Abstract: Objective To investigate the willingness in, output from, and barriers of educational research among standardized residency training (SRT) faculty in Guangdong Province, and to inform further faculty development strategies. Methods Using a convenience sampling method, 494 faculty members from 13 SRT bases in Guangdong Province were surveyed via a self-designed questionnaire in February 2025. Data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0, with hierarchical cluster analysis. Results Although 74.3%(367/494) of the faculty expressed willingness to engage in educational research, only 45.7% (226/494) had actual involvement, and merely 8.9% (44/494) had published education-related papers in peer-reviewed journals. The barriers were clustered into three dimensions: insufficient time allocation, inadequate support systems (limited information channels, insufficient platforms, and funding), and lack of professional collaboration (absence of teams and training). The three most pressing needs were specialized training for educational research projects [396 (80.2%)], assistance with data statistics [349 (70.6%)], and support for research outcome translation [208 (42.1%)]. Conclusions Despite high willingness, the actual output of educational research among SRT faculty in Guangdong Province remains low, reflecting systemic deficiencies across multiple dimensions of institutional arrangements. The alignment between identified needs and barriers suggests that addressing this challenge requires building a multi-level support system at the institutional level, encompassing capacity building, information support, team collaboration, and protected time.

Key words: Teaching, Research, Standardized residency training, Faculty