Measuring Marginalization in Academic Nursing: Theory-Aligned and Domain-Specific Disparities

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Sociology of Education
• Health Equity

Background:

• Racially and ethnically minoritized (REM) nursing faculty are underrepresented in academia.
• Limited theory-aligned measurement of marginalization exists for faculty samples.

Purpose of the Study:

• To measure marginalization among nursing faculty using the Englund Marginality Index (EMI).
• To examine racial differences and interactions in marginalization among nursing faculty.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional survey of 715 faculty from CCNE-accredited nursing programs.
• Analysis included Welch-corrected t tests and ANCOVA with bootstrapping, adjusting for covariates.
• Examined racial disparities across EMI subscales (intermediacy, differentiation, secrecy, voice, liminality, reflectiveness, power).

Main Results:

• REM faculty reported significantly higher overall marginalization scores than White faculty.
• Largest disparities were observed in intermediacy and differentiation.
• Significant race × age and race × rank interactions were identified, indicating complex patterns of marginalization.

Conclusions:

• Marginalization is concentrated in specific areas like "bridgework" and "hierarchy" within academic nursing.
• Institutions should implement sponsorship, inclusive governance, and equity-aligned evaluation.
• Targeted support is recommended for early-career REM faculty to mitigate marginalization.