Fighting on Two Fronts: Dual Combat Strain Among Black Doctoral Students Who Serve as Higher Education Professionals

As diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts in higher education face increasing scrutiny and political backlash, institutions across the United States are reexamining, reframing, and in many cases, dismantling long-standing commitments to equity work. This collaborative autoethnographic study explores the lived experiences of four Black educators, three actively pursuing doctoral degrees while serving as student affairs administrators and one faculty member who holds administrative responsibilities. Drawing on role theory, we introduce the concept Dual Combat Strain, a compounded and inseparable form of role strain that emerges when both academic and professional identities are simultaneously contested, surveilled, and constrained. The findings highlight the tensions, strategies, and forms of resistance that these educators employ to persist, advocate, mentor, and build coalitions within an increasingly volatile higher education landscape. By naming and framing Dual Combat Strain, this study extends role strain theory and applies it to the interconnected academic and professional realities of educators and offers actionable insights to support educators committed to equity based work.