By Jordi Cabanas-Danés
Our analyses of the advice and coaching reports of 2021 showed that feeling incompetent and experiencing performance pressure were reported by a third of the PhD candidates – more than the previous year. That got me thinking…
Of course, one could claim that investing time in getting our emotions regulation system into shape, while better balancing our self-confidence and self-compassion could be a first step to feel better in this regard. However, how fair is it to neglect the pressure that the academic environment puts especially on young researchers? There are many improvement points in the current academic research system, but the one thing I repeatedly stumble upon is the poor feedback culture, and in particular when it comes to positive feedback. Why is that?
We do not understand (positive) feedback
Giving positive feedback is often confused by giving a compliment. Although they can be similar in form, feedback is meant to objectively refer to a specific event or outcome, whereas compliments are often subjective. Because of this confusion, many tend to disregard giving positive feedback or find it superfluous. In the academic setting, a common accepted thought could be: “Publishing papers is part of the job, why should I make a fuss about it?” Confusing compliments and positive feedback goes often hand-in-hand with not understanding how to give feedback in general. For example, some tend to use positive feedback to pave the path to giving negative feedback or to clear the air after having given negative feedback. In both cases, we are subjectively filling in for how the receiver might take the negative feedback and feel the need for softening it. By doing so, we completely undermine the objectivity of (positive) feedback and we also make it harder for the receiver not to associate positive feedback with bad news. Feedback points should be completely independent of each other. Others, especially people in a leadership position, tend to use feedback (both positive or negative) as a tool to mold the performance of their team members. Again, this is doing a poor favor to the general perception of feedback. Perhaps it is time to start thinking of feedback just as honest feedback, instead of attaching unnecessary labels to it. Therefore, the words negative, constructive or positive (feedback) should merely indicate the expectations of the feedback giver in relation with the specific situation but they should not carry any extra information.
We extrapolate our fears
Other potential reasons why a (positive) feedback culture might not be well established in the academic research world are fear and competition. Many tend to think that giving positive feedback to others, especially on events or outcomes that they themselves haven’t achieved yet, places them below the person they’re giving feedback to or it means that they are not able to achieve or perform in the same way. In this case, the reasoning could be “If I do not give positive feedback, then I am still playing in the same league”. Get this right: giving feedback is not and should not be about you (nor about the other personally for that matter). In fact, it says nothing about you. Therefore, next time you refrain from giving positive feedback to a colleague, ask yourself why is that. And if you tend to think about your own performance or achievements, give it anyway!
It is not easy to accept
We often learn that when receiving positive feedback, we should express our gratitude. However, this shouldn’t be an automatic defense mechanism to deflect feedback. Instead, we should also absorb it. If you are able to treat both positive and negative feedback as a tool for making a next actionable plan, you will be able to much better embrace it. Ask questions about it, make sure you understand the feedback and use it to keep improving and moving forward. If you are able to do so, it doesn’t even matter if the feedback is positive or negative. However, the fact that we often prefer to call negative feedback constructive feedback, is a clear example of our struggle for understanding feedback in general.
The benefits
Every time, when because of any reason, someone decides not to give objective/honest positive feedback to someone else, an opportunity of boosting good is missed. For example, many struggle with making choices. Wouldn’t it be nice to have an objective input about the fact that the choice you took worked well for a specific situation? As a leader, do you think that by avoiding positive feedback makes you the most effective and good one? Is it fair to keep punishing young researchers by refusing giving positive feedback, as a colleague or supervisor? Think about it and foster a culture of ongoing feedback, any feedback and to anyone, regardless of function, position and interests.
Feedback – when used right, and not as a tool for punishment or manipulation – can be a powerful tool for improvement and growth.
Do you recognize yourself in this article? The PhD advisors are here for you. Get in touch with us for a consultation (phdadvisor@amsterdamumc.nl).