Self-Censorship by Teaching Faculty in the Humanities and Social Sciences

: what professors are not saying and why.

Abstract

Amidst concerns in North America over the limits and exercise of academic freedom, as well as the movement towards equity, diversity, and inclusion in higher education, academics may be facing increased pressure to self-censor. While there is abundant literature describing and debating the state of academic freedom and the censorious pressures that restrict its exercise, little is known about extent to which Canadian professors are self-censoring while they teach. This study asks whether academic freedom is under threat in Canadian higher education and investigates self-censorship choices made by Canadian university professors, specifically when teaching in the Humanities and Social Sciences. Employing a grounded theory methodology, this research used transcript data from lengthy, semi-structured interviews with 31 participants across Canada, excluding Quebec. The results clearly indicate that teaching faculty are self-censoring, but very few do so — and very few topics are self-censored — out of fear of negative career consequences. Instead, most participants report self-censoring in the interest of creating inclusive learning environments, where ideas are ‘fair game’, but people are not. In this way, they view self-censorship as a pedagogical strategy used to achieve their goals for their learning environments. These findings suggest that while most participants feel their academic freedom is protected, there is also variation in their understandings of what academic freedom entails. Furthermore, the extent to which they feel they can fully enjoy their academic freedom depends on their tenure status, their racial identities and, to some extent, their sexual orientation. This research underscores the importance of establishing a shared understanding of academic freedom and a systemic commitment to protecting it. This study invites further research focusing on the role inclusion strategies play in university teaching and how they may exist alongside academic freedom without threatening its exercise. Moreover, this study contributes to a body of knowledge relating to the experiences of queer and racialised faculty in higher education.

Date of Award	14 Jan 2026
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Bath
Supervisor	Bill Durodie (Supervisor) & Dan Davies (Supervisor)