Black Women Abroad: Constructions of Gender, Race, Language, and Culture

Abstract

In this qualitative study, we describe how gender, race, language, and culture cumulatively shape researcher development. Using a collaborative autoethnographic design, we theorize about our experiences as two Black women who conducted their dissertation research in Brazil and Ethiopia. Our data sources include retrospective interviews, journal reflections, and researcher memos. We arrive at four themes that reflect our development as researchers: (a) the importance of a boundary spanner, (b) the power of local knowledge, (c) negotiating the use of local and “international” languages, and (d) researcher assumptions developed due to the perceptions of others. We make sense of these themes using an integrative framework that combines a researcher development model and a conceptualization of Black feminist qualitative inquiry. Our findings have implications for practitioners supporting doctoral students of color and researchers who use Black feminist epistemologies to conduct autoethnographic work. By sharing these themes, we contribute to theory, research, and practice about underrepresented researchers in postsecondary environments, particularly related to the linguistic and cultural aspects of doctoral research.