An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Researcher Hour and User Groups at Southern Cross University
Adewuyi Ayodele Adeyinka1, Jackie Wolstenholme1, Supriya Dubey1 1Southern Cross University
Abstract
Introduction
In this study, we shall examine the participation of attendees of Researcher Hour and User Groups at Southern Cross University (SCU). The aim of the Researcher Hour is to create a platform for researchers to have an avenue to table their challenges and seek help from the Office of Research, Technology Services, Library and their colleagues.
Methods
We shall analyse the distribution of the attendance across the four faculties and the nature of support they are seeking as well as whether or not their expectations were being met. We shall adopt a Likert-scale questionnaire with open-ended questions and analyse attendance records of participants. All participants since the inception will be targeted. Thematic analysis of the open ended-questions will be conducted. One-sample t-test will be used to understand the extent to which they are satisfied with the services provided, while the Binomial test of proportions will be used to analyse the differences in the proportion of satisfied and unsatisfied participants.
Results
The results will indicate the distribution of participants across disciplines, the extent to which participants benefit from Researcher Hour and the User Groups while elucidating possible areas of improvement. We shall also present results on the extent of their satisfaction with the services provided.
Conclusion
This research will identify new initiatives to attract and retain participation at Researcher Hour and User Groups. The project will also identify areas of research support requirements to keep up with trends in research data management and analysis to maximise research productivity and impact.
Biography
Ade Adeyinka is the Digital Research Analyst at Southern Cross University (SCU). He coordinates the Researcher Hour at SCU and supports researchers training at QCIF and SCU. He is currently working on aligning the institutional requirements with researcher needs for research data management. His research specialization is in the application of weather-index insurance in agriculture.