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My Process of Becoming: I-As Successful or I-As Imposter?

My Process of Becoming: I-As Successful or I-As Imposter?

Lauren Ashley May (Virginia Tech, USA)
Copyright: © 2022 |Pages: 14
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-6684-3460-4.ch006
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Abstract

This chapter focuses on the author's process of transitioning into a position as a doctoral candidate. This journey has assisted in the understanding of personal identities and the world. Within this chapter, personal experiences are used to exemplify and examine the ways in which the author has worked to navigate aspects of both personal and scholarly identities that have been and continue to be under construction. Examining transactions with texts and writings, prioritizing mental health, accepting and utilizing support from advisors, and seeking out conversations with faculty and other doctoral students have all assisted in navigating the challenges that have arisen throughout the doctoral journey. This process of becoming is further examined through the exploration of various positions within the dialogical self.
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Background

I view myself and my research through a sociocultural lens in which individuals are constructing understandings based on their own lived experiences and cultural contexts. With this belief, experiences and contexts may influence individual understandings as we engage in processes of meaning creation. In the exploration of my own identities, I look to Hermans and Hermans-Konopka (2010), as they described how “people are continuously in a process of positioning and repositioning” (p. 7) their dialogical selves. We are each impacted by language, lived experiences, and cultural contexts; therefore, our identities can shift in levels of importance as we engage with the world.

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