U.S. police departments have attempted to address racial inequities in policing with diversity training. However, little research has evaluated whether these trainings are effective at changing ...officers’ beliefs, motivations, and actions. To examine their efficacy, we tested a day-long implicit-bias-oriented diversity training designed to increase U.S. police officers’ knowledge of biases, concerns about bias, and use of evidence-based strategies to mitigate bias (total N = 3,764). The training was immediately effective at increasing knowledge about bias, concerns about bias, and intentions to address bias, relative to baseline. However, the effects were fleeting. Although the training was linked to higher knowledge for at least 1 month, it was ineffective at durably increasing concerns or strategy use. These findings suggest that diversity trainings as they are currently practiced are unlikely to change police behavior. We conclude with theorizing about what organizations and training programs could do for greater impact.
This paper develops a practice-based Theory of Generative Interactions across diversity that builds on empirical findings and conceptual frameworks from multiple fields of study. This ...transdisciplinary review (Montuori in World Futures 69:200-230, 2013) draws on the disciplines of sociology, social psychology, organization studies, and communications. The Theory of Generative Interactions suggests that in order to facilitate inclusion, multiple types of exclusionary dynamics (self-segregation, communication apprehension, and stereotyping and stigmatizing) must be overcome through adaptive cognitive processing and skill development, and engagement in positive interactions must occur in order to facilitate inclusion that is created and sustained by contextually relevant sets of organizational practices. The organizational practices provide the following conditions for generative interactions: pursuing an important, shared organizational purpose, mixing diverse members frequently over protracted periods of time, enabling differing groups to have equal standing and insider status in contributing to success, and providing collaborative interdependence, interpersonal comfort, and self-efficacy. These interactions are generative in that they help to challenge the guiding assumptions of the organizational culture, reconsider taken-forgranted aspects, and raise fundamental questions about organizations (Gergen in Person Soc Psychol 36:1344-1360, 1978). We assert that such interactions, properly structured, can help organizations more fully address all stakeholders in creating value ethically, and ultimately creating equity for individuals and groups in the organization.
Background
The COVID-19 pandemic has placed healthcare systems worldwide under unprecedented pressure, with the Irish Public Health system no different. To strengthen delivery of Essential Public ...Health Functions (EPHFs) and increase future pandemic preparedness, Public Health leaders are now focused on identifying learnings from the pandemic. Within Ireland, given their experience, organisations situated within the Public Health system may be in a unique position to provide valuable information around the delivery of EPHFs, both prior to and in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, and how this can be improved in the future.
Methods
An online survey was distributed by the Department of Health, from 2 March 2022 to 25 March 2022, amongst organisations situated within the Public Health domain in Ireland. The survey consisted of six open-ended questions around the delivery of EPHFs prior to and in light of the pandemic, success stories that could provide scalable solutions to EPHF delivery and current health system barriers, key areas in the public health system that require strengthening, and barriers to achieving these actions. Thematic analysis to identify key themes was conducted on survey responses.
Results
Twenty-eight organisational responses were received. Themes around the workforce were apparent throughout, with staff training, staff diversity and staff morale, identified as areas for strengthening EPHF delivery. Themes around ICT, data collection and research were frequently identified with a lack of adequate ICT identified as a key lesson from the pandemic, while the Public Health ICT strategy was identified as key to strengthening future EPHF delivery.
Conclusions
In general, themes around the workforce; leadership, management and governance and ICT, data collection and research were reoccurring across organisational responses and therefore may be key areas for consideration when strengthening delivery of the EPHFs in Ireland.
Speakers/Panelist
Louise Hendricks
Department of Health, Ireland
Sohel Saikat
WHO, Geneva, Switzerland
Drawing on intersectionality's historical feminist roots of critical praxis and recent re-radicalization of the theory, this paper urges for an expansion of the concept of intersectionality in ...business and marketing-related studies. To extend the transformative potential of intersectionality theory, we call for scholars and practitioners to move beyond the study of intersecting identity markers (e.g., gender, race, class) to include assessments of power structures and intersectional oppressions. We propose the transformative intersectional framework (TIF) to help scholars and practitioners to explore sources of oppressions more deeply and broadly. We illustrate the analytical capability of the TIF by examining a much lauded business-to-business service that seeks social justice and change—diversity training programs. Using the TIF, we identify the inherent and (in)visible complexities of injustices with which organizations must grapple. We close by demonstrating how the TIF can enrich practice and propose recommendations for action.
•Re-radicalized intersectionality provides transformational potential to firms.•Diversity programs require intersectionality and context-specific perspective.•Standardization of implicit bias tests neglects intersecting identities.•Diversity training overlooks deep systemic issues and glocalized conditions.•Depth and breadth are key to managerially useful intersectional understanding.
Purpose
Misinformation and negative attitudes toward disability contribute to lower employment rates among people with disabilities. Diversity training is an intervention intended to improve ...intergroup relations and reduce prejudice. We conducted a systematic review to determine the use and effectiveness of disability diversity training aimed at improving employment outcomes for employees with disabilities.
Methods
Five databases were searched for peer-reviewed studies of disability diversity training interventions provided within the workplace. Studies identified for inclusion were assessed for quality of methodology.
Results
Of the total of 1322 articles identified by the search, three studies met the criteria for inclusion. Two of the three articles focused specifically on training to improve outcomes related to workplace injuries among existing employees. The other study provided an initial test of a more general disability diversity training program.
Conclusions
There is currently a lack of empirically validated diversity training programs that focus specifically on disability. A number of disability diversity trainings and resources exist, but none have been well researched. Related literature on diversity training and disability awareness suggests the possibility for enhancing diversity training practices through training design, content, participant, and outcomes considerations. By integrating best practices in workplace diversity training with existing disability training resources, practitioners and researchers may be able to design effective disability diversity training programs.
Seven experiments explore whether organizational diversity initiatives heighten White Americans’ concerns about the respect and value afforded toward their racial group and increase their perceptions ...of anti-White bias. The presence (vs. absence) of organizational diversity initiatives (i.e., diversity awards, diversity training, diversity mission statements) caused White Americans to perceive Whites as less respected and valued than Blacks and to blame a White man’s rejection for a promotion on anti-White bias. Several moderators were tested, including evidence that Whites were clearly advantaged within the organization, that the rejected White candidate was less meritorious than the Black candidate, that promotion opportunities were abundant (vs. scarce), and individual differences related to support for the status hierarchy and identification with Whites. There was little evidence that these moderators reduced Whites’ perceptions of diversity initiatives as harmful to their racial group.
This research tests the hypothesis that the presence (vs. absence) of organizational diversity structures causes high-status group members (Whites, men) to perceive organizations with diversity ...structures as procedurally fairer environments for underrepresented groups (racial minorities, women), even when it is clear that underrepresented groups have been unfairly disadvantaged within these organizations. Furthermore, this illusory sense of fairness derived from the mere presence of diversity structures causes high-status group members to legitimize the status quo by becoming less sensitive to discrimination targeted at underrepresented groups and reacting more harshly toward underrepresented group members who claim discrimination. Six experiments support these hypotheses in designs using 4 types of diversity structures (diversity policies, diversity training, diversity awards, idiosyncratically generated diversity structures from participants' own organizations) among 2 high-status groups in tests involving several types of discrimination (discriminatory promotion practices, adverse impact in hiring, wage discrimination). Implications of these experiments for organizational diversity and employment discrimination law are discussed.
Summary
There is a pressing need for better explanations of diversity training effectiveness so that organizations can administer training programs that facilitate positive intergroup interactions. ...In this paper, we consider the unique predictive effect of organizational identification on diversity training outcomes beyond the effects of the traditional predictors of demographic‐based identities and motivation to learn across two samples of employees involved in diversity‐related training at their employing organizations. Organizational identification predicted unique variance in voluntary participation in diversity training, diversity training‐related knowledge application, motivation to transfer diversity training, and diversity training‐related organizational citizenship behavior intentions. Research and practitioner implications are discussed based on our findings.
By the year 2044, more than half the United States population will be non-white. Extension is faced with the challenge of being inclusive in our multicultural world; thus, it is important that ...Extension educators receive cultural competency training. Cultural competency training based on and informed by intercultural theory and practice leads to increased awareness and knowledge and changes in professional practices. This paper presents qualitative evaluation results to document outcomes of an 18-hour cultural competency training for Extension and outreach professionals. The study focused on two research questions: Does cultural competency training impact professional practice of Extension and outreach professionals? What factors facilitate or inhibit the practice of new interculturally appropriate behaviors? An evaluation protocol was intentionally designed to test participants’ knowledge, skills, and professional practice changes. Previous work showed changes in knowledge and skills at post-training, as well as at six-month follow-up. Our findings in this study reflect that participants did make changes in some significant professional practices. It is possible to provide professionals with the knowledge and skills to make real change in their practices to better serve their communities
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