When the Medium Mangles the Message: Challenges of Communication between Online Adjunct Faculty and Their Supervisors

Communication between supervisors and subordinates can be challenging, even in traditional face-to-face environments. The asynchronous online environment can exacerbate potential for misunderstanding of intended communications. The required movement to online learning in the pandemic has heightened stresses for online higher education faculty in communicating effectively at a distance with their supervisors. Such misunderstandings can filter down negatively to their students, further exacerbating stresses that online students can experience. Existing research on online communication has focused on student-instructor interaction only. Impact of supervisors (e.g., department chairs) in this communication chain is largely absent from research to date.The purpose of this phenomenology study was to understand in depth the lived experience of online adjunct faculty in communicating at a distance with their supervisors, including particular stresses the faculty have experienced. The objective of this understanding is to streamline accurate and effective communications so that adjunct faculty feel maximally supported and online students' virtual learning experience is maximized.