Images
Christina Chang, Ph.D. is a 2026 graduate of the PhD Program in Leadership and Change at Antioch University.
Christina Chang at her Dissertation Defense.
From L-R: Dr. Fayth Parks, Committee Chair, Dr. Beck Tench, Committee Member, Dr. Elizabeth Holloway, Committee Member.
Dissertation Committee
- Fayth Parks, PhD, Committee Chair
- Elizabeth Holloway, PhD, Committee Member
- Beck Tench, PhD, Committee Member
Keywords
listening, inclusive leadership, workplace belonging, cisgender women of color, critical incident technique (CIT/CCIT), relational listening, ethical leadership, structural accountability, bridging behaviors, hope and repair
Document Type
Dissertation
Publication Date
2026
Abstract
This study examines how listening shapes inclusive workplaces by exploring the listening experiences of 23 professional cisgender women of color working in predominantly white institutional spaces. Although listening is a fundamental part of communication, it is frequently undervalued and overlooked in leadership literature. Using the constructivist critical incident technique (CCIT) methodology, the research analyzed 88 significant moments when participants felt distinctly heard or unheard by leaders. Findings reveal that listening operated as a relational practice signaling respect, affirmation of voice, and anchoring leadership in accountability, while enabling leaders to engage perspectives beyond their own. Four listening types emerged: Listening Withheld, Performative Listening, Conditional Listening, and Relational Listening. Relational Listening—defined as leaders engaging in intentional acts of care, curiosity, and respect—was the most prevalent and most affirming category (38%), characterized by mentoring, personal connection, strategic inclusion, and trust-building. CCIT’s “wish list” questions revealed what participants longed for when listening was absent, offering a concise blueprint for repair and hope grounded in three themes: affirming relationships (“see me”), ethical leadership (“do right by me”), and structural accountability (“be fair to me”). The study demonstrates that listening is a transformative leadership practice with profound implications for equity and organizational culture. Relational listening offers both theoretical insight and practical guidance for leaders striving to build equitable, responsible, and culturally respectful workplaces. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA (https://aura.antioch.edu/) and OhioLINK ETD Center (https://etd.ohiolink.edu/).
Recommended Citation
Chang, C. Z. (2026). Feeling Seen by Being Heard: A Constructivist Critical Incident Study of the Listening Experiences of Ciswomen of Color for the Development of an Inclusive Listening Praxis for Leaders. https://aura.antioch.edu/etds/1239
Included in
Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication Commons, Higher Education Commons, Leadership Studies Commons, Organizational Behavior and Theory Commons, Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies Commons, Sociology Commons
Comments
Christina Chang
ORCID No.: #0009-0008-5535-6246
Christina Chang (she/her) is an organizational consultant, facilitator, and higher education leader whose work centers on equity‑focused change. A cishet, first‑generation American woman of Chinese descent, she brings a person-first systems lens shaped by her positionality and a constructivist belief that meaning is co-created through relationship.
Over her 25‑year career, she has partnered with colleges, universities, nonprofits, and public agencies nationwide to strengthen leadership capacity, reimagine organizational structures, and help build cultures of belonging. Her work reflects the belief that while systems change and personal mirror work are distinct, they are also connected, and that sustained, everyday humanizing actions within an organization can ultimately reshape it.
Her dissertation examined the listening experiences of 23 ciswomen of color, using the constructivist critical incident technique (CCIT) to explore listening as a continuous arc rather than a discrete moment. She identified four types of leadership listening–Relational, Withheld, Performative, and Conditional–with Relational Listening emerging as a deeply meaningful moment of genuine connection for participants. Across narratives, even when painful, a steady current of hope and the possibility of repair revealed how dignifying, humanizing listening can move harm toward restoration, and how a deceptively simple practice can have a profoundly transformative impact.
Christina earned a PhD in Leadership and Change from Antioch University. She also holds a master’s degree in public administration from American University and a bachelor’s degree in English and Japanese from Georgetown University.