Ayanna Johnson
Research Mentor: Eun Ju Son
Mentor Department: Psychology, LSA
Author(s): Ayanna Johnson, Josie Xiong, Eun Ju Son, Martinque Jones, Isis Settles
Session: Session 2 (10:00 AM – 10:50 AM)
Presentation Type: Poster 85
Abstract
Within the past two years, the United States has seen a drastic shift in its political climate. Specifically, there was a steep decline in research funding, which significantly affected American scholars and their work. With several political changes, such as the removal of DEI offices and funding cuts, many faculty have faced increasing challenges regarding their current research or fulfilling responsibilities in academia. This is important to study because such changes can have long-term consequences for science and education by shaping both the quality and quantity of research that is produced. This research project focuses on the impact the political climate has on the scholarly work and emotional well-being of 214 tenure-track faculty members at various institutions across the United States. Participants answered 4 questions about how the political climate affected their scholarly work and emotional well-being. An open-ended response option allowed participants to elaborate on both experiences; these responses were included in a content analysis where a preliminary coding scheme was developed. We identified 10 categories following the content analysis, along with the number of participants endorsing each category: Impact Funding, Change Research Framework, Other Scholarly Impacts, Impact Teaching, Concerns about Students/Colleagues, Immigration or Status-Related Concerns, Broader Societal Concerns, Job Security, Thoughts about Leaving Academia, Resistance, and Negative Emotions. Taken together, findings suggest that the Anti-DEI climate and funding changes have extended beyond impacting research funding and have produced emotional consequences for faculty members to navigate. Such impacts on faculty may have a long-term impact, including the retention of faculty and the quality and types of knowledge produced by researchers.
