Negotiating Powerlessness and Power Dynamics in our Mentor-Junior Faulty Portraits

• In Event: Dilemmas and Tensions in Faculty Mentoring in Higher Education

Abstract

Our qualitative self-study of mentoring experiences of three untenured junior faculty and their mentor addressed the question, How did we negotiate the dynamics of powerlessness and power in our mentor-junior faculty relationships? We gathered data of our mentoring experiences retrospectively, through track changes, e-mails, eight group discussion transcriptions, and five free-writes. This data was used to create dialogic narratives (word “portraits”) illustrating the mentoring process for each mentor-mentee dyad. Portraits were examined for patterns relating to power, powerlessness and the process of negotiating these issues. Powerlessness and disillusionment were created by the institution, especially for women. Power issues related to race, gender, mentor credibility and novice authority, feelings of frustration, pressure, conflicts, and disagreements all needed acknowledgement and negotiation.

Authors

• Kathleen Mary Cowin, Oregon State University

• Leonora M. Cohen, Oregon State University

• Richard A. Orozco, The University of Arizona

• Kathryn E. Mcintosh Ciechanowski, Oregon State University