2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Given the strong arguments in favor of diversity and the costs of perpetuating inequity, the persistence of underrepresentation is striking and suggests that we, as advocates for diversity, are not reaching audiences beyond those already committed to promoting diversity. This paper explores how our ways of talking about diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice (DEISJ) when we address people already committed to diversity may have the unintended consequence of deterring people outside the diversity community from interacting with us. It draws on rhetorical theory, social psychology, discourse analysis, and the concept of analogical imagination to illuminate the ways implicit messages can frame the discourse of diversity in ways that inadvertently deter audiences who do not see themselves as being part of the diversity community. It argues that the rhetorical mode of conversation (sermo) is more suitable than the commonly used epideictic mode (the rhetoric of praise and blame) and offers examples of thematic framing that are more conducive to conversation and thus likely to be more useful in expanding the audience for the discourse on diversity.