{"id":23,"date":"2018-02-12T09:43:07","date_gmt":"2018-02-12T14:43:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.bowdoin.edu\/sociology-3010-spring-2018\/?page_id=23"},"modified":"2018-04-07T15:19:46","modified_gmt":"2018-04-07T19:19:46","slug":"log-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/courses.bowdoin.edu\/sociology-3010-spring-2018-kschutze\/data-collection-logs\/log-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Log 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

This week, I worked on developing a draft of an interview protocol (attached) and writing down some anecdotes (i.e. memoing, also attached) that have been informing my thoughts and interests for this project. I thought a lot about my positionality in this research; I recognize that I am a Millennial about to join the workforce and am interested in determining my \u201cworkplace ethic.\u201d Am I out to prove that when I want to draw boundaries in the workplace, I\u2019m not entitled but somehow a radical activist chipping away at capitalist demands of labor? (LOL). I\u2019m challenging myself not to fall into the pitfall of aiming to prove a predetermined hypothesis.<\/p>\n

One challenge I encountered this week is figuring out how I will navigate the IRB process. My next steps include finalizing my interview protocol, collecting all the pieces I will need for the IRB and getting that information to the Board.<\/p>\n

Memo #1:<\/p>\n

I went to a career-oriented event for women with my mom in New York two years ago. A woman spoke to the group about the need to set boundaries: set them from the get-go, she said, because they become really hard to establish later on. I went up to her afterwards and told her I\u2019d just finished my sophomore year of college and would be entering the workforce soon. I asked, what advice did she have for me about setting boundaries? Her statement didn\u2019t apply to me, she said. I needed to put in the work first, pay my dues, build credibility. Fearful of being perceived as an entitled Millennial, I let it go. But had she not said if we wait to set work-life boundaries, setting them will inevitably be futile if not impossible?<\/p>\n

Memo #2:<\/p>\n

I have thought a lot about the distinction between behaviors I personally consider \u201centitled\u201d and ones I see as advocacy for a better environment. Earlier this year, a superior who I trust at Bowdoin made a positive comment related to my body that bothered me as a person who has had an eating disorder. I called a friend and shared how it made me feel. I ultimately decided to talk to my superior about the comment. I told myself I was doing so because she may encounter other similar situations and may cause a similar reaction, though I know it is her intention to support the students with whom she works. We had a good conversation, and she was unsurprisingly receptive.<\/p>\n

At the end of the day, I, a student, approached a Bowdoin staff member, a superior, to tell her that I felt she had done something \u201cwrong.\u201d Perhaps this kind of dialogue is encouraged in a college setting, but just as students advocating for themselves with professors can be coded as entitled, so could this behavior.<\/p>\n

I think many of my peers would have given her a strike; they would have complained about her, told her friends, potentially commented on her ability to do her job and support students. This reflects an expectation of social perfection, of accommodation for every aspect of personhood an individual brings to a given space. As a result, my intuition codes this behavior as truly entitled.<\/p>\n

When Millennials engage in behavior that is coded as entitled, I find myself asking if they are they expecting better or asking for better? Perhaps this matters to me because of James Cairns\u2019 definition of the myth of entitlement: \u201cyoung people today, more than at any point in history, take for granted the bounty they\u2019ve inherited and expect to have praise and a good life handed to them without anything in return\u201d (Cairns 2017, 2). When Millennials are aware of reality but seek to change it, is it fair to weaponized \u201centitlement\u201d to stop them?<\/p>\n

Interview Script<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with me today. As you might already know, I am conducting a study about Millennial aspirations in the workplace. I would like to talk with you today about your experiences in the workplace so far, as well as your hopes for your career and workplace environments. This interview should take about MINUTES? After the interview, I have a quick survey for you to fill out.<\/p>\n

I may ask you some questions you consider personal. You may skip any question you do not wish to answer and you may end the interview at any time. Your answers will be seen directly only by me and Professor Greene and your name will never be used in association with anything you share, even with Professor Greene. I may use your comments in reports on this research, but no personally identifying information will ever appear in any reports. The biggest risk to you by participating in this study would be a breach of this confidentiality, though I hope to make this risk as small as possible by never including your name on any documents associated with your interview and storing all files in a secure location.<\/p>\n

I would like to record this interview to help me remember what we\u2019ve talked about. At the end of the interview, I will type up a record of our conversation and then I will completely delete this recording. The typed record will not contain your name and will be stored separately from your consent form in order to protect your privacy. You may stop the recording at any time. In fact, I will put the recorder next to you and show you how to stop the recorder.<\/p>\n

Before we begin, I have a form for you to sign that says you agree to participate in this study and describes the procedures to maintain confidentiality that I just discussed with you. I will give you a copy of this form. My phone number is on there if you have any questions or concerns about this study after you leave the interview today. [Have respondent sign consent form and give respondent blank copy.]<\/p>\n

Like I just mentioned, you may skip any question you do not wish to answer and you may end the interview at any time.<\/p>\n

Do you have any questions for me before we begin?<\/p>\n

May I begin recording now? [Begin recording now.]<\/p>\n

Interview Questions (Draft)<\/strong><\/p>\n