Transformation Project Funded Research

2021

Emotional investments: Making sense of international students’ experiences with U.S. Customs and Border Protection

By Marco Dehnert*


This research project involved qualitative research including semi-structured interviews with and participant-created drawings by international students to explore how students make sense of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The Transformation Project provided assistance to help compensate participants for their contributions. 

Presented at: NCA 2021; Top Student Paper Award

LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® as critical consciousness-raising and organizational praxis in an age of neoliberalism

By Kyle A. Hanners*


Using play theory, critical theory, and organizational knowledge theory, this project explores the use of LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® in the college classroom and its affordances in processes of knowledge production. Overall, this project seeks to explain how play pedagogy opens spaces for productive knowledge processes that enable organizational transformation.

Presented at: OCMC 2021

2020

Ask First: Communicating Consent and Sexual Safety within the BDSM Community

By Lucy C. Niess*

This research project involved traveling to a public event and conducting ethnographic research and interviews in a community that is understudied. The Transformation Project recognized the importance of this work and provided assistance in its creation.

Presented at: ICA 2020

2019

Free Listening: A communicative tool for spanning divides

By Cris J. Tietsort* & Kyle A. Hanners*

In our research with Free Listening practice, we have found many opportunities within the teaching-and-learning process in relation to civic and community engagement, service-learning, and relational praxis. Overall, we argue that Free Listening should be a regular practice across many contexts because of its capacity to transform attitudes and skills toward other-centered forms of communicative interaction.

Presented at: NCA 2019  


“Should we Jam?” Podcast

By Florencia Durón*


The Transformation Project encourages healthy communication patterns. The “Should we Jam?” podcast showcases stories, healthy communication patterns, and other values aligned with the collaboration. Members of the collaboration can engage in vulnerable discussions while focusing on the ways in which healthy communication patterns are celebrated.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5EXOiUJSnWyFGqSJJLebIv
YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOwGcqBm4Gn7K4_WJprE_HOehb4dKsc9X