Role Conflict: How Search Committee Chairs Negotiate Faculty Status, Diversity, and Equity in Faculty Searches

Bias among faculty search committees has been considered a significant barrier to diversifying the professoriate. Given the traditional faculty hierarchy in academia, junior faculty search chairs may not have the positional power to challenge authority when confronted with bias or prejudice. Yet, search chairs are expected to ensure equitable practices and outcomes in their searches. In response to this quandary, through the lens of role theory, this study examined how faculty roles, within the hierarchical structure of tenure, affected equity during the hiring process. Findings revealed that the faculty hierarchy often superseded decision-making power given to search chairs if they were junior faculty, often leading to implicit support of biased hiring practices and the perpetuation of a culture of Whiteness. The study also indicated that search chairs' identities, values, and perceptions influenced how they operationalized diversity and equity in the search process, contributing to either diversity advocacy or support of the status quo. This qualitative inquiry makes an important contribution to the literature by exploring the ways in which faculty search chairs' status and social identities impact interpersonal committee dynamics and decisions about hiring diverse candidates.