The impact of critical consciousness on the leadership, structure, and work of elevated thought

Abstract

This study explores how Elevated Thought (ET) employees speak to the mission, structures, and practices of the organization that are resonant with Critical Consciousness (CC). This case study aims to develop in-depth understanding of CC in relation to how staff experiences at ET resonate with this overarching theme. Through semi-structured interviews with 12 ET employees and a review of organization artifacts such as ET video and publications, four major themes emerged: humanizing organizational structure, individual and community progress, creativity, and authentic relationships. The findings from the study presented an alignment with what Freire (2014) coined conscientization, which refers to attaining an understanding of social, political, and economic contradictions and to take action against the oppressive aspects of reality; the foundation of his CC framework. In connecting with the literature and the research findings, the organizational structures, processes and work grounded in CC in which ET practices, do provide a liberatory experience for staff and challenge the traditional operations of organizations.There are many areas in which future research can broaden this understanding. Implications and recommendations include further interviews with current ET participants and alumni of the programs and services who are not employed or contracted by the organization. This would allow greater depth in how the experiences of different stakeholders resonant with CC and provide a larger sample size to reinforce the findings in this study.