CDPs called to promote social justice can begin by understanding how they help and hinder marginalized groups. Joncas & Pilote’s study explores the two possibilities in the guidance[1] experiences of Indigenous women enrolled in one of two Quebec universities.
Amartya Sen’s economic theory, the Capability Approach (CA), informs the study. The CA recognizes that having access to the same resource (e.g., a school) is not the same as being able to make use of the resource (e.g., learn). Real equity requires that all groups can use available resources.
Key concepts of the CA include “resources,” which are converted into achievements through “conversion factors,” of which there are three types:
- personal (e.g., individual characteristics, skills, health)
- sociocultural (e.g., social norms and relations)
- environmental (e.g., infrastructure, geographical locations, and climate conditions).
“Capabilities” refers to the actual opportunity for the individual to act in ways they value. “Functionings” describes the individual’s achievements, some of which will become “resources” (e.g., a diploma).
Consider a child starting school (resource). The child will benefit from this resource under certain conditions (conversion factors), such as having a positive attitude toward school (personal), lots of exposure to books at home (sociocultural) and living near the school (environmental). These positive conversion factors result in a genuine chance to learn (capabilities) and offer the chance for graduation (achieved functionings).
Joncas & Pilote, noting that the CA does not account for many of the complexities of marginalized groups’ contexts, added “intersectionality” to their thinking. The core idea of intersectionality is that social inequality is best understood by exploring the intersections of social distinctions (e.g., race and gender and class rather than race or gender or class). In the case of Indigenous women, an intersectionality lens recognizes that race, sex, and other factors combine to influence conversion factors, capabilities, and achieved functions.
Now, onto the study: 19 participants (average age – 32) who identified as women and Indigenous attending one of the study’s two universities were interviewed. About 2/3 lived mostly in Indigenous communities, about 2/3 had children, most were the first in either parent’s family to attend a post-secondary institution, and the first language for about half was an Indigenous language.
Thinking about guidance services as “environmental conversion factors” (potentially positive and negative), the analysis revealed guidance services to be positive environmental conversion factors for Indigenous women by helping them:
- find out about fields they may not be aware of
- select beneficial courses and experiences
- feel supported through one-to-one help
- use available resources (e.g., program directory)
- expand the range of options they perceived available to them
- providing inspiration.
The analysis also found that guidance services can be negative environmental conversion factors or hindrances to Indigenous women by:
- placing them in inappropriate contexts without preparation (e.g., in internship programs)
- discouraging their aspirations
- not understanding or ignoring their Indigenous perspective
- not being present when needed.
These findings may not seem ground-breaking, but the takeaway is that CDPs can effect systemic change, something they often feel at a loss to do, by recognizing that they are part of the system that needs changing and can behave in ways that either help or hinder marginalized groups.
[1] “Guidance” is typically offered by career counsellors who, in Quebec, hold master’s degrees or higher and are regulated by the province.
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