Research Participants Sought: Investigating the Silencing of Women in Higher Education

Title: Sit down and shut up: the silencing of women in Canadian higher education

Principal Investigator: Dr. Kathleen Bortolin, Faculty of Education, Vancouver Island University

Research Assistants: This project will employ student research assistants from VIU who have completed Tri-Council training in research ethics and have achieved CORE certificates). They will also sign a confidentiality contract.

Participants Sought: Women employed in universities in an academic capacity who have experienced forms of silencing in their workplace.

Purpose: To collect data on the conditions that exist when women in Canadian post-secondary perceive a threat to speaking up in their workplaces, and the impacts women identify when faced with that threat. Also, what strategies do women use to mitigate risks faced in these environments

Information Sought: Qualitative data in the form of first-person narratives from the lived experiences of women employed in academic contexts who have experienced acts of silencing and censure. Qualitative interviews (face to face or in zoom).

Time Required: Reviewing consent forms (1 hour); interview (1.5-2 hours); reviewing transcripts (1.5 hours): Total 4-5 hours.

Contact information: kathleen.bortolin@viu.ca

A more in-depth description of the project can be found here: