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Are you an early career researcher (ECR) keeping quiet in the hopes of obtaining status and changing the system from within later? A thread. TL;DR: I don't think speaking out gets easier, and it may actually feel harder, despite the worse-case consequences being lesser.
1. If you're working on change-from-within, remember that merely having higher status in academia doesn't mean anyone will listen to you. E.g., more people listen to me because I'm a director of clinical training than because I'm a full professor, but it's still not so many.
2. The system will always give you work that will make it seem like it would be better to try to change things later. It will seem like good, important work, and it will seem very risky to rock the boat while you pursue the work. Then another year has gone by.
3. The system will always present you with a new maximum award to hang in there for. Unless you're very careful, the old reward and status that you now have will seem like nothing much: I'll really be able to change things once I get X status. There's always a new X.
4. Similar to #3, it is easy to think you'll really feel like you have power when you achieve X position, but once you get there you (most likely) immediately feel the limitations of that power. Ask an area, program, or dept head if they feel powerful and watch them laugh.
5. The higher up in a system you get, the more enmeshed relationships you have with people whose behavior you would like to change. They've also seen you do nothing about their behavior for years. Moving toward change can feel harder the further you get.
6. People are not magically happier when folks with high status ask for change. If anything they may be more vehement in response. What they can actually do to you is diminished compared to when you were an ECR, but it can *feel* really bad.
7. As a result of all of this, by the time you get "high enough" in the system to make the changes you were hoping for. . . you may lose your optimism that change can be made. And do nothing. Which *definitely* means no change will be made.
8. *Most* old people make some allowances for "young people" (ECRs) and their "overly idealistic" ideas about things. Most old people won't even see whatever you're saying until some other old person pays attention to it. Don't underestimate the social role of being "young."
9. In sum, change is always hard to fight for and always feels risky. I recommend respect for anyone who you see trying, whatever level they are at. Goodness knows I don't think I'm anyone to look up to in this respect, I'm just sharing my observations in case they're helpful.
10. Luckily there aren't loads of things I would want to change where I am anyway; things are pretty good here. I suspect most of the above holds even when local conditions are worse.
11. Thread inspired by @siminevazire and @talyarkoni having a discussion on this--each do way more in terms of effective attempts to change the field than I do. If you've made it this far, you probably follow already them, but if not you should.
12. P.S. Most likely outcome: < 50 people make it down to this point, and 1-2 people like it, but then that just proves my point #1, so joke's on you, Twitterverse.
P.P.S. Gosh darn it, point #12 has been invalidated. But the larger point still stands: It's unpredictable when people will actually listen to you, no matter where you are in your career. You might think nobody will listen, but an audience might be a (@talyarkoni) retweet away.
Well, that went better than expected. I actually do have a Soundcloud (soundcloud.com/user-50532177). Also a book about Doctor Who (obversebooks.co.uk/product/27-fac…). But, hey, don't distract yourself with those if there's important change you can work for right now.
