PPFO402 The Way of the Researcher

The purpose of this course is to make the participants aware of the trials and conflicts that they may run into during their qualification as a researcher. The participants will reflect on how they handle critical incidents in their work and on what choices they make as regards the direction of their path. They will learn to communicate about the challenges one may come upon in the developmental processes so that they can talk with their students and colleagues about this.

The course is intended for PhD students, people in similar qualification processes and people who teach or supervise research and development work.

The process of becoming a researcher has both a professional and personal side to it. Persons who aim to present new knowledge may run into several challenges: How motivated are they really for the task? How does their research relate to their qualifications? How courageous do they dare to be when posing their questions? How open-minded can they be about different views? How much staying power will they have in their search? How independently can they sort out all possible answers? How can they bring to light what they have found? How willing are they to confront established conceptions? These questions suggest that one may, on several occasions in the research process, have to choose between keeping to a known line of action or venturing into the unknown. The way one deals with these trials on a personal level influences the quality of professional work. The personal and professional are closely linked in the discovery of new knowledge. Being aware of the potential conflicts and challenges may help in coping with them. The struggle between creating and conserving forces has always been part of life, and people have tried to delineate and understand such influences. From mythic stories and other works of art, we can see evidence of steps of the creative process. In this course, we will cast light on dilemmas in developmental processes using the participants’ own expressions; motives from mythic stories, poetry, literature and visual arts; and events from the lives of known researchers and artists.

Knowledge

The candidate

- knows what kind of dilemmas one may run into in the development as a researcher

- knows motives from myths and art that reflect conflicts in the creative process

Skills

The candidate

- is able to deal with conflicts in research and other developmental processes using mythic and artistic motives

General competence

The candidate

- can apply images of dilemmas in creative processes in one’s supervision of students and in one’s communication with colleagues