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1. Robo-Identity: Exploring Artificial Identity and Multi-Embodiment

   https://doi.org/10.1145/3434074.3444878  

   Lee, Minha; Kontogiorgos, Dimosthenis; Torre, Ilaria; Luria, Michal; Tejwani, Ravi; Dennis, Matthew J.; Pereira, Andre (March 2021, HRI '21 Companion: Companion of the 2021 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction)

   null (Ed.)

   Interactive robots are becoming more commonplace and complex, but their identity has not yet been a key point of investigation. Identity is an overarching concept that combines traits like personality or a backstory (among other aspects) that people readily attribute to a robot to individuate it as a unique entity. Given people's tendency to anthropomorphize social robots, "who is a robot?" should be a guiding question above and beyond "what is a robot?" Hence, we open up a discussion on artificial identity through this workshop in a multi-disciplinary manner; we welcome perspectives on challenges and opportunities from fields of ethics, design, and engineering. For instance, dynamic embodiment, e.g., an agent that dynamically moves across one's smartwatch, smart speaker, and laptop, is a technical and theoretical problem, with ethical ramifications. Another consideration is whether multiple bodies may warrant multiple identities instead of an "all-in-one" identity. Who "lives" in which devices or bodies? Should their identity travel across different forms, and how can that be achieved in an ethically mindful manner? We bring together philosophical, ethical, technical, and designerly perspectives on exploring artificial identity. 

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2. Documenting Engineering Identity: Electrical and Computer Engineering Departmental Documents and Student Identity

   https://doi.org/10.18260/1-2--30343  

   Friedensen, Rachel; Doran, Erin; Rodriguez, Sarah (June 2018, 2018 ASEE Annual Conference)

   As concerns about the preparation of engineers grow, so has interest in the dimensions of engineering identity. By having a thorough understanding of engineering identity, departments will be better able to produce engineers who understand their role as a member of the profession. Generally, engineering identity literature has not focused on specific disciplinary identities, instead looking at engineering as a whole. Previous literature has utilized role identity theory (e.g., Gee, 2001) and identified key dimensions of engineering identity, including one’s performance/competence and interest in engineering courses and recognition as a current/future engineer (Godwin, 2016; Godwin et al., 2013; Godwin et al., 2016). This paper deepens our understanding of electrical and computer engineering identities. As part of research activities associated with National Science Foundation grant looking at professional formation of socio-technically minded students, we analyzed texts and documents from an electrical and computer engineering department to examine the department’s professed priorities. Using document analysis, we answered this research question: How is a department’s commitment to undergraduate engineering identity development expressed in departmental documents? Document analysis focuses on texts to describe some aspect of the social world (Bowen, 2009). This analysis was performed with two types of departmental documents: front-facing documents (e.g., websites, newsletters) and internal documents (e.g., ABET self-studies, program evaluations) from an electrical and computing engineering department at a public research university. Analysis employed a priori and emergent coding schemas to formulate themes related to identity, performance/capability, interest, and recognition present in departmental documents (Bowen, 2009; Godwin, 2016). Specifically, we skimmed documents to ascertain inclusion status; read and coded documents in depth; and identified broader themes across documents (Bowen, 2009). One broad theme was a lack of attention to identity; another showed emphasis on technical skills/competencies. By interrogating absences, we found that there is little attention being paid to identity development or its components in these documents. In other words, these texts do not indicate that the department is invested in supporting students’ senses of interest, performance, and recognition as electrical and computer engineers. Rather, we found that these texts emphasize the acquisition of specific concepts, skills, and competencies. Overall, analysis indicated that the department does not cultivate holistic engineering student identities. The resultant implications are by no means irrelevant—a focus on identity over specific skills could increase retention, increase student satisfaction, and produce better future engineers. 

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3. Practice, Tensions, and Identity: Boundary Crossing and Identity Development in Urban Teacher Leaders

   https://doi.org/10.1177/19427751221113368  

   Hutchinson, Anna E.; Schaefer, Jill; Zhao, Weiqi; Criswell, Brett (January 2022, Journal of Research on Leadership Education)

   This study investigates the identity development of teacher leaders in an, urban school district who participated in a Noyce Master Teaching Fellow, program. We identify tensions that arose from involvement in this, external community of practice (CoP) and changes in teacher leader, meanings and practices in their school CoPs. Qualitative key findings, indicate that as boundary crossers, (1) teacher leader activities surfaced, tensions between CoPs, promoting boundary competence, and (2), participation in an external CoP reshaped their identities, especially as, mentors. Implications include recognizing that external CoPs can support, learning mechanisms for addressing educational issues, for example, teacher, retention. 

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4. A generalization of Franklin’s partition identity and a Beck-type companion identity

   https://doi.org/10.1007/s11139-025-01121-7  

   Gray, Gabriel; Hovey, David; Kronholm, Brandt; Payne, Emily; Swisher, Holly; Watson, Ren (July 2025, The Ramanujan Journal)
5. Engineering Identity and Smartness Identity as They Relate to Women’s Participation in Engineering

   https://doi.org/10.1109/TE.2024.3359534  

   Wallwey, Cassie; Dringenberg, Emily; Braaten, Bailey; Li, Yiqing; Kajfez, Rachel (April 2024, IEEE Transactions on Education)

   Contribution: This study examined the role of the engineering and smartness identities of three women as they made decisions about their participation in engineering majors. In addressing the under-representation of women in engineering, particularly in electrical engineering and computer science fields where they have been extremely under-represented, it is important to consider engineering identity as it has been shown to be an important component of major selection and persistence. Background: Smartness is inextricably linked to engineering and prior work has shown that identifying as smart is salient to students who choose engineering majors. However, the relative roles of students’ engineering and smartness identities as they relate to academic decision making and persistence in engineering is not well understood. Research Question: How do engineering identity and smartness identity relate to women’s decisions about choosing engineering majors in the instances of joining engineering, changing engineering major, and leaving engineering? Methodology: Data were collected from a series of three interviews with three different women. Data condensation techniques, including writing participant summary memos and analytic memos, focused on detailing participants’ academic decisions, engineering identity, and smartness identity were used for analysis. Data visualization was used to map the women’s engineering identity and smartness identity to their academic decisions related to their majors. Findings: The findings indicate the participants’ smartness identity was salient in the initial decision to matriculate into engineering, both their engineering and smartness identities remained stable as they persisted in or left engineering. And reveal complex interactions between these identities and decision making. 

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