Research Guides: Scholarly Communication Support: Planning, Conducting, Disseminating, Promoting, & Assessing Research: Researcher Identity & Agenda

Your Identity & Agenda as a Researcher

Your identity, who you are and your lived experiences, will inherently affect how you research: What questions you ask, how you collect and interpret data, what conclusions you draw.

Research identity (RI) "defines how one perceives oneself as a researcher, with strong implications for which topics and methods will be important to the researcher" (Ponterotto & Grieger, 1999, p. 52). Jorgensen and Duncan (2015) conclude that "knowing one's self as a researcher related to internal processes, behaviors, and interpersonal interactions that integrated and gave meaning to the theory of RI" (54).

Review the resources below if you wish to learn more about characterizing your research(er) identity or positionality.

References

Jorgensen, M. F., & Duncan, K. (2015). A grounded theory of master's‐level counselor research identity. Counselor Education and Supervision, 54(1), 17-31. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6978.2015.00067.x

Ponterotto, J. G., & Grieger, I. (1999). Merging qualitative and quantitative perspectives in a research identity. In M. Kopala & L. A. Suzuki (Eds.), Using qualitative methods in psychology (pp. 49-62). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sages.

What perspectives underlie ‘researcher identity’? A review of two decades of empirical studies (2021)
"...we suggest current and future researchers of identity can use the [four] dimensions [of researcher identity] to clarify their underlying assumptions and the implications for their empirical designs and methods."
Castelló, M., McAlpine, L., Sala-Bubaré, A. et al. What perspectives underlie ‘researcher identity’? A review of two decades of empirical studies. High Educ 81, 567–590 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-020-00557-8
Footprints in the field: researcher identity in social research (2013)
Harvey, J. (2013). Footprints in the Field: Researcher Identity in Social Research. Methodological Innovations Online, 8(1), 86-98. https://doi.org/10.4256/mio.2013.0006

Your research agenda is your plan for what issues you want to engage in a subset of your field. Your agenda can help you set short-term and long-term goals for choosing mentors, collaborators, jobs, research projects, dissemination venues, where to invest your time, etc. Your research agenda demonstrates your ability to be a peer and participant within a field of study.

Remember, advanced research is iterative. Your agenda isn't "one and done" -- refine it thoughtfully, and consider using concept maps, Venn diagrams, and conversations with academic peers if needed to help you orient and focus your agenda. Consider your research agenda a living document -- It may be your roadmap, but you are the one driving, and you can periodically revisit your route and decide that your destination has changed or that you want to change the points you visit along the way.

When drafting your research agenda:

Situate yourself within your larger discipline
- Identify your specific sub-field of research
- Explain what specific idea(s) or issue(s) you want to explore
Describe your approach to this research interest
- What do you prioritize or value in your research?
- What data collection and analysis methods do you use?
Reflect upon your past work
- What common theme and/or methodology do you see?
- Methods may be more consistent and transferable, even as topics and datasets vary
Show how your research interests and priorities relate to current scholarship in your field
- Key trends: processes used, problems to solve, opportunities to build on, keystone texts or authors in the field
- Disciplinary research agendas / research priorities or roadmaps
Outline your plan for research
- How will your work build on and further contribute to these types of key trends and priorities in your field?
- What expected difficulties might you encounter, and how will you overcome them?
- Be sure your goals are challenging and yet realistic
Explain the benefits of your research plans
- What do you hope you will accomplish? Who do you hope will benefit, and how?
- Set realistic expectations in terms of benefits: it is unlikely your research will change everything or benefit everyone
Avoid
- Over-generalization, universal claims
- Empty praise, non-constructive criticism (of yourself or others)
- Language of "right" and "wrong" when discussing other research

Adapted with gratitude from: Matthew Kelly, "Developing a Research Agenda"

Creating a Research Agenda (targeted at graduate students)
by Justin Reedy, from the University of Washington Graduate School website
Developing a research agenda: contributing new knowledge via intent and focus (2013)
Ertmer, P.A., Glazewski, K.D. Developing a research agenda: contributing new knowledge via intent and focus. J Comput High Educ 26, 54–68 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12528-013-9076-4
Developing a Research Agenda
"serves as an introduction to developing a research agenda for both new and seasoned faculty members" (Georgia Southern University)
An instrument to measure individuals’ research agenda setting: The Multi-Dimensional Research Agendas Inventory (2016)
Horta, H., Santos, J.M. An instrument to measure individuals’ research agenda setting: the multi-dimensional research agendas inventory. Scientometrics 108, 1243–1265 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-016-2012-4
Crafting a 3-5 Year Research Agenda: Example
Marymount University

Your field/discipline may have its own research agenda or research priorities which may help to guide your own choices of where to focus new lines of inquiry. The list below is far from comprehensive, but suggests starting points and examples for further searching.

Examples of Broad Disciplinary / Agency Priorities

Examples of Narrower Areas of Suggested Focus

An agenda for future Social Sciences and Humanities research on energy efficiency: 100 priority research questions
Foulds, C., Royston, S., Berker, T. et al. An agenda for future Social Sciences and Humanities research on energy efficiency: 100 priority research questions. Humanit Soc Sci Commun 9, 223 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-022-01243-z
Priorities for social science and humanities research on the challenges of moving beyond animal-based food systems
Morris, C., Kaljonen, M., Aavik, K. et al. Priorities for social science and humanities research on the challenges of moving beyond animal-based food systems. Humanit Soc Sci Commun 8, 38 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-021-00714-z
Now, Later, and Lasting: 10 Priorities for AI Research, Policy, and Practice
By Eric Horvitz, Vincent Conitzer, Sheila McIlraith, and Peter Stone, for Communications of the ACM, 1 May 2024