ABSTRACT
We explore the subjectivity of a cohort of educational leadership researchers who identify as an LGBTIQAA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Intersex, Queer, Asexual, Ally) individual. Participants’ subjective experiences reflect career stages spanning doctoral student to professoriate levels and researching in North American contexts – as they reflexively consider their trajectories and experiences in researching at the juncture of educational leadership and LGBTQIAA+ issues. Importantly, they also consider the extent of inclusion of these issues in research dedicated to social justice, equity and diversity. We set this against a backdrop of the state of these research agendas and relevant contemporary policy issues and advance a conceptualisation of queer subjectivity. Participants’ experiences and dilemmas illustrate that while positive changes are evident for those pursuing this research, particular caveats and tolls of pursuing this genre of research are experienced by participants within the field. With implications for understanding researchers at the margins of educational leadership research, we provide a rich illustration of the power of subjectivity to contribute to better understanding our identities as researchers and their influence on our research (in)activity, relevant within and outside the cohort of participants focused on in this chapter. We conclude with an invitation for collective action.
