diff --git a/r/NAMESPACE b/r/NAMESPACE
index fb3ea82c4af..c75f54d946a 100644
--- a/r/NAMESPACE
+++ b/r/NAMESPACE
@@ -147,6 +147,7 @@ export(MemoryMappedFile)
 export(MessageReader)
 export(MessageType)
 export(MetadataVersion)
+export(NullEncodingBehavior)
 export(ParquetArrowReaderProperties)
 export(ParquetFileFormat)
 export(ParquetFileReader)
diff --git a/r/R/dplyr.R b/r/R/dplyr.R
index 76d95a804a7..845cb3a1815 100644
--- a/r/R/dplyr.R
+++ b/r/R/dplyr.R
@@ -396,6 +396,21 @@ build_function_list <- function(FUN) {
     # Include mappings from R function name spellings
     lapply(set_names(names(.array_function_map)), wrapper),
     # Plus some special handling where it's not 1:1
+    cast = function(x, target_type, safe = TRUE, ...) {
+      opts <- cast_options(safe, ...)
+      opts$to_type <- as_type(target_type)
+      FUN("cast", x, options = opts)
+    },
+    dictionary_encode = function(x, null_encoding_behavior = c("mask", "encode")) {
+      null_encoding_behavior <-
+        NullEncodingBehavior[[toupper(match.arg(null_encoding_behavior))]]
+      FUN(
+        "dictionary_encode",
+        x,
+        options = list(null_encoding_behavior = null_encoding_behavior)
+      )
+    },
+    # as.factor() is mapped in expression.R
     as.character = function(x) {
       FUN("cast", x, options = cast_options(to_type = string()))
     },
diff --git a/r/R/enums.R b/r/R/enums.R
index 170abf99865..ae44ccf2cad 100644
--- a/r/R/enums.R
+++ b/r/R/enums.R
@@ -134,3 +134,9 @@ MetadataVersion <- enum("MetadataVersion",
 QuantileInterpolation <- enum("QuantileInterpolation",
   LINEAR = 0L, LOWER = 1L, HIGHER = 2L, NEAREST = 3L, MIDPOINT = 4L
 )
+
+#' @export
+#' @rdname enums
+NullEncodingBehavior <- enum("NullEncodingBehavior",
+  ENCODE = 0L, MASK = 1L
+)
diff --git a/r/R/expression.R b/r/R/expression.R
index ed81418f41c..1974fc7f59b 100644
--- a/r/R/expression.R
+++ b/r/R/expression.R
@@ -117,6 +117,7 @@ cast_array_expression <- function(x, to_type, safe = TRUE, ...) {
 
 .unary_function_map <- list(
   "!" = "invert",
+  "as.factor" = "dictionary_encode",
   "is.na" = "is_null",
   "is.nan" = "is_nan",
   # nchar is defined in dplyr.R because it is more complex
diff --git a/r/R/type.R b/r/R/type.R
index 77e3129601c..ecb9b48a185 100644
--- a/r/R/type.R
+++ b/r/R/type.R
@@ -156,8 +156,8 @@ NestedType <- R6Class("NestedType", inherit = DataType)
 #' * `float16()` and `halffloat()`
 #' * `float32()` and `float()`
 #' * `bool()` and `boolean()`
-#' * Called from `schema()` or `struct()`, `double()` also is supported as a
-#' way of creating a `float64()`
+#' * When called inside an `arrow` function, such as `schema()` or `cast()`,
+#' `double()` also is supported as a way of creating a `float64()`
 #'
 #' `date32()` creates a datetime type with a "day" unit, like the R `Date`
 #' class. `date64()` has a "ms" unit.
@@ -413,8 +413,8 @@ FixedSizeListType <- R6Class("FixedSizeListType",
 fixed_size_list_of <- function(type, list_size) fixed_size_list__(type, list_size)
 
 as_type <- function(type, name = "type") {
+  # magic so we don't have to mask base::double()
   if (identical(type, double())) {
-    # Magic so that we don't have to mask this base function
     type <- float64()
   }
   if (!inherits(type, "DataType")) {
@@ -423,7 +423,6 @@ as_type <- function(type, name = "type") {
   type
 }
 
-
 # vctrs support -----------------------------------------------------------
 str_dup <- function(x, times) {
   paste0(rep(x, times = times), collapse = "")
diff --git a/r/man/data-type.Rd b/r/man/data-type.Rd
index f16e5dd5191..f113455a90d 100644
--- a/r/man/data-type.Rd
+++ b/r/man/data-type.Rd
@@ -135,8 +135,8 @@ A few functions have aliases:
 \item \code{float16()} and \code{halffloat()}
 \item \code{float32()} and \code{float()}
 \item \code{bool()} and \code{boolean()}
-\item Called from \code{schema()} or \code{struct()}, \code{double()} also is supported as a
-way of creating a \code{float64()}
+\item When called inside an \code{arrow} function, such as \code{schema()} or \code{cast()},
+\code{double()} also is supported as a way of creating a \code{float64()}
 }
 
 \code{date32()} creates a datetime type with a "day" unit, like the R \code{Date}
diff --git a/r/man/enums.Rd b/r/man/enums.Rd
index fa3c64b8f95..b871516def8 100644
--- a/r/man/enums.Rd
+++ b/r/man/enums.Rd
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@
 \alias{ParquetVersionType}
 \alias{MetadataVersion}
 \alias{QuantileInterpolation}
+\alias{NullEncodingBehavior}
 \title{Arrow enums}
 \format{
 An object of class \code{TimeUnit::type} (inherits from \code{arrow-enum}) of length 4.
@@ -37,6 +38,8 @@ An object of class \code{ParquetVersionType} (inherits from \code{arrow-enum}) o
 An object of class \code{MetadataVersion} (inherits from \code{arrow-enum}) of length 5.
 
 An object of class \code{QuantileInterpolation} (inherits from \code{arrow-enum}) of length 5.
+
+An object of class \code{NullEncodingBehavior} (inherits from \code{arrow-enum}) of length 2.
 }
 \usage{
 TimeUnit
@@ -60,6 +63,8 @@ ParquetVersionType
 MetadataVersion
 
 QuantileInterpolation
+
+NullEncodingBehavior
 }
 \description{
 Arrow enums
diff --git a/r/src/compute.cpp b/r/src/compute.cpp
index f33153069f2..2bc43a9660c 100644
--- a/r/src/compute.cpp
+++ b/r/src/compute.cpp
@@ -202,6 +202,17 @@ std::shared_ptr<arrow::compute::FunctionOptions> make_compute_options(
                                      cpp11::as_cpp<bool>(options["skip_nulls"]));
   }
 
+  if (func_name == "dictionary_encode") {
+    using Options = arrow::compute::DictionaryEncodeOptions;
+    auto out = std::make_shared<Options>(Options::Defaults());
+    if (!Rf_isNull(options["null_encoding_behavior"])) {
+      out->null_encoding_behavior = cpp11::as_cpp<
+          enum arrow::compute::DictionaryEncodeOptions::NullEncodingBehavior>(
+          options["null_encoding_behavior"]);
+    }
+    return out;
+  }
+
   if (func_name == "cast") {
     return make_cast_options(options);
   }
diff --git a/r/tests/testthat/test-dplyr.R b/r/tests/testthat/test-dplyr.R
index 7940ce8bf4b..def7886a0bf 100644
--- a/r/tests/testthat/test-dplyr.R
+++ b/r/tests/testthat/test-dplyr.R
@@ -358,7 +358,70 @@ test_that("relocate with selection helpers", {
   )
 })
 
-test_that("explicit type conversions", {
+test_that("explicit type conversions with cast()", {
+  num_int32 <- 12L
+  num_int64 <- bit64::as.integer64(10)
+
+  int_types <- c(int8(), int16(), int32(), int64())
+  uint_types <- c(uint8(), uint16(), uint32(), uint64())
+  float_types <- c(float32(), float64())
+
+  types <- c(
+    int_types,
+    uint_types,
+    float_types,
+    double(), # not actually a type, a base R function but should be alias for float64
+    string()
+  )
+
+  for (type in types) {
+    expect_type_equal(
+      {
+        t1 <- Table$create(x = num_int32) %>%
+          transmute(x = cast(x, type)) %>%
+          compute()
+        t1$schema[[1]]$type
+      },
+      as_type(type)
+    )
+    expect_type_equal(
+      {
+        t1 <- Table$create(x = num_int64) %>%
+          transmute(x = cast(x, type)) %>%
+          compute()
+        t1$schema[[1]]$type
+      },
+      as_type(type)
+    )
+  }
+
+  # Arrow errors when truncating floats...
+  expect_error(
+    expect_type_equal(
+      {
+        t1 <- Table$create(pi = pi) %>%
+          transmute(three = cast(pi, int32())) %>%
+          compute()
+        t1$schema[[1]]$type
+      },
+      int32()
+    ),
+    "truncated"
+  )
+
+  # ... unless safe = FALSE (or allow_float_truncate = TRUE)
+  expect_type_equal(
+    {
+      t1 <- Table$create(pi = pi) %>%
+        transmute(three = cast(pi, int32(), safe = FALSE)) %>%
+        compute()
+      t1$schema[[1]]$type
+    },
+    int32()
+  )
+})
+
+test_that("explicit type conversions with as.*()", {
   library(bit64)
   expect_dplyr_equal(
     input %>%
@@ -421,12 +484,14 @@ test_that("explicit type conversions", {
         int2dbl = as.double(int),
         int2int = as.integer(int),
         int2lgl = as.logical(int),
-        lgl2chr = toupper(as.character(lgl)), # Arrow returns "true", "false"
+        lgl2chr = as.character(lgl), # Arrow returns "true", "false" here ...
         lgl2dbl = as.double(lgl),
         lgl2int = as.integer(lgl),
-        lgl2lgl = as.logical(lgl),
+        lgl2lgl = as.logical(lgl)
       ) %>%
-      collect(),
+      collect() %>%
+      # need to use toupper() *after* collect() or else skip if utf8proc not available
+      mutate(lgl2chr = toupper(lgl2chr)), # ... but we need "TRUE", "FALSE"
     tibble(
       dbl = c(1, 0, NA_real_),
       int = c(1L, 0L, NA_integer_),
@@ -435,9 +500,60 @@ test_that("explicit type conversions", {
   )
 })
 
-test_that("bad explicit type conversions", {
+test_that("as.factor()/dictionary_encode()", {
+  df1 <- tibble(x = c("C", "D", "B", NA, "D", "B", "S", "A", "B", "Z", "B"))
+  df2 <- tibble(x = c(5, 5, 5, NA, 2, 3, 6, 8))
+
+  expect_dplyr_equal(
+    input %>%
+      transmute(x = as.factor(x)) %>%
+      collect(),
+    df1
+  )
+
+  expect_warning(
+    expect_dplyr_equal(
+      input %>%
+        transmute(x = as.factor(x)) %>%
+        collect(),
+      df2
+    ),
+    "Coercing dictionary values to R character factor levels"
+  )
+
+  # dictionary values with default null encoding behavior ("mask") omits
+  # nulls from the dictionary values
+  expect_equal(
+    {
+      rb1 <- df1 %>%
+        record_batch() %>%
+        transmute(x = dictionary_encode(x)) %>%
+        compute()
+      dict <- rb1$x$dictionary()
+      as.vector(dict$Take(dict$SortIndices()))
+    },
+    sort(unique(df1$x), na.last = NA)
+  )
+
+  # dictionary values with "encode" null encoding behavior includes nulls in
+  # the dictionary values
+  expect_equal(
+    {
+      rb1 <- df1 %>%
+        record_batch() %>%
+        transmute(x = dictionary_encode(x, null_encoding_behavior = "encode")) %>%
+        compute()
+      dict <- rb1$x$dictionary()
+      as.vector(dict$Take(dict$SortIndices()))
+    },
+    sort(unique(df1$x), na.last = TRUE)
+  )
+
+})
+
+test_that("bad explicit type conversions with as.*()", {
 
-  # Arrow returns lowercase "true", "false"
+  # Arrow returns lowercase "true", "false" (instead of "TRUE", "FALSE" like R)
   expect_error(
     expect_dplyr_equal(
       input %>%
@@ -448,7 +564,21 @@ test_that("bad explicit type conversions", {
     )
   )
 
-  # Arrow fails to parse these strings as Booleans
+  # Arrow fails to parse these strings as numbers (instead of returning NAs with
+  # a warning like R does)
+  expect_error(
+    expect_warning(
+      expect_dplyr_equal(
+        input %>%
+          transmute(chr2num = as.numeric(chr)) %>%
+          collect(),
+        tibble(chr = c("l.O", "S.S", ""))
+      )
+    )
+  )
+
+  # Arrow fails to parse these strings as Booleans (instead of returning NAs
+  # like R does)
   expect_error(
     expect_dplyr_equal(
       input %>%
diff --git a/r/tests/testthat/test-type.R b/r/tests/testthat/test-type.R
index 8f2cc7c0559..56cef722556 100644
--- a/r/tests/testthat/test-type.R
+++ b/r/tests/testthat/test-type.R
@@ -68,3 +68,41 @@ test_that("DataType$Equals", {
   expect_failure(expect_type_equal(a, z), "int32 not equal to double")
   expect_false(a$Equals(32L))
 })
+
+test_that("Masked data type functions still work", {
+  skip("Work around masking of data type functions (ARROW-12322)")
+
+  # Works when type function is masked
+  string <- rlang::string
+  expect_type_equal(
+    Array$create("abc", type = string()),
+    arrow::string()
+  )
+  rm(string)
+
+  # Works when with non-Arrow function that returns an Arrow type
+  # when the non-Arrow function has the same name as a base R function...
+  str <- arrow::string
+  expect_type_equal(
+    Array$create("abc", type = str()),
+    arrow::string()
+  )
+  rm(str)
+
+  # ... and when it has the same name as an Arrow function
+  type <- arrow::string
+  expect_type_equal(
+    Array$create("abc", type = type()),
+    arrow::string()
+  )
+  rm(type)
+
+  # Works with local variable whose value is an Arrow type
+  type <- arrow::string()
+  expect_type_equal(
+    Array$create("abc", type = type),
+    arrow::string()
+  )
+  rm(type)
+
+})