Sisterhood relationships and self-authorship

Abstract

Being a member of Greek organizations has numerous developmental outcomes due to the density of the peer-interaction environment and cultural thickness. While groupthink has been observed and documented as detrimental to an individual's development of decision-making capacity, little attention has been given to informal mentoring in the social sorority dyadic of the big/little relationship. The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding of the dyadic big/little relationship's impact on meaning-making of self among sorority members. This study utilizes self-authorship as a theoretical framework. A narrative case study shapes the methodological design of this research that includes document analysis, observations, and face-to-face interviews of eight women, in four big/little pairs. Each pair presents a single case of their relationship and its role in self-authorship development. The cross-case comparative analysis illuminates key phases in self-authorship: external formulas, crossroads, and self-authorship. Implications from this study include the need for members to interact with diverse ideas and people to provide opportunities for development of the internal voice, and the need for the women to facilitate becoming impactful learning partners