Abstract
Resistance to new technological innovations by organisational members has been a common theme throughout the history of industrialisation. Resistance strategies exhibited and documented in literature range from various passive approaches (e.g., avoidance or cynicism) to more aggressive forms of resistance (e.g., sabotage or protests). While resistance usually has negative connotations – a hindrance to growth and competitive advantage – in this study I posit that it signals wider systemic issues that may have nothing to do with the technological innovation. Through a phenomenological study that draws on Scott’s public/private transcript, I unpack postgraduate supervisors’ resistance responses to generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) within a South African university. In-depth interviews with 10 supervisors from different disciplines show that resistance emerges from the interplay between structural constraints (institutional expectations and narratives) and supervisors’ individual and collective agency (knowledge, skills and values).
Presenters
Nompilo TshumaSenior Lecturer, Centre for Higher and Adult Education, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Resistance, Postgraduate Supervision, Generative Artificial Intelligence, Phenomenology, South Africa
