What does researcher independence and the hidden curriculum mean for postdocs? A collaborative autoethnographic study
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22423736 |
|---|---|
| Authors | El Crabtree (0000-0002-6680-6280, Trinity College Dublin, corresponding author), Kay Guccione (0000-0001-9910-9388, University of Glasgow), Rhoda Stefanatos (0000-0002-9072-7224, University of Glasgow) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 63 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 1177-1192 |
| Publication date | 2026-07-04 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Innovations in Education and Teaching International (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1470-3297 • E-ISSN: 1470-3300 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/14703297.2026.2655328 |
| OpenAlex | W7152070749 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 29 |
Through collaborative autoethnography (CAE), this paper explores what researcher independence (RI) and the hidden curriculum (HC) mean for postdocs, building on the recent conceptualisations of doctoral RI and the HC. For postdocs, what RI means, as an outcome and a process, is particularly ill-defined. This paper considers the pertinence of the HC as a framework to guide postdoctoral development and mitigate common challenges faced. The authors’ CAE data is analysed to delineate six themes shared across three individual narratives that recount their evolving perceptions of RI during postdoctoral periods. Their postdoctoral RI is characterised by ‘structural conditionality’, ‘relationality’ and ‘whole-person identities’. ‘Navigating the ambiguity of RI’ underlies their postdoctoral HC. This is also characterised by ‘learning outside institutions’ and ‘exo-networks’ spanning multiple organisations. These findings offer evidence to support further investigation of the HC as a framework for supporting postdocs to develop RI.
Autoethnography · Curriculum · Graduate students · Hidden curriculum · Higher education · Qualitative research · Teaching method · Digital Education and Society · Doctoral Education Challenges and Solutions · Science, Research, and Medicine
| Highly cited | No |
|---|