The Disappearing Research Agendas of Mother–Scholars in Academia during the COVID–19 Pandemic: Autoethnographic Studies

Abstract

It is not new for mother–scholars to face challenges in balancing work and life demands; however, the COVID–19 pandemic has redefined the meaning of mother–scholars as they maneuver working from home, caring for their dependents, and maintaining their research productivity. The following manuscript is a collection of autoethnographic studies of the experiences of four women of differing ranks in the academy: pre–tenure, mid–career, and late–career. What they all have in common is caregiving responsibilities that abruptly derailed their research agendas when the pandemic interrupted their lives.