Abstract: Beyond DEI: The Mental Health Impact of Anti-Black Racism and Institutional Retrenchment (Society for Social Work and Research 31st Annual Conference)

Schedule:

Sunday, January 24, 2027

Golden Gate 6 (Hilton San Francisco Union Square)

* noted as presenting author

Michelle Chambers-Rollins, Clinical Assistant Professor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC

Jocelyn Taliaferro, PhD, Professor & Interim Department Chair, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD

Naya Williams, MSW, MSW Student, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD

Background and Purpose:
The rollback of DEI initiatives represents a critical shift in higher education policy with implications for equity and workforce well-being. This study examines how DEI retrenchment shapes the mental health of Black women faculty and administrators, conceptualizing these shifts as a form of institutional and psychological disinvestment.

Methods:
This qualitative study draws on a shared dataset of in-depth semi-structured interviews with Black women faculty and administrators across U.S. institutions (n=22). Participants were recruited through purposive and snowball sampling. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using thematic analysis. This paper represents a focused analytic strand of the broader study, guided by Black feminist thought, Institutional Betrayal Theory, and Operational Citizenship. Analytic rigor was supported through iterative coding, memoing, and cross-case comparison.

Results:
Findings identify four interrelated themes: (1) institutional betrayal, marked by the withdrawal of equity commitments; (2) racial battle fatigue and chronic psychological stress; (3) intensified emotional labor tied to sustaining diversity efforts without support; and (4) diminished professional belonging and increased invisibility. Participants described DEI retrenchment as both symbolic and material loss.

Conclusions and Implications:
DEI retrenchment functions as a form of structural harm with direct consequences for mental health and professional sustainability. Findings underscore the need for trauma-informed institutional policy, sustained equity investment, and accountability structures that center marginalized faculty.