Understanding supervisory practice and development in the pre-HDR space: an ethogenic approach

This article addresses the lack of support for new supervisors in the pre-Higher Degree Research space, including undergraduate honours and postgraduate capstone projects. The research provides an inter-faculty perspective on the needs of pre-HDR students and supervisors, informing an online professional learning resource to address the problem. Concepts from ethogenic social psychology were used to theorise supervision as a complex practice involving two analytically distinct domains of human behaviour: the expressive and practical domains. Semi-structured focus group interviews with alumni and supervisors from Education, Arts-Humanities, and Health Sciences provided data for a needs analysis and to stimulate deliberation amongst the research team, which included course coordinators and supervisors across the different faculties and a representative from the university’s teaching and learning centre. The findings illustrate expressive and practical aspects of supervision and elaborate salient themes for the development of pre-HDR supervisory practice through inquiry. The article advances theory by supporting a view of supervision as a process of supervisor, student, and supervisory practice co-development. The results will be of interest to supervisors, honours and masters course coordinators and providers of professional development for academics.