Partial, (in)authentic, and masked: an exploration of power in doctoral students’ identity development as scholars through collaborative autoethnography

Abstract

As three doctoral students, we conducted a collaborative autoethnography to explore how power dynamics in higher education played a role in our identity development as scholars. Through the lens of Wenger-Trayner and Wenger-Trayner’s Landscapes of Practice and Foucault’s notions of power, we specifically attended to how our attempts to gain entry into various communities of practice in academia were either supported or hindered by our supervisors and other conduits of power who occupy positions of power in academia. Looking across our three unique yet related stories, we discuss the manifestation of power in doctoral education by way of our four main themes: students as assets or burdens, (in)validation and (dis)empowerment, competition for scarce resources, early and ongoing tensions. We conclude with a call for students, faculty, and other members of academia to consider how power dynamics impact doctoral students’ development as scholars.

Keywords:

• Doctoral education
• identity as scholar
• collaborative autoethnography
• power dynamics in academia

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Yoon Ha Choi

Yoon Ha Choi is a PhD candidate in Science Education at Oregon State University’s College of Education. Her research interests include equity and diversity in STEM education, women of color in STEM, student experiences in higher education, and feminist narratives.

Megan Brunner

Megan Brunner is a PhD candidate in Mathematics Education at Oregon State University’s College of Education. She is interested in researching the connections between pedagogy and content knowledge for secondary mathematics teachers and improving undergraduate teacher certification programs.

Haley Traini

Haley Traini, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in Leadership Education in the Department of Agricultural Education and Agricultural Sciences at Oregon State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences. She teaches a variety of leadership, agricultural sciences, and agricultural education courses.