Effects of Management Support and Rationale on Diversity Training Effectiveness

Despite widespread implementation of diversity training in organizations, few studies have examined the factors that affect training outcomes. We experimentally examined two factors: high versus low management support and proactive (i.e., to promote an appreciation of differences) versus reactive (i.e., in response to complaints of racism) rationale for implementation. After reading a vignette in which support and rationale were manipulated, White participants (recruited via MTurk) completed an online diversity training that emphasized multiculturalism. Participants indicated their reactions by responding to open-ended questions (yet to be coded) and completing measures of multiculturalism, colorblindness, and perceived usefulness. Results indicated that participants endorsed multiculturalism more than colorblindness, which was consistent with the training message. Further, when the training was implemented proactively, greater management support resulted in lower training effectiveness (i.e., lower endorsement of multiculturalism vs. colorblindness) and lower perceived usefulness, whereas when training was implemented reactively, greater management support resulted in greater training effectiveness and greater perceived usefulness. The management support x rationale interaction effect on perceived usefulness was more evident among men. Overall, these results, combined with other work from our lab, suggest that management support may sometimes backfire—perhaps when participants believe they are viewed as part of the problem