Seen and Heard as a Whole Person - Alison Woolley

Insights from Self Determination Theory into the Development of Holistic Wellbeing in the Doctoral Support Project for Women Researching Theology at Doctoral Level 

Summary:

This research aims to better understand the ways that provision of additional support for women undertaking doctoral level studies in theology may contribute to their wellbeing and flourishing within their academic and wider communities. It investigates a recently-established programme that provides 12 female doctoral candidates with regular, ongoing support comprising one-to-one and peer group structures. Within this innovative Doctoral Support Project (DSP), each participant’s spiritual development, personal narratives and academic research activities are explicitly supported, with particular attention given to understanding the intersectionality of these aspects of their lived experience. Whilst this research project does not form part of the conceived structure of the DSP itself, with their consent, data gathered from its participants will be integral to this investigation.

Rooted in feminist practical theology, and its developing perception of qualitative theological research as itself a spiritual practice, and utilising psychology’s Self-Determination Theory (SDT) as an additional interrogative conversation partner, the research will investigate how participants characterise the DSP – which is intentionally holistic and broader in its scope than traditional academic supervision – impacting upon their wellbeing and flourishing as they engage in the doctoral research process.

The UK’s levels of Doctoral degree drop-out rates have remained unchanged at just under 20% since the release of the Higher Education Funding Council for England statistical report in 2010. Some UK institutions have initiated programmes that target support at candidates from marginalised groups in an endeavour to mitigate the numbers who withdraw. As women remain in the minority amongst doctoral students within theology, investigating the outcomes of the DSP’s targeted, additional support of female students may lead to new understanding into what form of interventions could, in the future, positively contribute to the wellbeing of women studying theology across the academy, and potentially, by extension, to resultant PhD completion rates. It is also conceivable that this research will offer additional insights into how supporting shifts in faith-based perceptions that occur when studying theology can enhance student wellbeing and outcomes across genders. Additionally, it may gesture towards similar support benefiting the well-being of doctoral students from any religious tradition and irrespective of their academic discipline.

This research will thus address the Fellowship’s wider theme of the role of religion in human flourishing by exploring whether and how participants in the DSP characterise its support of their academic, religious and pastoral needs as enhancing their wellbeing in ways that enable them to flourish within the faith-based, academic and broader communities to which they relate.

It is hoped that its findings may have some potential to impact the future wellbeing, degree completion rates, outputs and outcomes for women beyond the DSP studying theology by contributing both psychologically and feminist theology-informed insights to the developing discourse around improving the student doctoral research experience within theological departments and institutions.