Stoking the fires of professional resistance: Trainees' efforts across time

Researchers who study acts of resistance largely focus on efforts when they are at their peak, giving the impression that those who resist are in a constant state of arousal. What is missing in such studies is the variable of time, which is theorised to be intimately connected to power and resistance. To explore this aspect, we followed a group of trainees engaged in professional resistance against social injustice over the period of 1 year to understand how their efforts shifted across time. This longitudinal approach was meant to capture the temporality of resistance, specifically how time affects resistance efforts.

Using a constructivist grounded theory approach for data collection and analysis, we conducted follow-up interviews with 13 trainees approximately 10 months apart. Interviews were analysed using holistic narrative analysis, in which we analysed contexts, subjectivities and interactions across the two time points. We then conducted a cross-case analysis and restoried the data to develop an understanding of how resistance shifts across time. Finally, we contextualised the data using the metaphor of open and zombie wildfires.

The findings demonstrate that when trainees transition to new institutions or professional positions, their access to power and interactions with colleagues shift, thus making it challenging for them to resist in ways they had done so earlier. In transitions where trainees were given power, the flames of resistance continued to blaze visibly. In other cases, without an appreciable change in power, resistance resembled more of a 'zombie fire', smouldering quietly underfoot.

Examining trainees' acts of resistance across time demonstrates that the work of advocacy and resistance is extremely taxing for trainees. Therefore, when they experience shifts in their context or subjectivity, they conserve energy and strategise their next move. This study provides new insight on the relationship between time and resistance.