5: When to record in a research journal?
One of the major deterrents for journalling is the felt pressure of needing to meet particular expectations around the research journal. This relates to every aspect of journalling, from the format, design and layout of the journal, to what is recorded, how entries are made and when journalling is to happen.
Advice from research handbooks or journalling guidebooks and templates like those commonly used in bullet journals often adds to this overwhelming feeling of pressure. Resources like these are a great starting point to learn about keeping research journals, but the issue is that the guidance is often very specific regarding its focus on writing, a particular way of maintaining journals and regularity of creating entries. One such example is the recommendation to journal every day and to provide deeper reflections three to five times a week. Such recommendations are clearly well intended, but not really helpful. These guidelines put us journallers under pressure to write an entry, when we may not have anything important or relevant to say. As a result, entries become forced, superficial and meaningless. At the same time, the guidelines set us journallers up for failure. We know that we are supposed to journal once a day quickly, and three to five times a week for a longer, more carefully planned session. If we miss a session or two or three entries, we feel like we are not meeting our targets and not doing our work. Consequently, we begin to associate the journal with negative feelings, which will inevitably lead to us abandoning the journalling process altogether.
| May 2022 onwards | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 193 | 90 | 6 |
| Full Text Views | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| PDF Downloads | 6 | 1 | 0 |
Institutional librarians can find more information about free trials here
We are a leading social science publisher
committed to making a difference.
Bristol University Press and
Policy Press
bristoluniversitypress.co.uk