Bakhtinian Dialogue and Women’s Online Leadership Learning

Abstract

This paper presents an empirical and theoretical examination of dialogic learning within an online adult education programme specifically designed for women in sport and business leadership. Drawing on data from a Course Experience Questionnaire administered to 27 participants across a third design-based research (DBR) iteration, the study integrates Bakhtinian dialogic theory — heteroglossia, polyphony, addressivity, and the chronotope — with feminist andragogical principles to interpret patterns of learner experience, engagement, and perceived transformation. The CEQ was developed iteratively across DBR cycles, with item selection guided by core programme constructs including tutor and peer support, peer narrative, and artificial intelligence (AI) avatar engagement; content validity was ensured through expert review and longitudinal reliability monitoring. Qualitative open-text responses were analysed using thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke’s1 framework. Non-parametric statistical analysis, including Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, Spearman rank correlations, and rank-biserial effect sizes, was applied to ordinal and scaled data. Results indicated exceptionally high overall satisfaction (M = 9.00/10) and course benefit (M = 8.78/10), with tutor support rated significantly higher than peer support (W = 46.0, p = .013, r = .49). Peer narrative emerged as a significant predictor of course benefit (rs = .49, p < .05) and course influence (rs = .46, p < .05). Notably, 85.2 per cent of participants did not engage with the AI learning avatar ‘Ruth’, with low uptake attributed to a preference for human interaction, usability challenges, insufficient integration into the course structure, and participants’ digital literacy expectations. All 27 respondents would recommend the course; 81.5 per cent expressed interest in further study. These findings are theorised in relation to Bakhtin’s concept of the dialogic chronotope, Mezirow’s2 transformative learning, feminist standpoint epistemology, and emerging debates about AI’s role in facilitating genuine pedagogical dialogue. Practical implications for educators and instructional designers are discussed, with explicit recommendations for embedding dialogic competence in tutor training, designing heteroglossic curricula, and critically integrating AI tools. Limitations related to sample size and generalisability are acknowledged. This article is also included in The Business & Management Collection which can be accessed at https://hstalks.com/business/.