Research Programmes in HSS

There is a general concern in the Institute about the alarming decline in the number of Ph.D. students. There also exists a concern about the quality of doctoral work carried out at the Institute. Ph.D. Program in the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) is no exception in this respect. The number of Ph.D. students currently registered is about half of what it was even a few years ago. Some disciplines have not been able to recruit students for several semesters continuously. There is also a tendency to compromise with the quality of candidates at the time of selection. All departments in the Institute have these problems but the HSS Department has some typical problems. This brief article looks at the general and specific problems, which affect the research program in HSS. The views expressed in this article are of the author, who has been a student of and a teacher at the IIT system, and not of the department.

General Problems

It is a fact that the importance of research program in HSS subjects is steadily declining in all the universities and professional institutions which may not always show in declining enrolment. There are two research degrees – M.Phil. and Ph.D. About the M.Phil. program in universities, the less said the better. M.Phil. program acquired importance when universities insisted on a research degree for appointment to the post of lecturer. This is no more the case, however. Therefore many professional institutions have wound up their M.Phil. program. Qualifying the UGC’s National Eligibility Test and academic achievements at the master’s degree are more important for appointment than possessing a research degree. Research degree, however, may fetch an early promotion or a few increments. Among those who join the Ph.D. program the main motivation seems to be availing hostel facilities and scholarship than earning the degree. Such students keep looking for jobs and they quit as soon as they get one. One of my own students here left the Ph.D. program when he got a lectureship in a State University. Some Ph.D. students join a university to prepare for the civil service examinations. All this is well known. This trend remains largely unchecked because there are no jobs for Ph.D.’s in colleges or universities. Two decades ago when the author completed his Ph.D. program very few Ph.D. students worried about jobs. They had high self-esteem, a desire to produce a good piece of research and a desire to be different. A good number of students were idealistic and radical, and drawn towards some form of socialism. There was a pride in being associated with subaltern groups on the campus or outside. This is no more the case. A university student today is insecure, anxious, careeristic, and without role models. When educational institutions provided teachers improved living conditions and a lucrative career, many people joined this profession. Many of those who joined in response to this or family reasons have no motivation to read, write or teach. They are professors today. Looking for role models among them could be quite discouraging.

IIT Kanpur has not been affected by the national fall in standards so far but no organization exists in a vacuum. Gradually IIT Kanpur is bound to be influenced by the socio-cultural institutions of society. This may start happening soon. In a postmodern age, power constructs its own values and its values start denuding all moral values of progress. Apart from the practical problems of employment there are larger issues. For Humanities and Social Sciences, colleges and universities are no more the center stage of knowledge. Till a few years ago, in the development discourse teachers were the most powerful people. They had something to contribute and had their own network. They published and were heard. They decided what views on development should prevail. Today an increasing number of them have become redundant. Universities are no more the major creators of knowledge. Now more knowledge is produced by commercial research organizations and non-governmental organizations (NGO) which are involved in sponsored action. Theoretical research has lost its appeal. Ad-hoc, action research and advocacy have long replaced it. Norms have changed. In the earlier hierarchy professors were at the top and social activists at the bottom. Now sponsors are at the top, social activists in the middle and professors at the bottom. Who wants good research? In the new culture, a Ph.D. student must find a job in an NGO. But this requires a re-orientation of the Ph.D. program. NGOs are not interested in topics such as examination of Weber’s critique of Marx with reference to the idea of class-for-itself. NGOs are working on concrete issues like savings, family planning, rehabilitation and resettlement, empowerment, problems of elderly population, civil liberties, etc. In this context, employability of a candidate does not arise from his ability to conduct in-depth analysis of a problem but from other things such as right values, communication skills, computer skills specially the knowledge of relevant computer packages to handle data, ability to switch over to different areas, interpersonal skills, linkages with sponsors, and leadership qualities. In many cases, academic orientation becomes a burden on scholars who look upon the work at NGO (the work place) with skepticism and refuse to adapt easily.

There is a need for universities to define their role afresh. If they have lost the monopoly over generation and distribution of knowledge and shaping of values, in what form should they survive? The Ph.D. program must be re-oriented to develop better linkages with the new collective partners involved in social reconstruction, who are the new employers of our products. No harm will be done if a student selects his/her Ph.D. problem after consulting active research organizations such as ORG, MODE or MARG, rather than the few journals found in the Central Library.

Specific Problems

At the outset it should be said that specific problems are never completely unique. They are unique only in a general context. Thus the specific problems of Ph.D. program in the HSS Department of IIT Kanpur have to be seen from a global perspective. At IIT Kanpur faculty and students talk of many problems. Some of them are as follows: (a) only a few universities which feed into our Ph.D. program prepare their M.A. students for a research career, and usually universities which do so keep their students to themselves; (b) we have generally good library facilities but not good enough for research in a particular area; (c) absence of role models; (d) absence of a research environment, that should be found in professional institutions, due to want of adequate number of students and faculty; (e) lack of encouragement for interdisciplinary activities during course work as well as thesis work; and (e) identity crisis. My feeling is that the last problem is the most serious one. It is a problem which lies at the root of many other problems. What does it mean to say that one is doing Ph.D. at IIT Kanpur? On the one hand, it raises one’s esteem because of the international stature the IITs enjoy and the availability of better facilities. On the other hand, it leads to alienation or subjective sense of proletarianization, when the comparison is made with others in the same institution. For many, since technology is superior to social studies, research in technology (or science) is superior to research on social issues. These two conflicting identities lead to dissonance and irrational reactions.

Some researchers suffering from exaggerated sense of marginality tend to use unnecessarily more sophisticated methodology without properly understanding them, while others stress more on the position or perspective and ignore the methodological rigor (the hallmark of science). Nevertheless, we have been able to maintain quality. In most cases, theses produced by the department are comparable to the best in the country. (But how good or meaningful is the research in the country?) It would have been better if IIT had its own master’s program different from the master’s program in the universities. This could cater to the growing needs of civil society rather than the state. This could feed into an innovative research program that is run in collaboration with organizations, which employ researchers. It may also be noted that in a rigidly stratified society like ours expected material rewards also determine whether students in a particular discipline or department would have high or low esteem. Every one knows that Ph.D. yields low returns. It is really frustrating to do a Ph.D. and look for a job which actually may not require research skills and would get one a low salary of Rs.10, 000 or even less.

There is no point in teaching those things for which students are not prepared or which does not interest them. Every time the author sits in a comprehensive examination he feels the students have failed him. They have virtually forgotten all sociological theories and multivariate regression methods, they were taught only two-three months ago. Many of them apply them wrongly in their thesis. It does not worry anybody because society actually does not need such skills, and by the time students come to the Open Seminar stage we have developed more interest in the student’s future than his work. Why don’t we stop teaching such irrelevant courses? Let the students and guides decide what type of course work is needed for working on a particular problem. Let the Ph.D. students in HSS, irrespective of discipline, learn more of computers, English language, basic concepts of management and inter-personal skills, which they want to learn. Let them also know and interact with organizations where they may be employed later. I pity when a student in the fourth year of research asks me,

"Sir, where can I find a job?"

To conclude, research program in HSS needs new support and new orientation. By opening our eyes to the changing scenario, we can do a great service to both the students and the department. Let students be better informed about the changing value structure of society and be better prepared to face the challenges of the twenty-first century.

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