Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion vs. Social Justice Positioning in Higher Education: Identifying communication strategies that serve both the institution and society

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in higher education has expanded over the last half-century, but inequities still exist. This study explored the attitudes and motivations of twelve DEI professionals at six universities using in-depth qualitative interviews to learn what drives their use of social justice-oriented approaches as an alternative to traditional DEI practices to effect change in higher education. The study investigated how practitioners define DEI and social justice and whether both types of approaches are successful toward achieving DEI goals. An examination of drawbacks, conflicts, and institutional barriers revealed impacts on the application of these approaches. In addition, the study examined communication methods to understand how to position DEI and social justice practices effectively. Findings indicated that differences in approach were not related to individual DEI practitioners as much as institutional factors and suggested that DEI communicators draw from the co-orientation model as a “multipartial” positioning strategy.Master of Arts in Digital Communicatio