Dana Lynn Driscoll, along with co-authors Andrea Efthymiou (Hofstra University), Heather Lindenman (Elon University), Matthew Pavesich (Georgetown University), and Jennifer Reid (Marquette University) presented at the 2021 Conference on Engaged Learning in July. The presentation was titled, “Self-Sponsored Writing: A Taxonomy of the Civic, Personal, and Professional Functions of Writing in People’s Lives.”
The presentation was drawn from their national study of self-sponsored writing; that is, the non-obligatory writing that individuals do in daily life: journaling, creative writing, public writing, advocacy, personal history, and much more.
Abstract
Self-sponsored writing has been defined as writing that people take up beyond the requirements of work or school; it is elective, or writing people pursue on their own time, for their own purposes (Yancey, CCCC 2004). Research has inquired into the benefits of self-sponsored writing, particularly ways that people transfer what they learn and practice in self-sponsored writing to writing in academic and professional contexts (Cleary 2013, Courage 1993, Rosinski 2016, Shepherd 2018, Wang 2019). Writing scholars know, through detailed case studies, that individual writers at various ages and levels practice self-sponsored writing, and that that writing has the potential to benefit them personally, academically, and professionally (Roozen 2009, Sternglass 1989, Yi and Hirvela 2010). This presentation provides a panoramic view of self-sponsored writing among adults in the United States. Much like Melzer (2014) offers a “panoramic view of college writing” by studying a wide swath of assignments across disciplines and institutions, our presentation will offer a broad view of the overarching patterns among adults’ self-sponsored writing and a taxonomy of the functions of that writing. Through analysis of 713 survey responses and 27 interviews, we reveal patterns in the functions of self-sponsored writing and rhetorical activity for adults, ages 18-75+. While our data skews toward a more highly educated group than the national average, it represents individuals from a wide range of ages, geographical locations, and professional backgrounds. The taxonomy we share in this presentation provides an overview of the role that self-sponsored writing plays in people’s lives.