
• They help students engage in reflection about the problems being investigated and the work being undertaken to address those problems.
• They require communication of results, either through publication or presentations in various STEM venues.
• They are structured and guided by a mentor, with students assuming increasing ownership of some aspects of the project over time.

UREs are generally designed to add value to STEM offerings by promoting an understanding of the ways that knowledge is generated in STEM fields and to extend student learning beyond what happens in the small group work of an inquiry-based course. UREs add value by enabling students to understand and contribute to the research questions that are driving the field for one or more STEM topics or to grapple with design challenges of interest to professionals. They help students understand what it means to be a STEM researcher in a way that would be difficult to convey in a lecture course or even in an inquiry-based learning setting. As participants in a URE, students can learn by engaging in planning, experimentation, evaluation, interpretation, and communication of data and other results in light of what is already known about the question of interest. They can pose relevant questions that can be solved only through investigative or design efforts—individually or in teams—and attempt to answer these questions despite the challenges, setbacks, and ambiguity of the process and the results obtained.

The diversity of UREs reflects the reality that different STEM disciplines operate from varying traditions, expectations, and constraints (e.g., lab safety issues) in providing opportunities for undergraduates to engage in research. In addition, individual institutions and departments have cultures that promote research participation to various degrees and at different stages in students’ academic careers. Some programs emphasize design and problem solving in addition to discovery. UREs in different disciplines can

take many forms (e.g., apprentice-style, course-based, internships, project-based), but the definitional characteristics described above are similar across different STEM fields.

Furthermore, students in today’s university landscape may have opportunities to engage with many different types of UREs throughout their education, including involvement in a formal program (which could include mentoring, tutoring, research, and seminars about research), an apprentice-style URE under the guidance of an individual or team of faculty members, an internship, or enrolling in one or more CUREs or in a consortium- or project-based program.

Conclusion 2: Research on the efficacy of UREs is still in the early stages of development compared with other interventions to improve undergraduate STEM education.

• The types of UREs are diverse, and their goals are even more diverse. Questions and methodologies used to investigate the roles and effectiveness of UREs in achieving those goals are similarly diverse.
• Most of the studies of UREs to date are descriptive case studies or use correlational designs. Many of these studies report positive outcomes from engagement in a URE.
• Only a small number of studies have employed research designs that can support inferences about causation. Most of these studies find evidence for a causal relationship between URE participation and subsequent persistence in STEM. More studies are needed to provide evidence that participation in UREs is a causal factor in a range of desired student outcomes.

Taking the entire body of evidence into account, the committee concludes that the published peer-reviewed literature to date suggests that participation in a URE is beneficial for students .

As discussed in the report’s Introduction (see Chapter 1 ) and in the research agenda (see Chapter 7 ), the committee considered descriptive, causal, and mechanistic questions in our reading of the literature on UREs. Scientific approaches to answering descriptive, causal, and mechanistic questions require deciding what to look for, determining how to examine it, and knowing appropriate ways to score or quantify the effect.

Descriptive questions ask what is happening without making claims as to why it is happening—that is, without making claims as to whether the research experience caused these changes. A descriptive statement about UREs only claims that certain changes occurred during or after the time the students were engaged in undergraduate research. Descriptive studies

cannot determine whether any benefits observed were caused by participation in the URE.

Causal questions seek to discover whether a specific intervention leads to a specific outcome, other things being equal. To address such questions, causal evidence can be generated from a comparison of carefully selected groups that do and do not experience UREs. The groups can be made roughly equivalent by random assignment (ensuring that URE and non-URE groups are the same on average as the sample size increases) or by controlling for an exhaustive set of characteristics and experiences that might render the groups different prior to the URE. Other quasi-experimental strategies can also be used. Simply comparing students who enroll in a URE with students who do not is not adequate for determining causality because there may be selection bias. For example, students already interested in STEM are more likely to seek out such opportunities and more likely to be selected for such programs. Instead the investigator would have to compare future enrollment patterns (or other measures) between closely matched students, some of whom enrolled in a URE and some of whom did not. Controlling for selection bias to enable an inference about causation can pose significant challenges.

Questions of mechanism or of process also can be explored to understand why a causal intervention leads to the observed effect. Perhaps the URE enhances a student’s confidence in her ability to succeed in her chosen field or deepens her commitment to the field by exposing her to the joy of discovery. Through these pathways that act on the participant’s purposive behavior, the URE enhances the likelihood that she persists in STEM. The question for the researcher then becomes what research design would provide support for this hypothesis of mechanism over other candidate explanations for why the URE is a causal factor in STEM persistence.

The committee has examined the literature and finds a rich descriptive foundation for testable hypotheses about the effects of UREs on student outcomes. These studies are encouraging; a few of them have generated evidence that a URE can be a positive causal factor in the progression and persistence of STEM students. The weight of the evidence has been descriptive; it relies primarily on self-reports of short-term gains by students who chose to participate in UREs and does not include direct measures of changes in the students’ knowledge, skills, or other measures of success across comparable groups of students who did and did not participate in UREs.

While acknowledging the scarcity of strong causal evidence on the benefits of UREs, the committee takes seriously the weight of the descriptive evidence. Many of the published studies of UREs show that students who participate report a range of benefits, such as increased understanding of the research process, encouragement to persist in STEM, and support that helps them sustain their identity as researchers and continue with their

plans to enroll in a graduate program in STEM (see Chapter 4 ). These are effective starting points for causal studies.

Conclusion 3: Studies focused on students from historically underrepresented groups indicate that participation in UREs improves their persistence in STEM and helps to validate their disciplinary identity.

Various UREs have been specifically designed to increase the number of historically underrepresented students who go on to become STEM majors and ultimately STEM professionals. While many UREs offer one or more supplemental opportunities to support students’ academic or social success, such as mentoring, tutoring, summer bridge programs, career or graduate school workshops, and research-oriented seminars, those designed for underrepresented students appear to emphasize such features as integral and integrated components of the program. In particular, studies of undergraduate research programs targeting underrepresented minority students have begun to document positive outcomes such as degree completion and persistence in interest in STEM careers ( Byars-Winston et al., 2015 ; Chemers et al., 2011 ; Jones et al., 2010 ; Nagda et al., 1998 ; Schultz et al., 2011 ). Most of these studies collected data on apprentice-style UREs, in which the undergraduate becomes a functioning member of a research group along with the graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and mentor.

Recommendation 1: Researchers with expertise in education research should conduct well-designed studies in collaboration with URE program directors to improve the evidence base about the processes and effects of UREs. This research should address how the various components of UREs may benefit students. It should also include additional causal evidence for the individual and additive effects of outcomes from student participation in different types of UREs. Not all UREs need be designed to undertake this type of research, but it would be very useful to have some UREs that are designed to facilitate these efforts to improve the evidence base .

As the focus on UREs has grown, so have questions about their implementation. Many articles have been published describing specific UREs (see Chapter 2 ). Large amounts of research have also been undertaken to explore more generally how students learn, and the resulting body of evidence has led to the development and adoption of “active learning” strategies and experiences. If a student in a URE has an opportunity to, for example, analyze new data or to reformulate a hypothesis in light of the student’s analysis, this activity fits into the category that is described as active learning. Surveys of student participants and unpublished evaluations pro-

vide additional information about UREs but do not establish causation or determine the mechanism(s). Consequently, little is currently known about the mechanisms of precisely how UREs work and which aspects of UREs are most powerful. Important components that have been reported include student ownership of the URE project, time to tackle a question iteratively, and opportunities to report and defend one’s conclusions ( Hanauer and Dolan, 2014 ; Thiry et al., 2011 ).

There are many unanswered questions and opportunities for further research into the role and mechanism of UREs. Attention to research design as UREs are planned is important; more carefully designed studies are needed to understand the ways that UREs influence a student’s education and to evaluate the outcomes that have been reported for URE participants. Appropriate studies, which include matched samples or similar controls, would facilitate research on the ways that UREs benefit students, enabling both education researchers and implementers of UREs to determine optimal features for program design and giving the community a more robust understanding of how UREs work.

See the research agenda ( Chapter 7 ) for specific recommendations about research topics and approaches.

Recommendation 2: Funders should provide appropriate resources to support the design, implementation, and analysis of some URE programs that are specifically designed to enable detailed research establishing the effects on participant outcomes and on other variables of interest such as the consequences for mentors or institutions.

Not all UREs need to be the subject of extensive study. In many cases, a straightforward evaluation is adequate to determine whether the URE is meeting its goals. However, to achieve more widespread improvement in both the types and quality of the UREs offered in the future, additional evidence about the possible causal effects and mechanisms of action of UREs needs to be systematically collected and disseminated. This includes a better understanding of the implementation differences for a variety of institutions (e.g., community colleges, primarily undergraduate institutions, research universities) to ensure that the desired outcomes can translate across settings. Increasing the evidence about precisely how UREs work and which aspects of UREs are most powerful will require careful attention to study design during planning for the UREs.

Not all UREs need to be designed to achieve this goal; many can provide opportunities to students by relying on pre-existing knowledge and iterative improvement as that knowledge base grows. However, for the knowledge base to grow, funders must provide resources for some URE designers and social science researchers to undertake thoughtful and well-planned studies

on causal and mechanistic issues. This will maximize the chances for the creation and dissemination of information that can lead to the development of sustainable and effective UREs. These studies can result from a partnership formed as the URE is designed and funded, or evaluators and social scientists could identify promising and/or effective existing programs and then raise funds on their own to support the study of those programs to answer the questions of interest. In deciding upon the UREs that are chosen for these extensive studies, it will be important to consider whether, collectively, they are representative of UREs in general. For example, large and small UREs at large and small schools targeted at both introductory and advanced students and topics should be studied.

CONSTRUCTION OF URES

Conclusion 4: The committee was unable to find evidence that URE designers are taking full advantage of the information available in the education literature on strategies for designing, implementing, and evaluating learning experiences. STEM faculty members do not generally receive training in interpreting or conducting education research. Partnerships between those with expertise in education research and those with expertise in implementing UREs are one way to strengthen the application of evidence on what works in planning and implementing UREs.

As discussed in Chapters 3 and 4 , there is an extensive body of literature on pedagogy and how people learn; helping STEM faculty to access the existing literature and incorporate those concepts as they design UREs could improve student experiences. New studies that specifically focus on UREs may provide more targeted information that could be used to design, implement, sustain, or scale up UREs and facilitate iterative improvements. Information about the features of UREs that elicit particular outcomes or best serve certain populations of students should be considered when implementing a new instantiation of an existing model of a URE or improving upon an existing URE model.

Conclusion 5: Evaluations of UREs are often conducted to inform program providers and funders; however, they may not be accessible to others. While these evaluations are not designed to be research studies and often have small sample sizes, they may contain information that could be useful to those initiating new URE programs and those refining UREs. Increasing access to these evaluations and to the accumulated experience of the program providers may enable URE designers and implementers to build upon knowledge gained from earlier UREs.

As discussed in Chapter 1 , the committee searched for evaluations of URE programs in several different ways but was not able to locate many published evaluations to study. Although some evaluations were found in the literature, the committee could not determine a way to systematically examine the program evaluations that have been prepared. The National Science Foundation and other funders generally require grant recipients to submit evaluation data, but that information is not currently aggregated and shared publicly, even for programs that are using a common evaluation tool. 1

Therefore, while program evaluation likely serves a useful role in providing descriptive data about a program for the institutions and funders supporting the program, much of the summative evaluation work that has been done to date adds relatively little to the broader knowledge base and overall conversations around undergraduate research. Some of the challenges of evaluation include budget and sample size constraints.

Similarly, it is difficult for designers of UREs to benefit systematically from the work of others who have designed and run UREs in the past because of the lack of an easy and consistent mechanism for collecting, analyzing, and sharing data. If these evaluations were more accessible they might be beneficial to others designing and evaluating UREs by helping them to gather ideas and inspiration from the experiences of others. A few such stories are provided in this report, and others can be found among the many resources offered by the Council on Undergraduate Research 2 and on other websites such as CUREnet. 3

Recommendation 3: Designers of UREs should base their design decisions on sound evidence. Consultations with education and social science researchers may be helpful as designers analyze the literature and make decisions on the creation or improvement of UREs. Professional development materials should be created and made available to faculty. Educational and disciplinary societies should consider how they can provide resources and connections to those working on UREs.

Faculty and other organizers of UREs can use the expanding body of scholarship as they design or improve the programs and experiences offered to their students. URE designers will need to make decisions about how to adapt approaches reported in the literature to make the programs they develop more suitable to their own expertise, student population(s), and available resources. Disciplinary societies and other national groups, such as those focused on improving pedagogy, can play important roles in

___________________

1 Personal knowledge of Janet Branchaw, member of the Committee on Strengthening Research Experiences for Undergraduate STEM Students.

2 See www.cur.org [November 2016].

3 See ( curenet.cns.utexas.edu ) [November 2016].

bringing these issues to the forefront through events at their national and regional meetings and through publications in their journals and newsletters. They can develop repositories for various kinds of resources appropriate for their members who are designing and implementing UREs. The ability to travel to conferences and to access and discuss resources created by other individuals and groups is a crucial aspect of support (see Recommendations 7 and 8 for further discussion).

See Chapter 8 for specific questions to consider when one is designing or implementing UREs.

CURRENT OFFERINGS

Conclusion 6: Data at the institutional, state, or national levels on the number and type of UREs offered, or who participates in UREs overall or at specific types of institutions, have not been collected systematically. Although the committee found that some individual institutions track at least some of this type of information, we were unable to determine how common it is to do so or what specific information is most often gathered.

There is no one central database or repository that catalogs UREs at institutions of higher education, the nature of the research experiences they provide, or the relevant demographics (student, departmental, and institutional). The lack of comprehensive data makes it difficult to know how many students participate in UREs; where UREs are offered; and if there are gaps in access to UREs across different institutional types, disciplines, or groups of students. One of the challenges of describing the undergraduate research landscape is that students do not have to be enrolled in a formal program to have a research experience. Informal experiences, for example a work-study job, are typically not well documented. Another challenge is that some students participate in CUREs or other research experiences (such as internships) that are not necessarily labeled as such. Institutional administrators may be unaware of CUREs that are already part of their curriculum. (For example, establishment of CUREs may be under the purview of a faculty curriculum committee and may not be recognized as a distinct program.) Student participation in UREs may occur at their home institution or elsewhere during the summer. Therefore, it is very difficult for a science department, and likely any other STEM department, to know what percentage of their graduating majors have had a research experience, let alone to gather such information on students who left the major. 4

4 This point was made by Marco Molinaro, University of California, Davis, in a presentation to the Committee on Strengthening Research Experience for Undergraduate STEM Students, September 16, 2015.

Conclusion 7: While data are lacking on the precise number of students engaged in UREs, there is some evidence of a recent growth in course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs), which engage a cohort of students in a research project as part of a formal academic experience.

There has been an increase in the number of grants and the dollar amount spent on CUREs over the past decade (see Chapter 3 ). CUREs can be particularly useful in scaling UREs to reach a much larger population of students ( Bangera and Brownell, 2014 ). By using a familiar mechanism—enrollment in a course—a CURE can provide a more comfortable route for students unfamiliar with research to gain their first experience. CUREs also can provide such experiences to students with diverse backgrounds, especially if an institution or department mandates participation sometime during a student’s matriculation. Establishing CUREs may be more cost-effective at schools with little on-site research activity. However, designing a CURE is a new and time-consuming challenge for many faculty members. Connecting to nationally organized research networks can provide faculty with helpful resources for the development of a CURE based around their own research or a local community need, or these networks can link interested faculty to an ongoing collaborative project. Collaborative projects can provide shared curriculum, faculty professional development and community, and other advantages when starting or expanding a URE program. See the discussion in the report from a convocation on Integrating Discovery-based Research into the Undergraduate Curriculum ( National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2015 ).

Recommendation 4: Institutions should collect data on student participation in UREs to inform their planning and to look for opportunities to improve quality and access.

Better tracking of student participation could lead to better assessment of outcomes and improved quality of experience. Such metrics could be useful for both prospective students and campus planners. An integrated institutional system for research opportunities could facilitate the creation of tiered research experiences that allow students to progress in skills and responsibility and create support structures for students, providing, for example, seminars in communications, safety, and ethics for undergraduate researchers. Institutions could also use these data to measure the impact of UREs on student outcomes, such as student success rates in introductory courses, retention in STEM degree programs, and completion of STEM degrees.

While individual institutions may choose to collect additional information depending on their goals and resources, relevant student demographics

and the following design elements would provide baseline data. At a minimum, such data should include

• Type of URE;
• Each student’s discipline;
• Duration of the experience;
• Hours spent per week;
• When the student began the URE (e.g., first year, capstone);
• Compensation status (e.g., paid, unpaid, credit); and
• Location and format (e.g., on home campus, on another campus, internship, co-op).

National aggregation of some of the student participation variables collected by various campuses might be considered by funders. The existing Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System database, organized by the National Center for Education Statistics at the U.S. Department of Education, may be a suitable repository for certain aspects of this information.

Recommendation 5: Administrators and faculty at all types of colleges and universities should continually and holistically evaluate the range of UREs that they offer. As part of this process, institutions should:

• Consider how best to leverage available resources (including off-campus experiences available to students and current or potential networks or partnerships that the institution may form) when offering UREs so that they align with their institution’s mission and priorities;
• Consider whether current UREs are both accessible and welcoming to students from various subpopulations across campus (e.g., historically underrepresented students, first generation college students, those with disabilities, non-STEM majors, prospective kindergarten-through-12th-grade teachers); and
• Gather and analyze data on the types of UREs offered and the students who participate, making this information widely available to the campus community and using it to make evidence-based decisions about improving opportunities for URE participation. This may entail devising or implementing systems for tracking relevant data (see Conclusion 4 ).

Resources available for starting, maintaining, and expanding UREs vary from campus to campus. At some campuses, UREs are a central focus and many resources are devoted to them. At other institutions—for example, many community colleges—UREs are seen as extra, and new resources may be required to ensure availability of courses and facilities. Resource-

constrained institutions may need to focus more on ensuring that students are aware of potential UREs that already exist on campus and elsewhere in near proximity to campus. All institutional discussions about UREs must consider both the financial resources and physical resources (e.g., laboratories, field stations, engineering design studios) required, while remembering that faculty time is a crucial resource. The incentives and disincentives for faculty to spend time on UREs are significant. Those institutions with an explicit mission to promote undergraduate research may provide more recognition and rewards to departments and faculty than those with another focus. The culture of the institution with respect to innovation in pedagogy and support for faculty development also can have a major influence on the extent to which UREs are introduced or improved.

Access to UREs may vary across campus and by department, and participation in UREs may vary across student groups. It is important for campuses to consider the factors that may facilitate or discourage students from participation in UREs. Inconsistent procedures or a faculty preference for students with high grades or previous research experience may limit options for some student populations.

UREs often grow based on the initiative of individual faculty members and other personnel, and an institution may not have complete or even rudimentary knowledge of all of the opportunities available or whether there are gaps or inconsistencies in its offerings. A uniform method for tracking the UREs available on a given campus would be useful to students and would provide a starting point for analyzing the options. Tracking might consist of notations in course listings and, where feasible, on student transcripts. Analysis might consider the types of UREs offered, the resources available to each type of URE, and variations within or between various disciplines and programs. Attention to whether all students or groups of students have appropriate access to UREs would foster consideration of how to best allocate resources and programming on individual campuses, in order to focus resources and opportunities where they are most needed.

Conclusion 8: The quality of mentoring can make a substantial difference in a student’s experiences with research. However, professional development in how to be a good mentor is not available to many faculty or other prospective mentors (e.g., graduate students, postdoctoral fellows).

Engagement in quality mentored research experiences has been linked to self-reported gains in research skills and productivity as well as retention in STEM (see Chapter 5 ). Quality mentoring in UREs has been shown

to increase persistence in STEM for historically underrepresented students ( Hernandez et al., 2016 ). In addition, poor mentoring during UREs has been shown to decrease retention of students ( Hernandez et al., 2016 ).

More general research on good mentoring in the STEM environment has been positively associated with self-reported gains in identity as a STEM researcher, a sense of belonging, and confidence to function as a STEM researcher ( Byars-Winston et al., 2015 ; Chemers et al., 2011 ; Pfund et al., 2016 ; Thiry et al., 2011 ). The frequency and quality of mentee-mentor interactions has been associated with students’ reports of persistence in STEM, with mentoring directly or indirectly improving both grades and persistence in college. For students from historically underrepresented ethnic/racial groups, quality mentoring has been associated with self-reported enhanced recruitment into graduate school and research-related career pathways ( Byars-Winston et al., 2015 ). Therefore, it is important to ensure that faculty and mentors receive the proper development of mentoring skills.

Recommendation 6: Administrators and faculty at colleges and universities should ensure that all who mentor undergraduates in research experiences (this includes faculty, instructors, postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, and undergraduates serving as peer mentors) have access to appropriate professional development opportunities to help them grow and succeed in this role.

Although many organizations recognize effective mentors (e.g., the National Science Foundation’s Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring), there currently are no standard criteria for selecting, evaluating, or recognizing mentors specifically for UREs. In addition, there are no requirements that mentors meet some minimum level of competency before engaging in mentoring or participate in professional development to obtain a baseline of knowledge and skills in mentoring, including cultural competence in mentoring diverse groups of students. Traditionally, the only experience required for being a mentor is having been mentored, regardless of whether the experience was negative or positive ( Handelsman et al., 2005 ; Pfund et al., 2015 ). Explicit consideration of how the relationships are formed, supported, and evaluated can improve mentor-mentee relationships. To ensure that the mentors associated with a URE are prepared appropriately, thereby increasing the chances of a positive experience for both mentors and mentees, all prospective mentors should prepare for their role. Available resources include the Entering Mentoring course (see Pfund et al., 2015 ) and the book Successful STEM Mentoring Initiative for Underrepresented Students ( Packard, 2016 ).

A person who is an ineffective mentor for one student might be inspiring for another, and the setting in which the mentoring takes place (e.g., a CURE or apprentice-style URE, a laboratory or field-research environment) may also influence mentor effectiveness. Thus, there should be some mechanism for monitoring such relationships during the URE, or there should be opportunity for a student who is unhappy with the relationship to seek other mentors. Indeed, cultivating a team of mentors with different experiences and expertise may be the best strategy for any student. A parallel volume to the Entering Mentoring curriculum mentioned above, Entering Research Facilitator’s Manual ( Branchaw et al., 2010 ), is designed to help students with their research mentor-mentee relationships and to coach them on building teams of mentors to guide them. As mentioned in Chapter 5 , the Entering Research curriculum also contains information designed to support a group of students as they go through their first apprentice-style research experience, each working in separate research groups and also meeting together as a cohort focused on learning about research.

PRIORITIES FOR THE FUTURE

Conclusion 9: The unique assets, resources, priorities, and constraints of the department and institution, in addition to those of individual mentors, impact the goals and structures of UREs. Schools across the country are showing considerable creativity in using unique resources, repurposing current assets, and leveraging student enthusiasm to increase research opportunities for their students.

Given current calls for UREs and the growing conversation about their benefits, an increasing number of two- and four-year colleges and universities are increasing their efforts to support undergraduate research. Departments, institutions, and individual faculty members influence the precise nature of UREs in multiple ways and at multiple levels. The physical resources available, including laboratories, field stations, and engineering design studios and testing facilities, make a difference, as does the ability to access resources in the surrounding community (including other parts of the campus). Institutions with an explicit mission to promote undergraduate research may provide more time, resources (e.g., financial, support personnel, space, equipment), and recognition and rewards to departments and faculty in support of UREs than do institutions without that mission. The culture of the institution with respect to innovation in pedagogy and support for faculty development also affects the extent to which UREs are introduced or improved.

Development of UREs requires significant time and effort. Whether or not faculty attempt to implement UREs can depend on whether departmental

or institutional reward and recognition systems compensate for or even recognize the time required to initiate and implement them. The availability of national consortia can help to alleviate many of the time and logistical problems but not those obstacles associated with recognition and resources.

It will be harder for faculty to find the time to develop UREs at institutions where they are required to teach many courses per semester, although in some circumstances faculty can teach CUREs that also advance their own research ( Shortlidge et al., 2016 ). Faculty at community colleges generally have the heaviest teaching expectations, little or no expectations or incentives to maintain a research program, limited access to lab or design space or to scientific and engineering journals, and few resources to undertake any kind of a research program. These constraints may limit the extent to which UREs can be offered to the approximately 40 percent of U.S. undergraduates who are enrolled in the nation’s community colleges (which collectively also serve the highest percentage of the nation’s underrepresented students). 5

Recommendation 7: Administrators and faculty at all types of colleges and universities should work together within and, where feasible, across institutions to create a culture that supports the development of evidence-based, iterative, and continuous refinement of UREs, in an effort to improve student learning outcomes and overall academic success. This should include the development, evaluation, and revision of policies and practices designed to create a culture supportive of the participation of faculty and other mentors in effective UREs. Policies should consider pedagogy, professional development, cross-cultural awareness, hiring practices, compensation, promotion (incentives, rewards), and the tenure process.

Colleges and universities that would like to expand or improve the UREs offered to their students should consider the campus culture and climate and the incentives that affect faculty choices. Those campuses that cultivate an environment supportive of the iterative and continuous refinement of UREs and that offer incentives for evaluation and evidence-based improvement of UREs seem more likely to sustain successful programs. Faculty and others who develop and implement UREs need support to be able to evaluate their courses or programs and to analyze evidence to make decisions about URE design. This kind of support may be fostered by expanding the mission of on-campus centers for learning and teaching to focus more on UREs or by providing incentives for URE developers from the natural sciences and engineering to collaborate with colleagues in the social sciences or colleges of education with expertise in designing studies

5 See http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cha.asp [November 2016].

involving human subjects. Supporting closer communication between URE developers and the members of the campus Institutional Review Board may help projects to move forward more seamlessly. Interdepartmental and intercampus connections (especially those between two- and four-year institutions) can be valuable for linking faculty with the appropriate resources, colleagues, and diverse student populations. Faculty who have been active in professional development on how students learn in the classroom may have valuable experiences and expertise to share.

The refinement or expansion of UREs should build on evidence from data on student participation, pedagogy, and outcomes, which are integral components of the original design. As UREs are validated and refined, institutions should make efforts to facilitate connections among different departments and disciplines, including the creation of multidisciplinary UREs. Student engagement in learning in general, and with UREs more specifically, depends largely on the culture of the department and the institution and on whether students see their surroundings as inclusive and energetic places to learn and thrive. A study that examined the relationship between campus missions and the five benchmarks for effective educational practice (measured by the National Survey of Student Engagement) showed that different programs, policies, and approaches may work better, depending on the institution’s mission ( Kezar and Kinzie, 2006 ).

The Council on Undergraduate Research (2012) document Characteristics of Excellence in Undergraduate Research outlines several best practices for UREs based on the apprenticeship model (see Chapter 8 ). That document is not the result of a detailed analysis of the evidence but is based on the extensive experiences and expertise of the council’s members. It suggests that undergraduate research should be a normal part of the undergraduate experience regardless of the type of institution. It also identifies changes necessary to include UREs as part of the curriculum and culture changes necessary to support curricular reform, co-curricular activities, and modifications to the incentives and rewards for faculty to engage with undergraduate research. In addition, professional development opportunities specifically designed to help improve the pedagogical and mentoring skills of instructional staff in using evidence-based practices can be important for a supportive learning culture.

Recommendation 8: Administrators and faculty at all types of colleges and universities should work to develop strong and sustainable partnerships within and between institutions and with educational and professional societies for the purpose of sharing resources to facilitate the creation of sustainable URE programs.

Networks of faculty, institutions, regionally and nationally coordinated URE initiatives, professional societies, and funders should be strengthened

to facilitate the exchange of evidence and experience related to UREs. These networks could build on the existing work of professional societies that assist faculty with pedagogy. They can help provide a venue for considering the policy context and larger implications of increasing the number, size, and scope of UREs. Such networks also can provide a more robust infrastructure, to improve the sustainability and expansion of URE opportunities. The sharing of human, financial, scientific, and technical resources can strengthen the broad implementation of effective, high-quality, and more cost-efficient UREs. It may be especially important for community colleges and minority-serving institutions to engage in partnerships in order to expand the opportunities for undergraduates (both transfer and technical students) to participate in diverse UREs (see discussion in National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2015 , and Elgin et al., 2016 ). Consortia can facilitate the sharing of resources across disciplines and departments within the same institution or at different institutions, organizations, and agencies. Consortia that employ research methodologies in common can share curriculum, research data collected, and common assessment tools, lessening the time burden for individual faculty and providing a large pool of students from which to assess the efficacy of individual programs.

Changes in the funding climate can have substantial impacts on the types of programs that exist, iterative refinement of programs, and whether and how programs might be expanded to broaden participation by more undergraduates. For those institutions that have not yet established URE programs or are at the beginning phases of establishing one, mechanisms for achieving success and sustainability may include increased institutional ownership of programs of undergraduate research, development of a broad range of programs of different types and funding structures, formation of undergraduate research offices or repurposing some of the responsibilities and activities of those which already exist, and engagement in community promotion and dissemination of student accomplishments (e.g., student symposia, support for undergraduate student travel to give presentations at professional meetings).

Over time, institutions must develop robust plans for ensuring the long-term sustained funding of high-quality UREs. Those plans should include assuming that more fiscal responsibility for sustaining such efforts will be borne by the home institution as external support for such efforts decreases and ultimately ends. Building UREs into the curriculum and structure of a department’s courses and other programs, and thus its funding model, can help with sustainability. Partnerships with nonprofit organizations and industry, as well as seeking funding from diverse agencies, can also facilitate programmatic sustainability, especially if the UREs they fund can also support the mission and programs of the funders (e.g., through research internships or through CUREs that focus on community-

based research questions and challenges). Partnerships among institutions also may have greater potential to study and evaluate student outcomes from URE participation across broader demographic groups and to reduce overall costs through the sharing of administrative or other resources (such as libraries, microscopes, etc.).

Bangera, G., and Brownell, S.E. (2014). Course-based undergraduate research experiences can make scientific research more inclusive. CBE–Life Sciences Education , 13 (4), 602-606.

Branchaw, J.L., Pfund, C., and Rediske, R. (2010) Entering Research Facilitator’s Manual: Workshops for Students Beginning Research in Science . New York: Freeman & Company.

Byars-Winston, A.M., Branchaw, J., Pfund, C., Leverett, P., and Newton, J. (2015). Culturally diverse undergraduate researchers’ academic outcomes and perceptions of their research mentoring relationships. International Journal of Science Education , 37 (15), 2,533-2,554.

Chemers, M.M., Zurbriggen, E.L., Syed, M., Goza, B.K., and Bearman, S. (2011). The role of efficacy and identity in science career commitment among underrepresented minority students. Journal of Social Issues , 67 (3), 469-491.

Council on Undergraduate Research. (2012). Characteristics of Excellence in Undergraduate Research . Washington, DC: Council on Undergraduate Research.

Elgin, S.C.R., Bangera, G., Decatur, S.M., Dolan, E.L., Guertin, L., Newstetter, W.C., San Juan, E.F., Smith, M.A., Weaver, G.C., Wessler, S.R., Brenner, K.A., and Labov, J.B. 2016. Insights from a convocation: Integrating discovery-based research into the undergraduate curriculum. CBE–Life Sciences Education, 15 , 1-7.

Hanauer, D., and Dolan, E. (2014) The Project Ownership Survey: Measuring differences in scientific inquiry experiences, CBE–Life Sciences Education , 13 , 149-158.

Handelsman, J., Pfund, C., Lauffer, S.M., and Pribbenow, C.M. (2005). Entering Mentoring . Madison, WI: The Wisconsin Program for Scientific Teaching.

Hernandez, P.R., Estrada, M., Woodcock, A., and Schultz, P.W. (2016). Protégé perceptions of high mentorship quality depend on shared values more than on demographic match. Journal of Experimental Education. Available: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00220973.2016.1246405 [November 2016].

Jones, P., Selby, D., and Sterling, S.R. (2010). Sustainability Education: Perspectives and Practice Across Higher Education . New York: Earthscan.

Kezar, A.J., and Kinzie, J. (2006). Examining the ways institutions create student engagement: The role of mission. Journal of College Student Development , 47 (2), 149-172.

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2015). Integrating Discovery-Based Research into the Undergraduate Curriculum: Report of a Convocation . Washington, DC: National Academies Press.

Nagda, B.A., Gregerman, S.R., Jonides, J., von Hippel, W., and Lerner, J.S. (1998). Undergraduate student-faculty research partnerships affect student retention. Review of Higher Education, 22 , 55-72. Available: http://scholar.harvard.edu/files/jenniferlerner/files/nagda_1998_paper.pdf [February 2017].

Packard, P. (2016). Successful STEM Mentoring Initiatives for Underrepresented Students: A Research-Based Guide for Faculty and Administrators . Sterling, VA: Stylus.

Pfund, C., Branchaw, J.L., and Handelsman, J. (2015). Entering Mentoring: A Seminar to Train a New Generation of Scientists (2nd ed). New York: Macmillan Learning.

Pfund, C., Byars-Winston, A., Branchaw, J.L., Hurtado, S., and Eagan, M.K. (2016). Defining attributes and metrics of effective research mentoring relationships. AIDS and Behavior, 20 , 238-248.

Schultz, P.W., Hernandez, P.R., Woodcock, A., Estrada, M., Chance, R.C., Aguilar, M., and Serpe, R.T. (2011). Patching the pipeline reducing educational disparities in the sciences through minority training programs. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis , 33 (1), 95-114.

Shortlidge, E.E., Bangera, G., and Brownell, S.E. (2016). Faculty perspectives on developing and teaching course-based undergraduate research experiences. BioScience, 66 (1), 54-62.

Thiry, H., Laursen, S.L., and Hunter, A.B. (2011). What experiences help students become scientists? A comparative study of research and other sources of personal and professional gains for STEM undergraduates. Journal of Higher Education, 82 (4), 358-389.

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Undergraduate research has a rich history, and many practicing researchers point to undergraduate research experiences (UREs) as crucial to their own career success. There are many ongoing efforts to improve undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education that focus on increasing the active engagement of students and decreasing traditional lecture-based teaching, and UREs have been proposed as a solution to these efforts and may be a key strategy for broadening participation in STEM. In light of the proposals questions have been asked about what is known about student participation in UREs, best practices in UREs design, and evidence of beneficial outcomes from UREs.

Undergraduate Research Experiences for STEM Students provides a comprehensive overview of and insights about the current and rapidly evolving types of UREs, in an effort to improve understanding of the complexity of UREs in terms of their content, their surrounding context, the diversity of the student participants, and the opportunities for learning provided by a research experience. This study analyzes UREs by considering them as part of a learning system that is shaped by forces related to national policy, institutional leadership, and departmental culture, as well as by the interactions among faculty, other mentors, and students. The report provides a set of questions to be considered by those implementing UREs as well as an agenda for future research that can help answer questions about how UREs work and which aspects of the experiences are most powerful.

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Home » Research Recommendations – Examples and Writing Guide

Research Recommendations – Examples and Writing Guide

Table of Contents

Research Recommendations

Definition:

Research recommendations refer to suggestions or advice given to someone who is looking to conduct research on a specific topic or area. These recommendations may include suggestions for research methods, data collection techniques, sources of information, and other factors that can help to ensure that the research is conducted in a rigorous and effective manner. Research recommendations may be provided by experts in the field, such as professors, researchers, or consultants, and are intended to help guide the researcher towards the most appropriate and effective approach to their research project.

Parts of Research Recommendations

Research recommendations can vary depending on the specific project or area of research, but typically they will include some or all of the following parts:

• Research question or objective : This is the overarching goal or purpose of the research project.
• Research methods : This includes the specific techniques and strategies that will be used to collect and analyze data. The methods will depend on the research question and the type of data being collected.
• Data collection: This refers to the process of gathering information or data that will be used to answer the research question. This can involve a range of different methods, including surveys, interviews, observations, or experiments.
• Data analysis : This involves the process of examining and interpreting the data that has been collected. This can involve statistical analysis, qualitative analysis, or a combination of both.
• Results and conclusions: This section summarizes the findings of the research and presents any conclusions or recommendations based on those findings.
• Limitations and future research: This section discusses any limitations of the study and suggests areas for future research that could build on the findings of the current project.

How to Write Research Recommendations

Writing research recommendations involves providing specific suggestions or advice to a researcher on how to conduct their study. Here are some steps to consider when writing research recommendations:

• Understand the research question: Before writing research recommendations, it is important to have a clear understanding of the research question and the objectives of the study. This will help to ensure that the recommendations are relevant and appropriate.
• Consider the research methods: Consider the most appropriate research methods that could be used to collect and analyze data that will address the research question. Identify the strengths and weaknesses of the different methods and how they might apply to the specific research question.
• Provide specific recommendations: Provide specific and actionable recommendations that the researcher can implement in their study. This can include recommendations related to sample size, data collection techniques, research instruments, data analysis methods, or other relevant factors.
• Justify recommendations : Justify why each recommendation is being made and how it will help to address the research question or objective. It is important to provide a clear rationale for each recommendation to help the researcher understand why it is important.
• Consider limitations and ethical considerations : Consider any limitations or potential ethical considerations that may arise in conducting the research. Provide recommendations for addressing these issues or mitigating their impact.
• Summarize recommendations: Provide a summary of the recommendations at the end of the report or document, highlighting the most important points and emphasizing how the recommendations will contribute to the overall success of the research project.

Example of Research Recommendations

Example of Research Recommendations sample for students:

• Further investigate the effects of X on Y by conducting a larger-scale randomized controlled trial with a diverse population.
• Explore the relationship between A and B by conducting qualitative interviews with individuals who have experience with both.
• Investigate the long-term effects of intervention C by conducting a follow-up study with participants one year after completion.
• Examine the effectiveness of intervention D in a real-world setting by conducting a field study in a naturalistic environment.
• Compare and contrast the results of this study with those of previous research on the same topic to identify any discrepancies or inconsistencies in the findings.
• Expand upon the limitations of this study by addressing potential confounding variables and conducting further analyses to control for them.
• Investigate the relationship between E and F by conducting a meta-analysis of existing literature on the topic.
• Explore the potential moderating effects of variable G on the relationship between H and I by conducting subgroup analyses.
• Identify potential areas for future research based on the gaps in current literature and the findings of this study.
• Conduct a replication study to validate the results of this study and further establish the generalizability of the findings.

Applications of Research Recommendations

Research recommendations are important as they provide guidance on how to improve or solve a problem. The applications of research recommendations are numerous and can be used in various fields. Some of the applications of research recommendations include:

• Policy-making: Research recommendations can be used to develop policies that address specific issues. For example, recommendations from research on climate change can be used to develop policies that reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainability.
• Program development: Research recommendations can guide the development of programs that address specific issues. For example, recommendations from research on education can be used to develop programs that improve student achievement.
• Product development : Research recommendations can guide the development of products that meet specific needs. For example, recommendations from research on consumer behavior can be used to develop products that appeal to consumers.
• Marketing strategies: Research recommendations can be used to develop effective marketing strategies. For example, recommendations from research on target audiences can be used to develop marketing strategies that effectively reach specific demographic groups.
• Medical practice : Research recommendations can guide medical practitioners in providing the best possible care to patients. For example, recommendations from research on treatments for specific conditions can be used to improve patient outcomes.
• Scientific research: Research recommendations can guide future research in a specific field. For example, recommendations from research on a specific disease can be used to guide future research on treatments and cures for that disease.

Purpose of Research Recommendations

The purpose of research recommendations is to provide guidance on how to improve or solve a problem based on the findings of research. Research recommendations are typically made at the end of a research study and are based on the conclusions drawn from the research data. The purpose of research recommendations is to provide actionable advice to individuals or organizations that can help them make informed decisions, develop effective strategies, or implement changes that address the issues identified in the research.

The main purpose of research recommendations is to facilitate the transfer of knowledge from researchers to practitioners, policymakers, or other stakeholders who can benefit from the research findings. Recommendations can help bridge the gap between research and practice by providing specific actions that can be taken based on the research results. By providing clear and actionable recommendations, researchers can help ensure that their findings are put into practice, leading to improvements in various fields, such as healthcare, education, business, and public policy.

Characteristics of Research Recommendations

Research recommendations are a key component of research studies and are intended to provide practical guidance on how to apply research findings to real-world problems. The following are some of the key characteristics of research recommendations:

• Actionable : Research recommendations should be specific and actionable, providing clear guidance on what actions should be taken to address the problem identified in the research.
• Evidence-based: Research recommendations should be based on the findings of the research study, supported by the data collected and analyzed.
• Contextual: Research recommendations should be tailored to the specific context in which they will be implemented, taking into account the unique circumstances and constraints of the situation.
• Feasible : Research recommendations should be realistic and feasible, taking into account the available resources, time constraints, and other factors that may impact their implementation.
• Prioritized: Research recommendations should be prioritized based on their potential impact and feasibility, with the most important recommendations given the highest priority.
• Communicated effectively: Research recommendations should be communicated clearly and effectively, using language that is understandable to the target audience.
• Evaluated : Research recommendations should be evaluated to determine their effectiveness in addressing the problem identified in the research, and to identify opportunities for improvement.

Advantages of Research Recommendations

Research recommendations have several advantages, including:

• Providing practical guidance: Research recommendations provide practical guidance on how to apply research findings to real-world problems, helping to bridge the gap between research and practice.
• Improving decision-making: Research recommendations help decision-makers make informed decisions based on the findings of research, leading to better outcomes and improved performance.
• Enhancing accountability : Research recommendations can help enhance accountability by providing clear guidance on what actions should be taken, and by providing a basis for evaluating progress and outcomes.
• Informing policy development : Research recommendations can inform the development of policies that are evidence-based and tailored to the specific needs of a given situation.
• Enhancing knowledge transfer: Research recommendations help facilitate the transfer of knowledge from researchers to practitioners, policymakers, or other stakeholders who can benefit from the research findings.
• Encouraging further research : Research recommendations can help identify gaps in knowledge and areas for further research, encouraging continued exploration and discovery.
• Promoting innovation: Research recommendations can help identify innovative solutions to complex problems, leading to new ideas and approaches.

Limitations of Research Recommendations

While research recommendations have several advantages, there are also some limitations to consider. These limitations include:

• Context-specific: Research recommendations may be context-specific and may not be applicable in all situations. Recommendations developed in one context may not be suitable for another context, requiring adaptation or modification.
• I mplementation challenges: Implementation of research recommendations may face challenges, such as lack of resources, resistance to change, or lack of buy-in from stakeholders.
• Limited scope: Research recommendations may be limited in scope, focusing only on a specific issue or aspect of a problem, while other important factors may be overlooked.
• Uncertainty : Research recommendations may be uncertain, particularly when the research findings are inconclusive or when the recommendations are based on limited data.
• Bias : Research recommendations may be influenced by researcher bias or conflicts of interest, leading to recommendations that are not in the best interests of stakeholders.
• Timing : Research recommendations may be time-sensitive, requiring timely action to be effective. Delayed action may result in missed opportunities or reduced effectiveness.
• Lack of evaluation: Research recommendations may not be evaluated to determine their effectiveness or impact, making it difficult to assess whether they are successful or not.

About the author

Muhammad Hassan

Researcher, Academic Writer, Web developer

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Top-Cited Study: Students’ Attitudes Toward Creativity in School

Drs. zorana ivcevic pringle & jessica hoffmann recognized for their top cited paper in 2022-2023 for the journal of creative behavior, dr. zorana ivcevic pringle and dr. jessica hoffmann.

A paper authored by Dr. Zorana Ivcevic Pringle, Senior Research Scientist, and Dr. Jessica Hoffmann, Assistant Professor at the Child Study Center, has been recognized as one of the top 10 most-cited articles in the Journal of Creative Behavior for 2022 and 2023.

The article, "The Creativity Dare: Attitudes Toward Creativity and Prediction of Creative Behavior in School," examines how high school students' attitudes toward creativity impact what students are able to do in their classrooms. Drs. Ivcevic and Hoffmann conducted two studies in which they measured thoughts and feelings students have as they decide whether to share their creative ideas and whether to pursue creative challenges. They identified three key attitudes: valuing creativity, anxious risk aversion, and anticipating negative social consequences. The research showed that students who valued creativity – considered it important to their identity – were more likely to view creative challenges as beneficial to their goals and more likely to be creative in their schoolwork. By contrast, those who were anxious about taking risks were less likely to share their creative ideas in class and those who anticipated negative social consequences ended up less interested in creative challenges and put less effort in working on these challenges.

This study is significant both practically and theoretically. Dr. Ivcevic states,

“The World Economic Forum lists several creativity-related skills in their top 10 list of skills for the changing economy. This research provides insight into concerns on students’ minds as they approach creative work. Will sharing ideas be met with disapproval? Could it be safer not to share ideas? How valuable and personally important is creativity for students? When educators acknowledge these concerns and take them into account in their classrooms, their students will be better able and more willing to engage creatively at school. We are deeply honored that this line of research has received so much recognition.”

Drs. Ivcevic and Hoffmann plan to extend this work to examine how a supportive school climate can help students develop positive attitudes toward creativity. They are also working to validate a way to measure these attitudes in Spanish-speaking students.

Featured in this article

• Jessica D Hoffmann, PhD Assistant Professor in the Child Study Center
• Zorana Ivcevic Pringle Senior Research Scientist

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• The Creativity Dare: Attitudes Toward Creativity and Prediction of Creative Behavior in School

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THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF WORKING STUDENTS: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL-NARRATIVE STUDY OF BSED-MAPEH STUDENTS

The increasing number of working students is quite noticeable despite of the government tution-free education program led by President Rod Duterte. Open market is the most common work place of students working to earn some extra money to support their miscellaneous and day-to-day living expenses. Underground market offers a source of income for students in financial needs through buying and selling goods from personal care products, apparel to food items. Underworld has invisible working –students earning money from prostitution and drug trafficking, Determination to earn a professional diploma,--a goal vs lived experiences.

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understanding the unorthodox worker

Frederick Edward Fabella

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the lived experiences of former Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) student-beneficiaries. The theories guiding this study were Human Capital Theory (1990), Social Capital Theory (1988), and The Concept of Experience by Dewey (1934). The study followed the theory and methods of the phenomenological research model proposed by Giorgi (2009) that allowed informants to provide personal perspectives and reflections on their experiences. The following three research questions guided the study: 1)What are the students’ distinct experiences as former beneficiaries of 4Ps? 2) How would the students describe their lives and values as 4Ps former beneficiaries?and 3) How are these experiences of being a former 4Ps recipient reflected in the co-researchers lives today?Interviews conducted to gather perceptive data from co-researcherswere transcribed, examined, coded, and broken down into themes emerged throughout the research process. The themes identified based on the distinct experiences of students as former beneficiaries of 4Ps were Financial Distress, Psychological Distress, and Financial Security. Identified themes based on description of lives and values of participants as former 4Ps beneficiaries were Reduced 3 Poverty, Spiritual Growth, and Social Growth. Identified themes based on reflection on the lives of co-researchers from gained experience as a former 4Ps member were Improved Confidence, Motivation, and Improved Academic Performance. The findings of the study may help in improving the 4Ps program and the experiences that will be brought by the said program to the present and future beneficiaries.

Anna Casandra Mariño

Leodinito Cañete

Trafficking in human beings is turning to be a “glocal” phenomenon - subject to increasing international attention in recent years and continuing to be a local development concern. Several domestic anti-trafficking initiatives both by the government and non-government organizations have been spawned in the Philippines. While there is a wealth of documented experience, research, and analysis on sex work and sex trafficking of women and children that cover a spectrum of trafficking issues: trends; causes; abusive practices; and policy and program interventions by multilateral institutions, states, and NGOs certain gaps remain. A rapid assessment on child trafficking in eight selected sites (Bask Pardo, Bulacao, Cansaga, Lamac, San Roque, Tangke, Labogon, and Umapad was conducted to gather baseline information on the incidence and prevalence of child trafficking in these area. The study mainly used the community organizing and participatory action research (COPAR) approach in the study. The narratives showed that it cannot be divorced from the specific characteristic of feminization that has been widely acknowledged globally with women and children not only trafficked for sexual exploitation, but also for other types of work. Actual reported cases of trafficking were not documented in the study. It relied mainly on the anecdotal reports of the research participants. The level of awareness on child trafficking varied across sites as gleaned from the information shared by the participants on the subject matter of child trafficking. In all the study areas, there were intermittent cases of domestic violence, incest, rape, drug addiction, pornography and other violent forms of child abuse. These put children in greater risk of trafficking as a result of their psychological and emotional trauma. Moreover, prostitution as a form of abuse is also a high-risk factor in child trafficking. There is no single reason why children are trafficked (UNICEF 2009) but rather a wide range of factors and layers of vulnerabilities related to children as individuals, their families, and the socio-economic context in which they live. These factors may be directly experienced by children who are abused or forced to drop out of school. There are also family-related factors such as family breakdown, domestic violence, substance abuse, and neglect. Socioeconomic factors in which a child is living tend to be indistinct and wide ranging, encompassing social norms and attitudes, market forces, economic opportunities or the lack thereof, labour and migration patterns, legal and policy frameworks, influence of peer pressure and the media, such as poverty and lack of education and employment opportunities. There were reported cases on demands for child labor and sex with children. The anecdotal reports used in this study reveal discernable patterns of child trafficking in the eight sites. These patterns can be categorized in relation to the purposes for which children are trafficked and the processes by which they are trafficked. The main purpose for which children are trafficked in the study areas is for sexual exploitation such as through child prostitution or the production of child pornography with sporadic reference to the trafficking of children for the purposes of exploitative labor such as domestic services. Subsequent efforts must be undertaken to gather disaggregated data using community-based mechanisms for data collection in order to generate standard indicators on child trafficking that can be used to establish a national profile.Tackling this difficult technical issue of quantitative data should be simultaneously done with developing evidence-based child protection systems since it offers a more clear-cut conceptual framework that ensures sustainable and better outcomes for children, so that they are protected against all forms of abuse, exploitation, neglect and violence. This calls for the development and strengthening of grassroots legal and policy frameworks and social behavior changes. Direct involvement to sensitize the residents of the barangayis needed to take collective action on the issue of child trafficking. Participation in formal structures and inclusion in formal procedures of planning, implementation, and evaluating community-wide activities relative to the issue is also necessary. Community organizations pave the way for functional community-based planning, implementing and evaluating of child protection programs where these strategies may be adapted such as education and training, networking, mobilization on child protection and development concerns, implementing of livelihood projects, and developing secondary leaders.

Isaiah Carlo S . Cabañero

The research study aims to investigate the reasons why people have found shelter and have continued to live inside the Manila North Cemetery. Furthermore, the research study also aims to reveal the ways on how people have sustained their daily lives inside the said cemetery for decades since; in order (1) to describe what people living inside the Manila North Cemetery consider as habitable housing and living conditions; (2) to describe and identify the factors that make the Manila North Cemetery a considerable place to live in for the people living inside the said cemetery; (3) to describe and document the daily lives of the people living inside the Manila North Cemetery; and (4) to explain and analyze the ways on how the people living inside the Manila North Cemetery have been sustaining their daily lives. The research study employed a quasi-ethnographic method of collecting data and information through purposive-snowball sampling among internal rural-urban migrants living inside the Manila North Cemetery, under a subjectivist methodological perspective. The research study found out that as a long-standing final resting place for the dead of Manila, it is as peculiar as it is ironic to regard that, within its walls and fortified borders, the Manila North Cemetery also has become and has transformed into a life-giving sanctuary to those who have become lost, to those who were left with nothing but to wander around aimlessly, and to those society has casted away. Generations upon generations of this cast away, almost “disposed”, population of people have made Manila North Cemetery what it is today: an equal community of the living—of the barely living; having formed its own rules and ways of life—a unique zone wherein the living thrives among the dead.

Cyrelle Ann Kae Valencia

This paper aimed to analyze the Filipino Teachers’ Facebook conversation using Halliday’s Theory. Specifically, to present and explain the themes generated from Facebook conversation and to identify the factors that influence the teachers’ attitudes and behaviour towards Facebook conversation. This study used a descriptive-qualitative research. The corpus subjected to analysis for this attempt is the Facebook conversation of Filipino teachers taken from Facebook group TeacherPH. It used verbal interpretation to analyze the data gathered, coding and categorization of topics. It is conclude that there are factors that affect the attitude and behavior of the teachers that may lead to certain errors and misinterpretation in a conversation.

Danielle Ochoa

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Well-Being at Work: US Research Report 2024

Human capital development lab, well-being at work us research report released (2024).

JHU researchers share new insights related to employee well-being in US Organizations. The study highlights the decline in the climate of workplace well-being since the COVID-19 pandemic through a comprehensive analysis of more than 1.5 survey respondents each year. The climate of Well-Being report outlines organizational factors that may affect employee well-being in the workplace. The research shows that successful organizations create a climate of well-being not by providing perks or benefits, rather they create a culture where people feel acknowledged, supported and connected.  The new insights highlight the impact of flexible work arrangements, stress levels, industry practices, and persistent disparities among groups of people in the workplace.  

Well-Being at Work

Fostering a Healthy Work Climate for All

The research shows that successful organizations create a climate of well-being not by providing perks or benefits, rather they create a culture where people feel acknowledged, supported and connected. The new insights highlight the impact of flexible work arrangements, stress levels, industry practices, and persistent disparities among groups of people in the workplace.

Employees report a post-pandemic decline in the climate of workplace well-being 

Washington, D.C.  — August 28, 2024 — How do employees experience the climate of their workplace when it comes to well-being? As it turns out, this varies by industry, demographic group, and organization, according to new research led by Johns Hopkins Carey Business School’s Human Capital Development Lab. 

The link between employee well-being and performance has prompted leaders with motivation to explore how maximizing these once-overlooked factors may be central to increasing organizational success. However, achieving high levels of employee well-being is a feat that’s easier said than done. 

The Well-Being at Work report uncovers the latest insights on organizational and individual factors that may influence employee well-being in the U.S. The study showcases the rise and decline of the climate of employee well-being across industries over the past five years, while considering influences like tenure, management level, confidence, and work arrangements, along with demographic differences based on race, gender, and age.

“Improving employee well-being can be complex – our research highlights a need for leaders to address organizational culture factors coupled with a more nuanced management approach to create a climate of well-being for all,” said Professor Rick Smith, faculty director at the Human Capital Development Lab and co-author of the study. 

The overall findings show what many employees experienced in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic: organizational leaders addressing the impact of this crisis by taking extra care to meet employee needs. The report shows that employees experienced a spike in the positive climate of well-being at the early periods of the pandemic. However, as workplaces transitioned back to pre-pandemic norms and more employees return to physical office spaces, the overall climate of well-being often regressed to the pre-pandemic level.

Associate Professor Michelle Barton, co-author of the study, adds, “The Covid pandemic heightened employers’ awareness of the importance of well-being, and many of the best organizations worked to create a positive work climate. The challenge now, will be to integrate those practices into everyday work life, rather than simply as a crisis response.” 

The data from the report confirms that there is a link between remote work opportunities and a climate of well-being, suggesting a need for employers to address work-life balance challenges for the workforce. However, since managers typically encounter lower stress levels than their junior employees, some managers may not fully appreciate these needs. This research also highlights some important differences by gender and ethnic groups, showing that well-being in the workplace is still consistently lower for women and African Americans. 

Interestingly enough, researchers also completed a comparison analysis of the climate of well-being between the top 100 companies listed in the Fortune 100 Best Companies, as recognized by Great Place To Work® , and non-ranked companies in 2023. They found that ranked firms have significantly higher employee well-being scores, further strengthening the potential link between employee well-being and organizations recognized as great places to work. 

This research leverages data from Great Place To Work® , the world’s leader in identifying best workplaces. The flagship data was gathered using a proprietary employee survey, known as The Trust Index™ survey, which is administered to over 5000 organizations and over 4.5 million survey respondents each year around the world. To quantify a climate of well-being, researchers measured several key dimensions such as: mental and emotional support, sense of purpose, personal support, financial health, and meaningful connections. 

Authors of the study include Rick Smith, a professor of practice and faculty director of the Human Capital Development Lab at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School; Michelle Barton, an associate professor of practice and academic program director of the Flex MBA Program at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School; Christopher Myers, an associate professor of management and organization and faculty director of the Center for Innovative Leadership at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School; and Marcus Erb, vice president of data science and innovation for Great Place To Work. 

About Great Place To Work As the global authority on workplace culture, Great Place To Work brings 30 years of groundbreaking research and data to help every place become a great place to work for all. Its proprietary platform and For All™ Model help companies evaluate the experience of every employee, with exemplary workplaces becoming Great Place To Work Certified™ or receiving recognition on a coveted Best Workplaces™ list.

Follow Great Place To Work on  LinkedIn ,  X , and  Instagram  or visit  greatplacetowork.com  and  sign up for the newsletter  to learn more.

• About Carey Business School
• Executive Education
• Women's Leadership Initiative

Bonner Scholars

The Bonner Scholars Program is a four-year scholarship program that supports a strong team of students working to bring about positive community change through service, research and action.

All 80 participants in Davidson's Bonner Scholars Program come together for weekly peer meetings and skill development, covering topics such as time management, conflict resolution, poverty reduction and education reform.

Each year, a new class of 20 incoming students are accepted into the program.

Class of 2029

The Class of 2029 Bonner Scholars Application opens on January 18, 2025, and application review begins May 1. The application will close on June 15, 2025, and all applicants will be notified of their status by mid-July 2025. Applicants will be contacted at the email address provided in their application.

Bonner has given me the opportunity to explore my passions in ways I could never have imagined! Not only has the program prepared me for direct service toward the issues I want to tackle but also trained me to work more behind-the-scenes through advocacy and grant writing.

Bonner Scholars complete 280 hours of service annually, which include skill building lessons and class meetings. They also complete two summers of service, a cornerstone project over the course of the four-year program and have multiple opportunities for leadership .

Here are some highlights from the four years:

• The first year includes a cornerstone project, for which students plan a Bonner Foundation-funded service trip over spring break.
• The second year offers the chance for scholars to go on exchange, learning about the Bonner program and the community at a different college or university. Students also recommit to the program during the second year.
• At the end of the fourth year, scholars participate in a "presentation of learning," in which they highlight some of their experiences during the program.

Since its inception in 1990, the Bonner program has grown to include 74 colleges and universities nationwide. Davidson has participated in the program since 1991, making it one of the longest-running Bonner Scholars programs in the nation.

Beginning with the Class of 2024

Scholarship details.

School Year Support $1,500 per semester

Summer Living Support $3,000 per summer, paid at the beginning of the summer

Summer Earnings $1,500 per summer, paid early the following fall

Senior Stipend $500 in senior year for service or professional development opportunity ________________________________________

Total Monetary Value:  $21,500

Additionally, through an endowed fund created at Davidson, the Bonner Foundation provides a modest need-based grant for all Bonner Scholars, replacing a portion of the Davidson College Grant.

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• Review Article
• Published: 29 August 2024

Executive function deficits in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder

• Michael J. Kofler   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-8604-3647 1 ,
• Elia F. Soto   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-6672-287X 2 ,
• Leah J. Singh   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0242-2859 1 ,
• Sherelle L. Harmon   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-7727-6908 1 ,
• Emma M. Jaisle   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4882-7501 3 ,
• Jessica N. Smith   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-3559-4895 3 ,
• Kathleen E. Feeney   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-8442-7866 3 &
• Erica D. Musser 4  

Nature Reviews Psychology ( 2024 ) Cite this article

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• Autism spectrum disorders
• Signs and symptoms

Executive function deficits have been reported in both autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, little is known regarding which, if any, of these impairments are shared in children with ADHD and those with ASD. In this Review, we provide an overview of the current literature with a critical eye toward diagnostic, measurement and third-variable considerations that should be leveraged to provide more definitive answers. We conclude that the field’s understanding of executive function profiles in ASD and ADHD is highly limited because most research on each of these disorders has failed to account for the possible co-occurrence and the presence of symptoms of the other disorder. A vast majority of studies have relied on traditional neuropsychological tests and informant-rated executive function scales that have poor specificity and construct validity, and most studies have been unable to account for the well-documented between-person heterogeneity within and across disorders. At present, the most parsimonious conclusion is that children with ADHD and/or ASD tend to perform moderately worse than neurotypical children on a broad range of neuropsychological tests. However, the extent to which these difficulties are unique to one of these disorders or shared, or are attributable to impairments in specific executive functions, remains largely unknown. We end with focused recommendations for future research.

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Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Symptoms of autism in Williams syndrome: a transdiagnostic approach

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder traits are a more important predictor of internalising problems than autistic traits

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Kofler, M.J., Soto, E.F., Singh, L.J. et al. Executive function deficits in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder. Nat Rev Psychol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44159-024-00350-9

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Accepted : 23 July 2024

Published : 29 August 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1038/s44159-024-00350-9

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