The Pedagogy of Vulnerability and Marketing Education: Cultivating Self-expansion in a Time of Separation

Abstract

Applying the pedagogy of vulnerability and self-expansion theory, the exercise known as the Know Me Activity (KMA) enhances self-expansion by encouraging connections between students and the instructor. The pedagogy of vulnerability is premised on risking self-disclosure as an act of courage. Self-expansion theory is grounded in personal relationships whereby individuals are motivated for personal growth and identify with others to gain access to their resources. In the context of marketing education, self-expansion stems from enhancing student self-awareness for personal growth as well as perceived vulnerability and relatedness of the instructor to encourage access to expertise. The KMA was conducted at three universities and assessed to determine its usefulness as a self-expansion exercise. Survey results indicate that students found the activity contained self-expansion characteristics, and they recommend it for future use. The results of the pretest and posttest analyses also demonstrated an increase in student self-awareness, perceived instructor vulnerability, and perceived instructor relatedness. Self-expansion activities enhance relationships by design and participating in them can lead to increased student effort and persistence. Marketing educators can, therefore, have confidence in utilizing the KMA as a means for mitigating social isolation and encouraging perseverance.

Keywords

self-expansion pedagogy of vulnerability social isolation perseverance

The global health disruption has increased feelings of isolation and disconnect in higher education (Lowman et al., 2020). Physical barriers (e.g., masks), limited resources (e.g., larger class sizes), and social remoteness can demotivate students and cause faculty to be perceived as distant. However, these challenges can be overcome with self-expansion activities that foster connection and perseverance. Self-expansion theory states people are motivated to enhance their ability to achieve personal goals by increasing self-identity and access to resources (Aron et al., 2003). The benefit of encouraging self-expansion in the marketing collegiate classroom is increased student effort and persistence on subsequent cognitive tasks (Mattingly & Lewandowski, 2013b). Moreover, self-expansion also leads to greater exertion on challenging tasks (Xu et al., 2017), more successful goal completion (Xu et al., 2010), as well as enhanced commitment and satisfaction (McIntyre et al., 2014).

One such self-expansion exercise is the Know Me Activity (KMA). The KMA can be used in-person or online in an undergraduate or graduate marketing course. The instructor completes the activity in advance to share personal results when providing instructions to the students. The KMA requires students to solicit anonymous feedback from family, friends, or classmates who can assess their personal strengths and weaknesses. The information is used to make a word cloud as a visual display of the feedback. A guided written reflection completes the exercise and prompts students to consider the value of the activity and how the results can be used in a professional setting, such as a job interview or personal branding. Students experience heightened self-awareness, as well as enhanced perceived vulnerability and perceived relatedness of the instructor, which address the two principles of self-expansion.

This activity is in line with Standard 4 of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) Guiding Principles, which notes that the curriculum of a business school should promote innovation and experiential learning. Furthermore, the standard encourages using curriculum that facilitates meaningful learner-to-faculty academic and professional engagement (AACSB International, 2020). The KMA aligns with both criteria of the curriculum standard by engaging students in a novel and hands-on self-expansion exercise while fostering a meaningful connection with the instructor to bridge social isolation.

Self-expansion stems from enhancing student self-awareness as well as perceived vulnerability and relatedness of the instructor. The self-expansion KMA can be used with undergraduate or graduate students using a face-to-face or online format. The objective of the exercise is to increase student self-awareness, as well as perceived vulnerability and relatedness of the instructor to foster self-expansion that mitigates isolation and encourages perseverance. This paper provides a literature review of relevant theory, followed by the KMA description, method of analysis, results, discussion, and finally limitations and suggestions for future research.

Literature Review

Self-expansion Theory

Self-expansion theory is based on the principles of motivation and the inclusion of others in the self (Aron & Aron, 1996). The motivation principle suggests individuals have an intrinsic desire to expand themselves by seeking out novel resources, perspectives, and identities. The inclusion of others in the self-principle suggests individuals form relationships to gain resources, perspectives, and identities as they incorporate the identity of others to the self (Aron et al., 2004). Taken together, the theory posits people are motivated to enhance their ability to achieve personal goals by increasing self-identity and access to resources (Aron et al., 2003), including arguably the most important resource—knowledge (Sorrentino et al., 1990).

Self-expansion differs from self-enhancement or social approval in that the goal is to expand potential self-efficacy rather than evaluate oneself positively or be evaluated positively by others (Leary & Baumeister, 2000). The motivation is not to achieve personal goals directly, but rather to gain access to the resources to help potentially reach one’s goals. Therefore, the motivation to connect is somewhat self-serving in that it contributes to the identity of the self via the identity and access to the resources of the other person in the relationship. Nevertheless, encouraging self-expansion is beneficial in that prior research shows an increase in self-expansion leads to an increase in self-efficacy (Mattingly & Lewandowski, 2013a). Increased self-efficacy enhances motivation (Bandura & Locke, 2003), academic confidence (Leisen Pollack & Lilly, 2015), and academic performance (Chin et al., 2017).

In higher education, students expand their self-identities through connections with instructors (Aron et al., 2004) to gain access to their knowledge (Sweeney et al., 2009). Instructors can encourage student self-expansion by helping students develop a stronger sense of self-awareness. Exhibiting vulnerability and relatedness also fosters self-expansion by having students perceive the instructor as transparent and authentic, thus willing to embrace the identities of others, including students. Student self-awareness, coupled with perceived instructor vulnerability and relatedness can be exercised through a self-expanding activity, such as the KMA.

Self-expansion occurs through novel, exciting, challenging, and interesting activities (Aron et al., 2004). The KMA incorporates the identity of instructor (i.e., others) into the identity of the students (i.e., the self) in line with self-expansion theory (Aron et al., 2006). The KMA should be utilized at the beginning of a course to achieve the desired results given that rapid self-expansion occurs at the outset of new relationships and slows over time (Aron et al., 2004).

Self-awareness

Kuczynski et al. (2020) defined self-awareness as the “perception of one’s own motives, needs, and goals” (p. 200). Self-awareness is distinct from self-efficacy in that the latter addresses an individual’s beliefs about their capabilities to perform as expected (Bandura & Locke, 2003). Higher levels of self-efficacy may lead to a more positive academic experience (Judge et al., 2007) and better academic performance (Hartley et al., 2019). Higher levels of self-awareness may also improve personal growth beyond the classroom (Uğur et al., 2015) including improved emotional clarity and outcomes in relationships with others (Atkinson, 2013).

Promoting self-awareness in the collegiate marketing classroom is beneficial for students as it allows them to visualize their potential based on how they perceive themselves and makes them aware of how they are perceived by others. Other-awareness involves perspective taking in which individuals can provide successful responses in communicating with others (Hinnekens et al., 2020). Individuals who demonstrate other-awareness also exhibit the capacity to make an emotional connection and are, therefore, viewed as sincere and authentic (Reis & Gable, 2015). Moreover, having a genuine presence communicates openness and acceptance to others (Hughes et al., 2020).

Several studies incorporate elements of self-awareness in marketing education. For instance, Ertimur and Lavoie (2019) used decision-making scenarios in their research to foster self-discovery and self-awareness of students as both consumers and marketing managers. Self-awareness has also been developed in undergraduate students via self-reflection exercises such as role-playing (Law & Rowe, 2019), blogging (Muncy, 2014), and guided questions (Gravois et al., 2017). These experiences were enhanced when coupled with feedback from others to develop a more comprehensive self-view (McCarty & Wertheim, 2020). The KMA engages students in self-reflection using self-discovery and the perceptions of others to increase self-awareness and perseverance. It is proposed that the KMA will increase student self-awareness.

Pedagogy of Vulnerability

Brantmeier (2013) defined vulnerability as risking self-disclosure as an act of courage. The idea that being vulnerable is courageous has been examined in various disciplines including health care (Curtis, 2014; Matriano & Middleton, 2020), psychology (Borelli et al., 2019; Tortoriello & Hart, 2019), and leadership (B. Brown, 2017). However, courageous vulnerability has not been as readily explored in higher education in general (Brantmeier & McKenna, 2020), and marketing education in particular. The pedagogy of vulnerability emphasizes the well-being of instructors and students alike in that each experience a greater sense of inclusion and a higher level of learning. This can be achieved when empowerment supersedes authority, knowing oneself is prioritized, and effort is focused on experiencing and displaying what it means to be fully human (Brantmeier & McKenna, 2020).

The pedagogy of vulnerability starts with self-disclosure, which is considered courageous in that it presents a risk of becoming subjected to possible embarrassment, criticism, or rejection (Tsai et al., 2013). Those who are willing to be transparent and voluntarily self-disclose demonstrate humanity and authenticity to others. The disclosure signals to others that they are in a safe environment where they can discover, experiment, and learn without fearing judgment that may come from failed tasks (Cordova & Scott, 2001). As a result, rather than being viewed as a weakness, vulnerability has been conceptualized and socially normalized as a strength to build resilience and connection with others (Jordan, 2008).

Prior studies examining higher education satisfaction have shown students value instructors who are approachable (Voss et al., 2007), sympathetic (Hill et al., 2003), and show flexibility (N. Brown, 2004). These characteristics stem from a disposition of vulnerability (Tsai et al., 2013). Perceived vulnerability is needed in a self-expansion activity to realize its full benefits. Furthermore, the pedagogy of vulnerability requires lived curriculum and mutual self-disclosure (Brantmeier, 2013), and thus the need for both instructors and students to participate in self-expansion experiences. The KMA is designed to have students and faculty complete the activity and instructors self-disclose personal results. It is proposed that the KMA will increase perceived vulnerability of the instructor.

Relatedness

Based on self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2018), relatedness has been defined as “a person’s need to feel a sense of closeness with others” (Thomson, 2006, p. 106). Deliberately developing relatedness can be beneficial. For example, Fedesco et al. (2019) found instructor relatedness predicted student interest, enjoyment in the course, and self-reported effort. In line with the research by Young (2005), social connections in the classroom support the need for relatedness. However, the aforementioned study by Fedesco et al. (2019) also found relatedness with other students in the class did not influence any of the tested outcomes.

Relatedness is closely aligned with rapport, which Faranda and Clarke (2004) have defined as “the ability to maintain harmonious relationships based on affinity for others” (p. 274). Instructors who build rapport and relatedness encourage students to work harder, to be challenged, and to increase engagement (Granitz et al., 2009). Students also report that rapport is a characteristic of an effective instructor (Lincoln, 2008). Other similar characteristics shown to be of value to students include that the instructor is helpful (Lammers & Murphy, 2002), friendly (Swanson et al., 2005), and caring (Andresen, 2000). The focus on relatedness over other characteristics stems from the call by Jillapalli and Wilcox (2010) for research on the influence of particular classroom activities on relatedness, particularly involving a connection with the course instructor (Gruber et al., 2012).

A study by Zainuddin and Perera (2017) found relatedness motivated students to engage in class activities and interact with their peers. However, prior research shows relatedness with the instructor supersedes relatedness with classmates (Frisby & Martin, 2010). Furthermore, students value the cost invested in education to a greater degree when they feel their instructors care about them (Ray & Marken, 2014), a crucial note considering the steep increase in tuition over time. Relatedness can be fostered within professional boundaries between instructors and students (Jillapalli & Wilcox, 2010) through activities, such as the KMA, which increase feelings of intellectual and emotional connection (Fedesco et al., 2019). It is proposed that the KMA will increase perceived relatedness of the instructor.

Instructors who exhibit vulnerability and relatedness also foster self-expansion by being perceived as authentic and accepting of others, including students. Student self-awareness, in conjunction with the instructor’s perceived vulnerability and relatedness, can be realized through the self-expanding KMA.

The Know Me Activity

The instructor completes steps one to four below in advance and shares the resultant personal word cloud as part of the instructions when discussing how to complete the KMA with students. Instructor self-disclosure plays a significant role in the benefits of the exercise as demonstrated by the results of this study.

Student Instructions

Following the steps provided, you will ask 15 people you know to provide 5 one-word strengths and 5 one-word weaknesses that describe you, create a word cloud based on the results, and write a reflection of the activity.

Step 1 (Create): Create a survey in Qualtrics with two text entry questions. The first question should be “Using just one word for each, what are 5 of my strengths?” The second question should be “Using just one word for each, what are 5 of my weaknesses?” After creating both questions, click the Preview Survey button in the top right corner to make sure the survey appears the way you would like.

Step 2 (Distribute): Click the Distribution tab and select Anonymous Link; copy the link into an email that describes the reason for your email and the deadline. Schedule the delivery of the email requesting responses within one week using the following wording, “Thank you in advance for answering the following two questions. This is an activity for my marketing class, so your honesty is much appreciated. Do not worry about hurting my feelings or giving me too much of an ego. I would like your honest opinion, both positive and negative. Responses are anonymous.” Send this email to at least 15 contacts; they can be family, friends, work colleagues, or classmates. It is important that each contact knows you well enough to provide an honest perspective. Also, email the instructor as proof that you completed this step.

Step 3 (Tabulate): Export your responses to Excel. To do this, click on Data & Analysis, then click Export & Import, then click Export Data, then select CSV at the top of the window, then click Download and the file should download to your device. Once in Excel, sort the responses and count how many times each word, or similar word, appears. Similar words, such as laugh, laughs, laughter, and laughing, can be recoded as laughter.

Step 4 (Visualize): Use an online word cloud generator (e.g., wordclouds.com, wordart.com, or worditout.com) to create your word cloud graphic based on the words and counts. The platforms allow for a file upload or manual data entry of words and counts. The graphic should reflect your personality. An example is provided in Figure 1.

Step 5 (Reflect): Paste your word cloud at the top of the page and answer each of the questions using up to three single-spaced pages. Include the word tallies as an appendix.

What value do you see in this activity?

Identify three strengths that emerged in your word cloud. How would you talk about them in a job interview? Were there any strengths you think you possess that did not appear in your word cloud? How can you make those strengths more evident to those around you?

Identify three weaknesses that emerged in your word cloud. How would you talk about them in a job interview and possibly transform them into strengths?

Are you motivated to work on any weaknesses that emerged in your word cloud? If so, which one(s) and what is your specific action plan for improvement?

Discuss how this activity can help you develop your personal brand.

Figure 1.

Sample student word cloud.

Additional Instructor Notes

Students are instructed to request 15 people who know them well complete their survey as 15 contacts is considered ideal for an activity that relies on supportive connections, and not necessarily on personal intimacy or general acquaintance (Dunbar, 2021). Qualtrics and Excel are mentioned in the instructions; however, other types of online survey tools and spreadsheet software could easily be used for the KMA. In fact, an online survey is not essential as simple email could be used instead; however, the advantage of utilizing online survey software is that it simplifies and standardizes the data collection process for students and allows anonymous responses from the survey respondents.

The timeline can be adjusted; however, the activity should be completed within the first three weeks of the course. A sample timeline is presented below:

Day 1: Provide instructions: show and discuss instructor example.

Day 7: Email to instructor (verifies distribution of the survey) due.

Day 10: Responses from contacts to students due.

Day 15: Word cloud and written reflection due.

Completion of the activity was weighted as five percentage of the total grade in the course.

Method

Sample

To test the effectiveness of the KMA, it was conducted at three public regional universities. At one institution, the exercise was used by one instructor in two sections of undergraduate principles of marketing course (one online and the other in-person). At another institution, the exercise was utilized by one instructor in one online section of undergraduate principles of marketing as well as in one online section of graduate marketing management. At a third institution, the exercise was used by one instructor in one online section of a graduate social media marketing course. In this study, “online” refers to remote synchronous course modality.

Measures

To assess the effectiveness of the activity, students were surveyed before the KMA was introduced (pre-KMA) and then again shortly after the students turned in their completed word clouds and written reflections (post-KMA). A 9-item scale adapted from Lewandowski and Aron (2002) and de Kerviler and Rodriguez (2019) measured the self-expansion characteristics of the KMA. The scales for student self-awareness and perceived vulnerability of the instructor were adapted from Kuczynski et al. (2020). The scale for perceived relatedness of the instructor was adapted from Jillapalli and Wilcox (2010). Additionally, in the post-KMA survey administration, students were asked to rate their level of agreement with survey items adapted from Rinaldo et al. (2013) to capture student perceptions of the KMA as a classroom exercise.

Responses to all measures were collected using a scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). The survey also included demographic items.

Results

Of the 142 post-KMA survey respondents, 57 (40%) were female. The average age was 23.75 (SD = 5.830) with a range of 19 to 54. Respondent ethnicity was represented by 117 (82%) White, 11 (8%) African American, 13 (9%) Asian, and 1 (1%) Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. In addition, 9 (6%) of survey respondents identified as Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish.

Exploratory factor analysis was utilized to assess the convergent validity of items for each dimension using varimax rotation based on eigenvalues greater than 1.0. Five dimensions emerged, explaining 79.8% of the variance. Cronbach alpha scores for all dimensions exceeded the .70 benchmark recommended by Nunnally (1978), thus establishing internal validity. Table 1 shows the results of the rotated component matrix for the five dimensions along with corresponding coefficient alpha scores.

Table 1.

Exploratory Factor Analysis Rotated Component Matrix for KMA Measures.

Measurement items	Factors
Measurement items	Self-expansion (α = .95)	Vulnerability* (α = .93)	Relatedness* (α = .95)	Effectiveness* (α = .95)	Self-awareness (α = .71)
I feel that I increased my knowledge when I participated in this assignment.	.855
When I participated in this assignment, it helped me expand my sense of the kind of person I am.	.842
When I participated in this assignment, it gave a larger perspective on things.	.814
I feel that I learned new things when I participated in this assignment.	.800
I feel that I increased my ability to accomplish new things when I participated I this assignment.	.794
When I participated in this assignment, it gave me a greater awareness of things.	.787
When I participated in this assignment, it helped me add positive qualities to my sense of self.	.756
I feel I gained new experiences when I participated in this assignment.	.744
I feel I gained exciting experiences when I participated in this assignment.	.739
The professor will act for something she or he believes in even if she or he feels exposed or uncomfortable.		.870
The professor will risk feeling uncomfortable in the service of improving his or her relationship with his or her students.		.859
If the professor believes there is an important reason to face something that’s uncomfortable for him or her, she or he will face it.		.848
The professor acknowledges his/her shortcomings.		.828
The professor is willing to be vulnerable with his/her students.		.735
When I am with this professor, I often feel close in our professor–student relationship.			.925
When I am with this professor, I feel a lot of closeness.			.870
When I am with this professor, I feel loved and cared for.			.818
I recommend using the KMA in the course in the future.				.779
I highly rate using the KMA in the course.				.747
I rate the KMA as effective.				.745
I notice how other people affect how I feel.					.824
I notice how what I feel affects what I do.					.815

Note. KMA = Know Me Activity.

Perceived.

The effectiveness composite score on the post-KMA survey was 5.82 (SD = 1.23) on a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). These results show that students recommend the KMA for future use. The self-expansion composite score on the post-KMA survey was 5.63 (SD = 1.06) on a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree) indicating students perceived the activity as a new and exciting experience that is helpful in developing a broader perspective, and useful in increasing their ability to accomplish new things.

The survey also included measures that lead to self-expansion, namely student self-awareness, perceived instructor vulnerability, and instructor perceived relatedness. Results of paired samples t-tests (shown in Table 2) indicate an increase in student self-awareness with an effect size (d = 0.58) found to exceed Cohen’s (1988) convention for a medium effect size (d > .50). The results show an increase in perceived instructor vulnerability (d = 1.02) and perceived instructor relatedness (d = 1.04) among students who completed the KMA. Both effect sizes exceed Cohen’s (1988) convention for a large effect size (d > .80).

Table 2.

Paired Samples t Test for Pre-KMA and Post-KMA Measures.

Construct	M	SD	Paired samples t test
Construct	M	SD	t	df	p	d
Student self-awareness pre-KMA	5.85	0.590	2.597	110	.011*	.58
Student self-awareness post-KMA	6.00	0.527
Instructor vulnerability pre-KMA	5.41	1.027	4.408	86	.000**	1.02
Instructor vulnerability post-KMA	5.89	0.969
Instructor relatedness pre-KMA	4.57	0.965	5.580	110	.000**	1.04
Instructor relatedness post-KMA	5.12	0.129

Note. Items measured with Likert-type scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). KMA = Know Me Activity.

p < .05. ^**p < .01.

Taken together, the results indicate the KMA is a self-expansion activity that fosters student self-awareness, as well as perceived vulnerability and relatedness of the instructor. Furthermore, students recommend the KMA for future use.

Discussion

Self-expanding activities are exciting, interesting (Aron et al., 2004), and foster curiosity as individuals discover the perspectives others have of them. Indeed, the results of this study demonstrate students enjoyed the KMA and find it to be an effective self-expansion exercise. Students also experience an increase in self-awareness as they consider how their views aligned with those who they selected as participants in the exercise. At the same time, they experience other-awareness, which involves perceiving and responding to the motives, needs, and goals of others (Kuczynski et al., 2020). Moreover, without other-awareness and therefore empathic accuracy, individuals can be perceived as disingenuous or unable to make meaningful connections (Reis & Gable, 2015).

The results of the study indicate instructors are perceived as having a greater degree of vulnerability and more relatedness after they share their word cloud. This makes sense given motivation to self-expand can be primed with an activity modeling self-expansion in others (Dys-Steenbergen et al., 2016). In this way, students are encouraged to engage in self-expansion by the novelty, challenge, and safety gleaned from instructors who demonstrate vulnerability by sharing their KMA results as an exercise in personal growth. When defined within the context of vulnerability, this kind of courage is viewed as authentic and improves relationship satisfaction (Kernis & Goldman, 2006) with higher social desirability (Bayır-Toper et al., 2020). Thus, the instructor gains credibility and is viewed as a resourceful identity for students to incorporate, consistent with self-expansion theory (Aron et al., 2003).

The pedagogy of vulnerability posits that knowing and sharing of oneself while working in collaboration with others is needed to fully embrace the human experience (Brantmeier & McKenna, 2020). This premise sheds light on why being perceived as vulnerable and relatable enhances student self-expansion. The degree to which instructors are authentic and transparent reflects humanizing marketing education and therefore provides the academic context for students to feel safe and encouraged to learn and grow as established in prior research (Cajete, 2010). The pedagogy of vulnerability runs counter to the traditional thought that self-disclosure is a display of weakness that can be exploited in social media (Loveless et al., 2016). The results of this study demonstrate that vulnerability and relatedness are beneficial for students and future research should identify areas that improve for instructors as well.

The KMA is relatively easy for instructors to prepare and execute. Students garner the benefits of self-expansion as instructors bridge the separation created by limited resources and physical distance. Self-expansion benefits applied to marketing education manifest over time through a greater sense of self-awareness and connection with the instructor, as well as increased effort, perseverance, and satisfaction with the course. Although the KMA can be utilized in any course, it is ideally suited for an upper-level undergraduate marketing course in which students are likely preparing for job or graduate school interviews. The KMA can help students formulate responses to common questions concerning their strengths and weaknesses in advance so they are prepared and confident when going into interview situations.

Limitations and Future Research

This study’s generalizability is enhanced by the diversity in instructor, course topic, level, and modality included in the analysis. However, future research using a larger sample size and greater representation from other institutions and instructors, may detect other influences (e.g., instructor gender) on the outcome variables examined in this study. Conducting analysis with instructors who use the KMA for the first time may show results that are more representative of instructors also adopting the KMA for the first-time.

Moreover, the long-term consequences of using the KMA were not examined. Future research investigating the influence on students beyond the completion of the KMA should shed light on whether the benefits of the KMA can be realized over the duration of a course. Another line of inquiry could focus on whether individuals with a disposition for personal growth capitalize on self-expansion opportunities, including developing personal relationships with others that offer utility in self-expansion (Mattingly et al., 2019). Therefore, assessing student motivation in advance of the KMA may help discern if the level of benefit is related to student personality a priori (Hughes et al., 2020).

Student engagement could be further investigated based on the research by Vivek et al. (2014) applied to the marketing classroom. Higher perceived relatedness of the instructor could lead to greater student engagement in the course, which could manifest in higher academic achievement, consistent with other findings regarding improvements from self-expansion (Chin et al., 2017). Feedback could also be solicited regarding learning strengths and weaknesses to further enhance self-awareness. Replicating the study with international students would also provide insights regarding a global perspective.

Finally, at the instructor level, investigating whether increases in perceived vulnerability and relatedness ratings are attributed to one instructor compared to another also merits further investigation. There could be confounding variables such as experience with using the KMA, student age, or a combination of both. It is also necessary to acknowledge that the level of vulnerability one is willing or able to embrace can be influenced by institutional culture, personal identity, and professional status (Koppensteiner, 2020). Research in this regard will enhance our understanding of the constraints associated with the pedagogy of vulnerability in marketing education.

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

ORCID iDs

Holly A. Syrdal

Brian A. Vander Schee

Parker J. Woodroof

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