Counterspaces as a Site of Network Formation within Academia

Within higher education, professional networks are critical to faculty success. Prior research on the networks of faculty belonging to marginalized groups has taken a deficit model perspective, focusing on limited access to and structural exclusion from professional networks. We counter this deficit perspective, shifting the research to examine how network ties-the relationships between individuals within a network-form within counterspaces. Counterspaces are settings in which individuals belonging to systemically marginalized groups exchange support and share resources. Using interview data, we find the interactions occurring within the counterspace setting of the Broadening the Representation of Academic Investigators in NeuroScience (BRAINS) program allowed participants to recognize their shared values around diversity, equity, and inclusion, which in turn facilitated the formation of trusting network ties. In addition, we find that the development of these network ties positively impacted interviewees' understanding of and approach to networks and networking beyond the BRAINS counterspace.