Abstract:
A growing body of literature has examined the lived experiences of atheists in the United
States (Fitzgerald, 2003; Garneau, 2012; Pond, 2015). While a subsection of this research
focuses on the experiences of atheist college students (Goodman & Mueller, 2009; Mueller,
2012; Small, 2011), this study specifically examined the lived experiences of professional staff
members who work in higher education and identify as atheists. The study utilized Interpretive
Phenomenological Analysis (Smith, Flowers, & Larkin, 2009) and examined the findings
through the lenses of stigma management and Christian privilege. The findings indicate that an
individual’s comfort in his or her identity, the context of the workplace environment, and the
influence of campus leadership in the religious environment act in combination to create an
experience that is unique to each individual. The implications for practice include the need for
atheists to assess the environment prior to accepting employment in higher education, and the
importance of including non-religious worldviews into campus diversity programming and
human resource workplace diversity training programs.
