Dear Fielding Faculty,
I am conducting a research study exploring how students, faculty, and administrators think about and experience tensions of generative AI use in doctoral education. I am inviting Fielding Graduate University Faculty to participate:
What This Study Involves:
If you choose to participate, you would:
- Review anonymized student materials (30-45 minutes before interview): You'll receive the student's original written paper, a transcript of their question-and-answer session (where an AI chatbot asked the student to explain and apply ideas from their written work), and an epistemic ownership assessment based on that dialogue (this does not score against Fielding's competencies). These materials are from a doctoral student in the other school (not your own) and have been anonymized.
- Participate in an interview (60-75 minutes): You'll first be asked about your own general thinking on authorship, epistemic ownership, acceptable AI use, and academic rigor in doctoral work, and about your own experience using AI in your scholarly work. You’ll then be asked questions about the specific student materials you reviewed: what the dialogue and assessment reveal (or don't) about the student's learning and authorship, tensions the case raises for you, how the paper and transcript compare as evidence, and whether the standard you'd apply to this student matches the standard you'd apply to yourself. The researcher will also ask about faculty roles, institutional policy, and what "rigor" should mean going forward.
Important Information:
- This is not a pilot implementation. You are not being asked to evaluate whether an AI tool should be adopted or to make recommendations about institutional policy.
- Focus is on tensions and assumptions. The interview explores what the student's dialogue reveals about their learning, what tensions or concerns emerge as you interpret it, and whether it challenges any assumptions you hold about the use of generative AI in producing doctoral work.
- Student identity is protected. Materials are anonymized and from the other school. You'll be asked not to attempt identification.
- Your responses are confidential. Your name will not appear in any reports or publications.
- Participation is voluntary. You can skip questions or withdraw at any time.
Eligibility:
- Current faculty member in School of Leadership Studies or School of Psychology
- Experience with doctoral student advising or evaluation w/in the past 2 years
Time Commitment: Approximately 90-120 minutes total (materials review + interview)
Compensation: None (voluntary participation), but your insights will inform thoughtful policy development for doctoral programs; and contribute to understanding institutional tensions around AI integration.
Questions or Interest in Participating?
If you're interested, please first click the links below to review:
If you still have questions, please contact me at spote@fielding.edu.
If you believe you qualify after reviewing the above, please download a copy of the Informed Consent form at the bottom of this page, sign, and email it to me at spote@fielding.edu.
Thank you for considering this opportunity to contribute to understanding of AI in doctoral education.
Sincerely,
Shana Pote
Doctoral Candidate, School of Leadership Studies, Fielding Graduate University spote@fielding.edu