Living at the Intersections of Race and Gender in Diversified Mentoring: Experiences of Minoritized Women Leaders in Higher Education

Abstract

Problem There is chronic underrepresentation of minoritized women in higher education leadership positions. A primary reason is that mentoring support is either lacking or rarely considers how the intersection of their race and gender creates a double bind. Further, there is a dearth of studies examining the lived experiences of mentoring support received by minoritized women leaders. Solution Through semi-structured interviews of fifteen participants, our interpretative phenomenological study adds to the extant literature by exploring how women of color (WOC) leaders navigated the challenges posed by the differences in gender and/or racial identities with their mentors in diversified mentoring relationships (DMRs). Our findings indicate that aspiring minoritized women leaders can thrive under the double bind in DMRs with successful coping strategies. Stakeholders University administration and HRD practitioners can apply the findings to leverage DMRs as a critical tool for developing the leadership identity of women of color in higher education.

Yes She Can: Examining the Career Pathways of Black Women in Higher Education Senior Leadership Position

“…Consistent with the research of Manongsong and Ghosh (2023), this study found that there is a dearth of research that has considered the role of mentoring in the lived experiences of Black women leaders in higher education. Leadership development and formal mentoring programs are needed that are specifically designed to target the social identity of the leader.…”

“…They also live through classism that shapes their unique position and experience (Crocco & Waite, 2007). Multiple scholars have suggested that Black women experience exclusion, condescension, isolation, and loneliness in their administrative positions (Anderson, 2023;Barksdale, 2007;Bartman, 2015;Crawford & Smith, 2005;Dortch et al, 2023;Mabokela & Green, 2001;Mainah & Perkins, 2015;Manongsong & Ghosh, 2023;Smith & Crawford, 2007;Turner, 2002;Watson, 2001;West & Smith, 2021). Studies have revealed that Black women are underrepresented in the topmost leadership positions in higher education (Gagliardi et al, 2017;Johnson, 2016); hence, they have few peers of their race and gender.…”

“…Mentoring plays a pivotal role in facilitating this process. Manongsong and Ghosh (2023) suggest that Black women (and other women of color) can be supported by a developmental network of mentors who are both similar and dissimilar to them in terms of race and gender. However, critical to the relationship are culturally competent mentors (Hinton Jr et al, 2020) who can adapt to the needs of the mentee.…”

Beyond “Male versus Female”: Understanding the Dilemma of Chinese Female STEM Undergraduate Students through Intersectionality

“…Moreover, intracategorical intersectionality overly emphasises the outcome of intersectional categories while ignoring the impact from the process of interacting identities for individuals (Ken 2008). From a methodological standpoint, the paradigm can be squared with qualitative approaches, including interviews and observational studies that focus on revealing individuals' interactions with society (Manongsong and Ghosh 2023). Therefore, in the following section, we propose to use intercategorical intersectionality to investigate the identity formation process.…”