Professional shame  is the emotional state that we encounter when we fail to meet identity-relevant expectations through our participation in professional settings, such as educational institutions and workplaces. While we generally hide the experience of professional shame from others, we tend to respond in ways that negatively affect our own well-being and the equity and inclusivity of the culture surrounding us. Drawing on insights from several in-depth qualitative investigations with engineering students and faculty from multiple universities, the objectives of this presentation are to 1) provide definitional clarity concerning professional shame; 2) explore how this phenomenon has operated as a mechanism for inclusion and exclusion among engineering students; and 3) discuss how professional education cultures can leverage insights of professional shame to advance well-being and equity.

Bio: Dr. James Huff is an Associate Professor of Engineering Education and Honors College Senior Faculty Fellow at Harding University. He conducts transdisciplinary research on identity that lies at the nexus of applied psychology and engineering education. Dr. Huff received the NSF CAREER award (No. 2045392) to advance research on professional shame as a pernicious force that powerfully affects individual well-being and cultural equity in domains of engineering education and practice. As Director of the Beyond Professional Identity (BPI) lab, Dr. Huff has mentored numerous undergraduate students, doctoral students, and academic professionals from more than 10 academic disciplines in using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) as a qualitative research method to examine identity in a variety of contexts.  

Virtual Event Information:

• Zoom Meeting: https://gatech.zoom.us/
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• Passcode: 970965