Design and Development of a Conceptual Model of Student–Research Leadership in Graduate Education

Recent transformations in higher education and the transition toward research-intensive universities have highlighted the need to reconceptualize the role of graduate students in the production and direction of knowledge. Despite the growing body of research on student research engagement, the concept of student–research leadership remains theoretically underdeveloped and lacks a coherent multi-level framework. Addressing this theoretical gap, the present study aimed to design and develop a conceptual model of student–research leadership in graduate education.
The study employed a qualitative systematic review based on the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Through a rigorous process of searching and screening, 84 studies were purposively selected for analysis. Data were analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s (2006) reflexive thematic analysis in combination with Attride-Stirling’s (2001) thematic network framework, with particular emphasis on reconstructing and theoretically articulating the conceptual structure of the phenomenon.
Findings indicate that student–research leadership is a multi-layered construct that begins with the internalization of agency and research competencies, develops through team-based and networked interactions, and becomes stabilized within institutional structures of the university. The concept extends beyond the development of individual skills and reflects a broader reconfiguration of agency and the distribution of leadership within the research-oriented university. Accordingly, the proposed model offers a coherent framework for understanding this phenomenon and provides a theoretical foundation for designing research leadership development programs in graduate education