Comparison Matrix Paper: Doctoral Identity
Courtney Sims
Grand Canyon University: RES811
October 9, 2015

Comparison Matrix Paper: Doctoral Identity
Who am I and what have you done with my identity? This is an age old question that has played a prevalent role for over the past five decades. This paper will explore the importance of socialization, professionalism, and developing a scholarly identity through the comparison of the three following articles: “Socialization of Doctoral Students to Academic Norms” by Weidman and Stein (2003) whose purpose was to examine the relationships among the perceived informal structures of the climate in academic departments associated with the socialization of doctoral students to the scholar role; “Developmental networks and learning: toward an interdisciplinary perspective on identity development during doctoral study” by Baker and Lattuca (2010) whose purpose was to develop a deeper understanding on how doctoral programs shape teachers and researchers including the preparation of graduate students for academic careers and the development of an academic professional identity; and “Critical Thinking in Distance Education and Traditional Education” by Visser and Visser (2003) whose purpose was to establish a clear explanation of “critical thinking” and express opinions on the variations in student learning based on whether it was on campus or by various means of distance learning.
The comparison of the three articles will include the research questions presented by the authors, a literature review, sample populations that were studied, the limitations of the studies, and the results/conclusions of the studies. Possible suggestions for further study and research will also be addressed.
Comparison of Research Questions
The three articles shared similarities by using common seminal research articles on professional