Understanding Stakeholders’ Views on Legalizing the Status of Postdoctoral Researchers

The purpose of this study is to explore the expected effects of policies aimed at supporting stable research activities by formalizing the legal status of postdoctoral researchers, based on stakeholders’ perceptions. Additionally, the study examined policy measures to support postdoctoral researchers’ growth into the next generation of academics beyond merely formalizing their legal status. Results from focus group interviews revealed that participants perceive these policies would clearly define the concept and role of postdoctoral researchers, and support and manage their research activities more systematically. Conversely, the study found that legally formalizing the status of postdoctoral researchers could lead to unintended outcomes, such as universities avoiding hiring new postdoctoral researchers, increased administrative demands, and new evaluation burdens. Finally, the results suggest that to facilitate postdoctoral researchers’ growth into the next generation of academics, it is necessary to expand university hiring, strengthen career guidance and counseling, enhance support for research capabilities, and provide experiences as research project leaders.