Work-in-Progress: A Grounded Theory of Interdisciplinary Identity Formation in Engineering Education

Ceren Yilmaz Akkaya; Jessica C Hill; Kimberly Lechasseur

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Conference: 2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Publication Date: June 22, 2025
Start Date: June 22, 2025
End Date: August 15, 2025
Conference Session: Multidisciplinary Engineering Division (MULTI) Technical Session 4
Tagged Division: Multidisciplinary Engineering Division (MULTI)
Tagged Topic: Diversity
Page Count: 11
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--57517
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/57517
Download Count: 16

Paper Authors

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Ceren Yilmaz Akkaya Worcester Polytechnic Institute orcid.org/0000-0003-3349-7984

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Ceren Yilmaz Akkaya is an assistant teaching professor at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). Her degrees in Chemistry, Molecular Biology & Genetics, and Materials Science and Engineering are from Bogazici University and Koc University, respectively. Her research has been focused on adding value to people’s lives by providing solutions to global environmental and medical problems. Her interests include development of functional materials for medical applications, photocatalytic water treatment, solar energy-to-fuel conversion, and thermocatalysis for clean fuel and functional materials production to contribute to the goal of affordable, accessible clean water for everyone, and climate change mitigation. Recently, she has extended her research interests to include work in STEM Education with a focus on interdisciplinary scientist identity, teaching/faculty identity, and impact of multi-tiered mentoring networks on scientist identity and broader impact’s identity.

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Jessica C Hill Worcester Polytechnic Institute

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Dr. Hill directs Worcester Polytechnic Institute's Morgan Teaching & Learning Center in its mission to support faculty across all career stages as they provide transformational, theory and practice learning experiences as part of WPI’s innovative project-based curriculum. She serves as an Assistant Editor of the POD Network’s flagship journal, “To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development.”

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Kimberly Lechasseur Worcester Polytechnic Institute

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Dr. Kimberly LeChasseur is a researcher and evaluator with the Worcester Polytechnic Institute. She holds a dual appointment with the Center for Project-Based Learning and the Morgan Teaching and Learning Center. She holds a PhD in Educational Leadership

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Abstract

Objectives: Interdisciplinary student outcomes are improved when faculty have interdisciplinary identities of their own. This study develops a new framework for understanding the protective factors of developing an interdisciplinary professional identity for faculty within engineering education.

Context and Significance: Engineering education has become increasingly inter- and transdisciplinary to prepare students to cross disciplinary boundaries as they solve unique and complex problems of our increasingly dynamic world. This need for integration of expert knowledge from multiple fields has fueled the launch of inter-, trans-, and multidisciplinary programs at both the graduate and undergraduate level. Despite the rise of such programs, affiliated faculty still mainly reside in monodisciplinary departments with conflicting policies, procedures, and budget models that can impede the development of interdisciplinary students and successful program outcomes (Paretti et al., 2022; Welch-Devine et al., 2018).

Previous research has explored the interdisciplinary identity formation of doctoral students in a bid to better understand outcomes of emergent interdisciplinary programs (Kiley & Halliday, 2019; Holley, 2015; Culpepper et al., 2020; Xu et al., 2023; Wainscott et al., 2024; Webb & Paretti, 2023) and undergraduate students (Wang & Zarske, 2023). The literature on interdisciplinary faculty identities largely focuses on addressing effective identity-fostering teaching practices (e.g., Feng et al., 2023) and the decision-making processes of the faculty who engage in interdisciplinary graduate education (e.g., Menon et al., 2023). However, limited attention has been given to how faculty who are trained and exist within monodisciplinary structures develop and sustain their interdisciplinary scholar/teacher identities. Hence in this study we will explore how faculty with traditional STEM backgrounds develop interdisciplinary scholar and teacher identities. This analysis can inform strategies for fostering interdisciplinary identity among engineering educators.

Methods: This study uses grounded theory, a qualitative design that is appropriate when there is not yet consensus on an adequate explanation for how a phenomenon occurs (Charmaz, 2015). Interviews are being conducted with a group of faculty who meet two primary criteria: 1) their expertise is in an interdisciplinary STEM area (e.g., neuroscience, environmental science), and 2) they have been successful in achieving major career milestones (e.g., tenure, teaching award). Sampling in grounded theory involves theoretical sampling in multiple rounds based on emerging findings. We have not yet reached saturation in our analyses for this study. Coding of data is being conducted in a first round of open coding, using gerund codes to describe mechanisms of identity development and contextual codes to describe elements of faculty development environments. Axial coding will be conducted after we reach saturation in the first round of analysis.

Anticipated Findings: As a work-in-progress paper, we plan to present initial findings from our analysis as we refine the initial theory. The emerging framework informs guidance for interdisciplinary education programs, centers for teaching and learning, and other academic leaders in higher education.

Citation
Format

Yilmaz Akkaya, C., & Hill, J. C., & Lechasseur, K. (2025, June), Work-in-Progress: A Grounded Theory of Interdisciplinary Identity Formation in Engineering Education Paper presented at 2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Montreal, Quebec, Canada . 10.18260/1-2--57517

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - Objectives: Interdisciplinary student outcomes are improved when faculty have interdisciplinary identities of their own. This study develops a new framework for understanding the protective factors of developing an interdisciplinary professional identity for faculty within engineering education.  

Context and Significance: Engineering education has become increasingly inter- and transdisciplinary to prepare students to cross disciplinary boundaries as they solve unique and complex problems of our increasingly dynamic world. This need for integration of expert knowledge from multiple fields has fueled the launch of inter-, trans-, and multidisciplinary programs at both the graduate and undergraduate level. Despite the rise of such programs, affiliated faculty still mainly reside in monodisciplinary departments with conflicting policies, procedures, and budget models that can impede the development of interdisciplinary students and successful program outcomes (Paretti et al., 2022; Welch-Devine et al., 2018).  

Previous research has explored the interdisciplinary identity formation of doctoral students in a bid to better understand outcomes of emergent interdisciplinary programs (Kiley &amp;amp; Halliday, 2019; Holley, 2015; Culpepper et al., 2020; Xu et al., 2023; Wainscott et al., 2024; Webb &amp;amp; Paretti, 2023) and undergraduate students (Wang &amp;amp; Zarske, 2023). The literature on interdisciplinary faculty identities largely focuses on addressing effective identity-fostering teaching practices (e.g., Feng et al., 2023) and the decision-making processes of the faculty who engage in interdisciplinary graduate education (e.g., Menon et al., 2023). However, limited attention has been given to how faculty who are trained and exist within monodisciplinary structures develop and sustain their interdisciplinary scholar/teacher identities. Hence in this study we will explore how faculty with traditional STEM backgrounds develop interdisciplinary scholar and teacher identities. This analysis can inform strategies for fostering interdisciplinary identity among engineering educators. 

Methods: This study uses grounded theory, a qualitative design that is appropriate when there is not yet consensus on an adequate explanation for how a phenomenon occurs (Charmaz, 2015). Interviews are being conducted with a group of faculty who meet two primary criteria: 1) their expertise is in an interdisciplinary STEM area (e.g., neuroscience, environmental science), and 2) they have been successful in achieving major career milestones (e.g., tenure, teaching award). Sampling in grounded theory involves theoretical sampling in multiple rounds based on emerging findings. We have not yet reached saturation in our analyses for this study. Coding of data is being conducted in a first round of open coding, using gerund codes to describe mechanisms of identity development and contextual codes to describe elements of faculty development environments. Axial coding will be conducted after we reach saturation in the first round of analysis.  

Anticipated Findings: As a work-in-progress paper, we plan to present initial findings from our analysis as we refine the initial theory. The emerging framework informs guidance for interdisciplinary education programs, centers for teaching and learning, and other academic leaders in higher education. 
AU  - Ceren Yilmaz Akkaya
AU  - Jessica C Hill
AU  - Kimberly Lechasseur
CY  - Montreal, Quebec, Canada 
DA  - 2025/06/22
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Work-in-Progress: A Grounded Theory of Interdisciplinary Identity Formation in Engineering Education 
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/57517
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--57517
ER  -