Workplace diversity training programs are everywhere, but their effectiveness varies widely

(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Yekaterina Bezrukova, University at Buffalo

(THE CONVERSATION) Despite recent efforts to restrict them, diversity training programs have become as ubiquitous in American offices as the water cooler. They’re everywhere.

But our recent update on the state of diversity training research confirms that these programs have different levels of effectiveness and widely varying results.

In our prior work, published in 2016, we found that diversity training programs strive to foster understanding and appreciation of differences among people. This message, however, was often misunderstood or overlooked in American workplaces.

Alarmed by growing polarization and unequal treatment that have become serious public and social concerns in America and abroad, we updated our prior findings to see what has changed.

We did so because these divisions contribute to toxic relationships, dysfunctional organizations and fragmented societies — the same things diversity training is supposed to address.

Some of the research we studied found that diversity training had a limited positive impact...