Diversity policies as they are implemented today may not be all they're cracked up to be, according to Harvard Business Review.
These programs and policies for women and minorities are necessary, but can be surprisingly ineffective, according to an HBR post from three women in psychology: Tessa Dover, PhD candidate in social psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara; Cheryl Kaiser, PhD, associate professor of psychology at the University of Washington in Seattle; and Brenda Major, PhD, distinguished professor in the department of psychology and brain sciences at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Here are three reasons why, as presented by HBR.
1. Many policies neither make companies fairer for women and minorities, nor improve representation. According to study cited in the report, diversity training programs had little positive effect and even reduced representation of African American women in the more than 700 U.S. companies studied. Studies also show the existence of discrimination policies can lead to increased dismissal of claims of unfair treatment, according to the report.
2. Such policies are more often used to cover for the companies rather than the women and minorities they seek to address. The authors cite a 2011 Supreme Court case in which Walmart was able to defend itself against allegations of gender discrimination with the existence of a discrimination policy.
3. Studies also show diversity policies can make members of the dominant group — cue the world's tiniest violin — discount unfair treatment, or even feel they are being treated unfairly at the expense of others, according to the report. Despite how backwards this may seem, it does matter. Those who occupy positions of power often come from the dominant group (usually white males) and may have a subconscious negative bias to diversity programs, resulting in resistance to these programs, according to the report.
So, the authors conclude, the solution is not to do away with diversity policies, but to improve them. Companies need to carefully design the programs so they are actually effective in promoting the rights of underrepresented groups and not just for show, and they must carefully craft the policies' message as well as hold employees accountable in order to improve the workplace, the authors write.
Read the full post here.
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