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Emotions and power are closely intertwined. Critical and feminist scholars, such as Paulo Freire and Megan Boler, have convincingly argued that emotions are both a site of social control and a driving force for resistance against social injustice. On the one hand, these scholars have argued that liberal Western theory has created a dichotomy between reason and emotion, where emotion is described as inferior and a hinder to rational thought and politics. By ascribing emotionality to certain groups, gendered, racialized and class hierarchies have been created in which some groups (e.g. women, racial minorities, working class) have been excluded from political discourse and decision making. This divide is today particularly strong in engineering, where norms of rationality and unemotionality limit discussion and expression of emotions. On the other hand, scholars have argued that emotions are a prerequisite for both dialogue (e.g. trust, love, compassion) and attempts to changing unjust structures and practices (e.g. anger, courage, hope). 

Therefore, the ways in which we talk about, research, and leverage emotions matters for our work towards social justice. This issue is particularly relevant for engineering education research at this point in time since there is an emerging and rapidly growing body of research on emotions in engineering education. While this body of research is not yet consolidated, there should be a window of opportunity to influence in which directions the field develops and what types of questions become central. This workshop is an invitation to explore how we could stimulate research on emotions in engineering education that supports our work for social justice in and through engineering education. 

To avoid imposing yet another (my) Eurocentric perspective on emotions in engineering education, the discussion will be guided by participants’ own perspectives and interests. Examples of questions that could be discussed are: What emotion norms can we identify in our different contexts? Do we need to challenge these norms in our work for social justice? If so, what can we do? How can we as educators and activists avoid talking about emotion in ways that may perpetuate unjust power structures? How can we leverage emotions for social change? What theories and methods (e.g. critical reflection, narrative approaches, activism) can we draw on in engineering education research to learn more about how we can leverage emotions for social change in and through engineering education? And how can we ensure that minority perspectives (e.g. indigenous, racial) on emotions are included in our discussions?