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Pamela R. Conley, Ph.D. is a 2026 graduate of the PhD Program in Leadership and Change at Antioch University.

pam conley committee

Pamela R. Conley at her Dissertation Defense.

From L-R: Dr. Chris Voparil, Committee Chair, Dr. Diane Richard-Allerdyce, Committee Member, Dr. Luke Chwala, Committee Member.

Dissertation Committee

  • Chris Voparil, PhD, Committee Chair
  • Diane Richard-Allerdyce, PhD, Committee Member
  • Luke Chwala, PhD, Committee Member

Keywords

audiepistemic injustice (AEI), audiepistemic justice (AEJ), critical social epistemology, deaf crit, deaf cultural studies, deaf futurity, hermeneutical injustice, nineteenth-century literature, socio-legal history, testimonial injustice

Document Type

Dissertation

Publication Date

2026

Abstract

This dissertation proposes a new theoretical framework: Audiepistemic Injustice (AEI). Expanding upon existing theories of epistemic injustice (EI), I identify AEI as the systemic marginalization and dismissal of deaf ways of knowing. AEI is a multidimensional phenomenon rooted in the nineteenth century, when auditory and linguistic biases became codified across education, law, and literature. This interdisciplinary study interrogates three nineteenth-century literary narratives as primary case studies to examine AEI: (1) Ivan Turgenev’s “Mumu,” (2) Guy de Maupassant’s “The Deaf Mute,” and (3) Abigail Bradley Hyde’s “The Deaf and Dumb Child: A True Narrative.” I synthesize these literary works with legal and historical contexts to deconstruct the mechanics of Audiepistemic Injustice, suggesting how the nineteenth-century episteme not only silenced deaf agency but actively codified a hermeneutical void that ignored deaf testimony and ways of knowing. While two works exemplify this silencing, the third serves as a model of Audiepistemic Justice (AEJ). Through this analysis, the hegemony of spoken language emerges as a critical factor in the systematic exclusion of deaf epistemic authority. AEI persists as a phenomenon that continues to threaten the cultural and linguistic survival of deaf communities. This dissertation explores the consequences of AEI, noting that without critical intervention, it risks a systemic irreversible loss of deaf epistemic contributions. Moving beyond critique, this work charts toward AEJ by proposing the framework of Deaf Futurity. As a theoretical and political project, Deaf Futurity seeks to dismantle systemic biases to relocate deaf knowledge to the epistemological center within the social imaginaries. This framework provides a conceptual vocabulary for scholars and policymakers to safeguard deaf epistemic authority against the threat of AEI and to ensure the flourishing of deaf epistemologies. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA (https://aura.antioch.edu) and OhioLINK ETD Center (https://etd.ohiolink.edu).

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Pamela R. Conley

ORCID Id:  #0000-0003-3349-6797

Pamela R. Conley is an educator at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). She developed the Audiepistemic Injustice (AEI) framework to challenge systemic biases that prioritize spoken language. By asserting that sign languages are ontological carriers of human knowledge, her work seeks to dismantle the structures that perpetuate language-based inequity.

In the classroom, Conley utilizes the arts and humanities to disrupt hearing-centric norms. By empowering deaf and hearing students to critically interrogate systemic oppression, her pedagogy fosters critical reflection and cross-cultural understanding.

Conley earned her Ph.D. in Leadership and Change from Antioch University, where her dissertation, Against Audiepistemic Injustice: Claiming Deaf Futurity, established the AEI framework as a theoretical and practical contribution to social justice. This research builds upon a longstanding commitment to real-world advocacy that began with her master’s thesis, Deaf Theater: Audience Appeal (SUNY Brockport). She also holds an MS in Deaf Education (NTID/University of Rochester) and a BA in English and Education (Gallaudet University).

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