Engaged Listening in Race/Ethnicity and Gender Intergroup Dialogue Courses

Abstract

Although the importance of engaged listening in intergroup dialogue (IGD) is recognized, we know relatively little about when or why participants in IGD actually listen or what they gain from listening. Using qualitative analyses of interviews conducted with undergraduates who had recently completed a race/ethnicity or gender focused IGD course, this study examines what participants said about moments of engaged listening in IGD. We found that engaged listening was associated with specific dialogue activities, reactions to speakers, and dialogue topics. We also found a number of differences in listening between race/ethnicity and gender dialogues that suggest that participants in race/ethnicity IGDs recall more moments of engaged listening and may have gained a more complex understanding of structural inequality from engaged listening than participants in gender IGDs did. The article concludes with a discussion of the findings, possible implications, and some areas for future inquiry.