Analyzing the Shortcomings and Negative Impacts of Diversity Training

This essay delves into the negative aspects of diversity training programs, highlighting how mandatory participation and ineffective implementation can lead to employee exclusion and increased bias. The essay argues that these programs, often initiated as a response to legal suits rather than being embedded in company culture, may achieve superficial results without addressing deeply ingrained societal biases. The author references several studies that point out the potential for misinterpretation, resistance to change, and even the exacerbation of existing prejudices. The resources cited underscore the importance of trainer characteristics, the impact of training on creativity, and the link between discrimination rates and employee satisfaction, ultimately questioning the overall effectiveness of current diversity training practices. Desklib provides access to similar essays and resources for students seeking a deeper understanding of this topic.

Do We Need Diversity Training Programs (Negative Aspects)
Diversity training programs are designed to assist members of an organization to embrace
diversity in the communities they live and work in to make all members included. Despite
having diversity training programs, some employees still feel excluded implying that these
programs fail to achieve their objectives at least in the short run. Feeling excluded may be as
a result of implicit bias or explicit prejudice.
Diversity training may have adverse impacts on the employees' perceptions if it is mandatory
as the organization seeks to comply with legal requirements. As such, employees are in these
programs not out of their will but because it is a work requirement. As such, the programs are
likely to be dismissed as any other event that doesn't have any deep impacts on the
sociological and cultural perspectives that give rise to biased actions. Furthermore, failure to
conduct the training effectively can do more harm than good. In some cases, some employees
are more inclined to be biased after a training session than before.
At the same time, these training programs seek to address problems that are heavily
embedded in the society's moral fabric. Having a few hours of diversity training may fail to
eliminate the negative practices that have been ingrained in people since they were children.
As such programs may achieve superficial results while the real problem remains hidden
beneath the plastic smiles of inclusivity. It is also possible to have these programs
misinterpreted by the employees. Due to the inherent resistance to change, some employees
may take these programs as a way of influencing certain beliefs. They may, therefore, begin
new ways of expressing their bias which differs from the ways that were pointed out in the
programs.

Resource Details
Holladay, C.L. and Quiñones, M.A., 2008. The influence of training focus and trainer
characteristics on diversity training effectiveness. Academy of Management Learning &
Education, 7(3), pp.343-354. Retrieved from
https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/AMLE.2008.34251672
Key Points
 Trainers influence learning outcomes.
 Trainer characteristics are essential to trainees.
Homan, A.C., Buengeler, C., Eckhoff, R.A., van Ginkel, W.P. and Voelpel, S.C., 2015.
The interplay of diversity training and diversity beliefs on team creativity in nationality
diverse teams. Journal of Applied Psychology, 100(5), p.1456. Retrieved from
http://psycnet.apa.org/record/2015-06080-001
Key Points
 Diversity training impacts more than beliefs.
 Diversity training may have effects on creativity.
King, E.B., Dawson, J.F., Kravitz, D.A. and Gulick, L.M., 2012. A multilevel study of the
relationships between diversity training, ethnic discrimination and satisfaction in
organizations. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 33(1), pp.5-20. Retrieved from
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/job.728
Key Points
 Discrimination rates affect the level of employee satisfaction.
 Employee turnover rates are affected by discrimination.
Kulik, C.T. and Roberson, L., 2008. 8 Diversity initiative effectiveness: What
organizations can (and cannot) expect from diversity recruitment, diversity training, and
formal mentoring programs. Diversity at work, pp.265-317.

Key Points
 Diversity is an essential trait in a workforce.
 A diversity mentality can be developed from the hiring stage.
Summary of the Resource
Most large companies have diversity training programs that are set up as ways to fight
against discrimination in the workplace (Kulik and Roberson, 2008). In these programs,
employees are reminded to respect differences in aspects such as culture and gender. In
many cases, these programs are implemented after legal suits against companies brought
up by employees purporting discrimination in the workplace (Homan et al, 2015). As such,
these programs are not embedded in the company's culture, but they are a knee-jerk
reaction to an unfortunate scenario the firm finds itself in. In some cases, these programs
increased the percentage of white women in management (King, et al., 2012). In many
cases, these programs are aimed at improving the capacity to empower minority groups,
especially African American, Hispanic or non-White women. As such, these programs may
produce the opposite of what they are intended to (Holladay and Quiñones, 2008).
Relevance of the Resource to the Presentation Topic
The References used in this paper are relevant as they are related to diversity training
programs and their shortcomings. These references contain information about cases where
these programs failed to achieve their goals and even where they had negative impacts on
the participants.