Running Head: EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING IN A MULTIGENERATIONAL WORKPLACE

Effects of Diversity Training Programs in Todays Multi-Generational Workplace

Juan Bautista-Cruz
James Madison University

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

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Abstract

This research study aims to explore the effects that diversity training programs have on a
multi-generational organization. The biggest diversity of generations is represented in today's
workplace more than at any other time in history. Furthermore, diversity concerns have had a
great impact on the strategies and practices that organizations are deploying. Multi-generational
organizations are turning to diversity training programs as a means to cope with the workforce
demographic. The population to be examined in this study are the the different generations: Baby
Boomer, Generation Xers, and Generation Y. The proposed study would take place at JMU
because JMU offers diversity training in many of the location of employment. The sampling
technique that will be used is random sampling because this method is meant to be an unbiased
representation of a group. The instrument that will used to gather data is a survey, which will be
sent to the employees. The expected timeframe for the research study from start to completion is
from January 2017-May 2017. The method that I will use to analyze the data collected from the
survey through Google Forms is Excel. The results from the survey and place them in an Excel
sheet, from there, I will run test such as Mean, Medium, Mode, and Standard deviation. In order
to protect the human subject, there will be no deception involved in the study as the participants
will have the full disclose of information describing the purpose of the study.

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

Diversity Training Programs in Todays Multi-Generational Workplace

Introduction
Background
Never before has the U.S. workforce been so diverse and unique. The biggest diversity of
generations is represented in today's workplace than at any other time in history. The mix of race,
gender, ethnicity, and age is substantial. With this diversity comes new challenges, if managed
correctly, diversity can lead to increased creativity, innovation, and performance, (Woodward,
Vongswasdi, & More, 2015). Attaining value from nationality diversity requires
active diversity management, which organizations often employ in the form of
diversity training programs (Homan, Buengeler, Eckhoff, Ginkel, & Voelpel, 2015). Multigenerational organizations are turning to diversity training programs as a means to cope in an
ever changing workforce demographic. Diversity training is a course of instruction aimed at
increasing the participants' cultural awareness, knowledge, and skills but also to protect against
civil rights violations, by increasing the inclusion of different identity groups, and by promoting
better teamwork (Ehrke, Berthold, & Steffens, 2014).
With implementation of diversity training programs and multi-generations in the
workplace, what are the effects of these programs? Specifically, do diversity training programs
serve to bridge the differences amongst different generations in the workforce? Diversity training
can be viewed in two ways: first, similarity attraction, which states that people are attracted to
similar others and diversity training only may therefore relate negatively to individual creativity
because of possible emotional and relational conflict resulting from being different, (Homan, et
al., 2015). This states that diversity training only serves to bring out the differences amongst the
generations. Second, value in diversity, assumes that diverse groups have more relevant

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

information and perspectives available than homogeneous groups (Homan, et al., 2015). Value in
diversity claims that diversity training helps each generation because it provides a
mutigenerational workforce member with an increased range of knowledge and perspectives
from all generations.
Purpose of the study
The purpose of the study is to explore the effects that diversity training programs have on
a multi-generational organization. I am looking to see if there are any correlations to the training
programs, positivity or negative, that affects the performance of the organization. By
understanding the relationship between diversity training and their effects on the multigenerational workplace, organizations are better suited to face the challenges.
Statement of Problem
The significant of the research is that it will allow for a better understanding and/or
clarification of how diversity training programs affect a multi-generational workforce. Moreover,
in order for human capital to contribute to sustainable competitive advantage, it must create
value, remain hard to imitate, and appear rare. Additionally, increasing market share, enhancing
competitiveness, policies, and organizational structure, and bolstering recruitment and retention
of employees, diversity training can contribute to the personal development of employees and
improve their interpersonal communication, (Reynolds, Rahman, & Bradetich, 2014).
While there maybe many reasons as why it is important for organizations to understand
the relationship of diversity training programs and that of the different generations. Perhaps the
most important issue is about the benefits that organizations gain from employees performance
when they work collectively. Given this reason, there are two important factors for organizations
to have training programs that are effective in helping a diverse workforce to work together.

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

First, customers are changing, meaning that companys now reach out to a more diverse audience
then ever before, it is important for their customers to connect with the employees. Second, it is
important to understand the effects of the training programs that organizations are currently using
as this affects the overall performance of the organization (Kalinoski, Steele-Johnson, Peyton,
Leas, Steinke, & Bowling, 2013). Does the training help to establish a relationship amongst a
multi-generational workforce? Or does the training offer little to the organization?
Research questions

Does diversity training affect the performance of the organization?

How the diversity training affects the organization? Positive or negative?

Does diversity training affect how different generations view each other?

Research Significance & Research Gap

The significant of the research is that it will allow for a better understanding and/or
clarification of how diversity training programs affect a multi-generational workforce. Moreover,
in order for human capital to contribute to sustainable competitive advantage, it must create
value, remain hard to imitate, and appear rare. Additionally, increasing market share, enhancing
competitiveness, policies, and organizational structure, and bolstering recruitment and retention
of employees, diversity training can contribute to the personal development of employees and
improve their interpersonal communication, (Reynolds, Rahman, & Bradetich, 2014).
While there is countless research in existence about diversity training programs that
organizations are using, there is not one that specifically focuses on the effects that these training
programs may have different generations in the workforce, specifically, on baby boomers,
generation Xers, and generation Y.

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

Definitions of terms

Workforce Diversity

Generation

Baby Boomer

The ways that people differ which can

affect a task or relationship within an
organization such as age, gender, race,
education, religion, and culture, (Pitts &
Wise, 2010).
A group of people born and raised in the
same general chronological, social and
historical context, (Zopiatis, KrambiaKapardis, & Varnavas, 2012)
Born between 1946 and 1964,
approximately 76 million
workers; (Hillman, 2014).

Generation Xers

Born between 1964 and 1980,

approximately 50 million workers,
(Hillman, 2014).

Generation Y

born between 1980 and 2000,

approximately 80 million workers,
(Hillman, 2014).

Diversity Training

People who bring a variety of

backgrounds, styles, perspectives, values
and beliefs as assets to the groups and
organizations with which they interact,
(Peretz, Levi, & Fried, 2015).

Brief overview of the study

The purpose of the study is to explore the effects that diversity training programs have on
a multi-generational organization. I plan to gather data from James Madison University
employees as many of the department offers diversity training programs. The survey, which is
the instrument that will be used, will be distributed via e-mail to the participants. Participation in
the survey will be anonymous and completely voluntary. The results will help determine how
does does, if at all, diversity training programs affect the different generations in the workplace.

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

Conceptual Framework
The conceptual framework illustrates the three main factors that I would like to
investigate in order to understand the relationship, if any exist between the type of training
programs that organizations use within a diverse workforce. As shown in the conceptual
framework below, diversity training affects all aspects of an organization.

Diversity Framework

Multigeneration
s

Effects
of
Diversi
ty
Trainin
g
Diversity
Training

Organizatio
ns

Theoretical Framework
Social Cognitive Theory provides a framework for understanding employees process of
knowing, including both awareness of and judgment of diversity and its benefits, and how both
act together to produce behavior, (Long, 2016). Specifically, social cognitive theory suggests that
an individual learns attitudes by observing the behaviors of others and modeling or imitating

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

them. The social interaction that the employees have with each other and how they perceive each
other affects their perception of diversity. Since the research question is how does diversity
training affect the perception, attitude, of the employees in the workplace with the three different
generations working together, social cognitive theory works to provide an understanding of how
people learn and feel about diversity training.

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Literature Review
The literature reviews to follow is organized by the theme: diverse workforce, diversity
training programs, and what kinds of effects, if any, does diversity training have on a
multigenerational workforce. Each theme is sub-divided by the components that make them up.
The literature included are peer reviewed, scholarly articles that were found using the research
database ERIC, Ebsscohost, and Google Scholarly. The search words and combinations used to
find the articles are as follows: Diversity in the workplace, Training Programs and diversity,
Generational Gap, and effects of diversity training.
Diversity Workforce
The increased diversity in the U.S. workforce presents both a challenge and an
opportunity for organizations. Organizations depend on employees to effectively interact
with people who are different from themselves (Lindsey, King, Hebl, & Levine, 2015). A
workforce that is considered diverse is one that is made up of individuals with a wide range
of characteristics and experiences. Some of the key characteristics of workforce diversity
include race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, ability, and sexual orientation. Each generational
cohort has different characteristic that represent them. It is best to understand that their
distinctive characteristic was shape by demographics trends, cultural phenomena, and many
more (Ahmad & Ibrahim, 2015).

Baby Boomer
Baby boomers are people born approximately between the years 1946 and 1964.
This includes people who are between 51 and 70 years old in 2016. Boomers are described as
work-centric, independent, goal-oriented, and competitive, typically equating their work and

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positions with self-worth (Hillman, 2014). In the workforce, Boomers typical beliefs in
hierarchical structure and rankings have resulted in many of them having earned significant
positions of responsibility and authority (Wiedmer, 2015).
Generation Xers
Generation Xers are the generation born after the Western Post-World War II
Baby Boom; birth dates range from 1961-1981, and current ages range from 34 to 54,
(Wiedmer, 2015). Gen Xers are engaging in financial planning, avoiding broken homes, and
ensuring that children grow up with a parent available. Generation Xers are described as
geeks, independent thinkers, and artists who prefer to be fast-paced, engaged in interesting
work, and efficient because they value their personal time and enjoy working on self-directed
or independent projects (Zopiatis, Krambia-Kapardis, & Varnavas, 2012).
Generation Y
People who were born born during the 1980s and early 1990s are consider
generation Y. This generation expects more supervision and feedback, clear goals, structure.
Gen Y are attracted to companies and businesses that embrace technological advancements
that have changed the way of doing business globally. Furthermore, this generation are
typically more tech savvy then previous generations. As of result, they prefer to communicate
through e-mail and text messaging instead of face-to-face and opt for webinars and online
technology instead of traditional, lecture-based presentations (Zopiatis et cl., 2012).
Diversity Training
The most common response by organizations to this substantial change has been to
institute diversity training programs. Diversity training can be defined as any program
designed to facilitate positive intergroup interaction, reduce prejudice and discrimination, and

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generally teach dissimilar others how to work together effectively (Lindsay, et al., 2015). The
purpose of diversity training is not only to increase awareness of workplace diversity, but
also to develop and enhance skills among employees to help them communicate more
effectivity in the future. But for the purpose of this study, diversity training, the researcher
seeks to understand, if any, the effects of diversity training between among the different
generations, (Baby Boomer, Generation Xers, and Generation Y). Diversity training is a
fundamental component of a diversity initiative and represents the opportunity for
organizations to inform and educate employees about diversity. The variables to included in
training programs: Age, gender, ethnicity, and ability.
Age
A variety of age groups can be represented within a single company. From older,
more experienced staff, to middle-aged staff, to recent college graduates or even teens, each
generation has its own unique attributes (Taylor, Mcloughlin, Meyer, & Brooke, 2013). Mix
age groups in your business wisely; while each group lends distinct strengths to an
organization, mixing groups too liberally can end up hindering productivity due to a lack of
cohesion among the staff.
Gender
According to Zopiatis, et al., (2012), the main issues with gender diversity stem
from psychological factors; people can find it difficult to break their preconceived beliefs
about the strengths and weaknesses of the opposite gender. Furthermore, gender diversity is
when a company is represented by a more equal of men and women. Further more gender
diversity has expanded to include the LGBT community, which
Ethnic

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Ethnicity is a category of people who identify with each other based on common
language, ancestral, social, cultural, or national experiences (Granquist, 2014). Ethic
diversity can cause challenges in socialization due to differing experiences, ideals and
psychological identities, but ethnic differences have no bearing on an individuals personal
competencies, (Proctor, & Simpson, 2016).
Abilities
Although it is undeniable that certain physical or mental impairments do
necessarily exclude people from performing certain tasks, each disabled individual can still
perform a wide range of other tasks, often much more effectively than their co-workers.
Employees with disabilities struggle against much the same issues as women in the
workplace: namely the psychological preconceptions of their co-workers, (Zopiatis, et al.,
2012).
Effects
Indeed, recent research has demonstrated that diversity training methods, if not framed
appropriately, can actually lead to increases in both implicit and explicit expressions of
prejudice. Individual differences in responsiveness to training may be particularly relevant in the
case of diversity training, given that reactions to such training vary substantially

Method

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I will be using quantitative method to conduct research about diversity training programs
in a multi-generational workforce. More specifically, to explore the affects of diversity training
on different generations. I propose a quantitative approach for this research because this method
will allow me to ask people for their opinions in a structured way (Hernndez, 2015). The goal of
my research is to see how diversity training affect different generations in the workplace,
specifically, what does it affect the employees after taking the survey.
The way in which this methodology paper will be organized is: 1) The research questions
will be restated. 2) Description of the sample will be discussed such as demographic and
background. 3)This will be followed by data collection instrument and procedures. 4) Data
analysis method and discussion of internal and external validity, reliability, generalizability, and
limitations along with justifications of techniques. 5) The paper will conclude with the talk about
human subjects.
Research Design
The goal of my research is to see how diversity training affect different generations in the
workplace, specifically, what does it affect the employees after taking the survey. The reason as
to why quantitative approach works for my research is that I will be focusing in on how diversity
training affects the people working in the organizations. Quantitative method will enable me to
attain hard facts and statistics to find out if there are correlations between diversity training and
the different generations in in the JMU organization (Department). Do diversity training
programs (Independent Variable) serve to bridge the differences amongst different generations
(dependent variable) in the workforce? Furthermore, quantitative approaches the determination

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of likely correlation among two or more phenomena or the recognition of the distinctness of an
observed phenomenon (Fraenkel, Wallen, & Hyun, 2015).
The reason as to why I selected the method for this research is because is will allow me to
measure the attitude of the employees, more specifically, how they feel about the diversity
training program. In measuring the attitude of the employees, I can use that information to
determine what effects does the training program have on the different generations. I can sort
how the training program affects different generations because I will include a section in the
beginning that will have them pick their generation. Another reason why I picked this method,
survey, because it allows for the participants to remain anonymous, which is a strength of the
research.
Sample and Population
The population to be examined in this study are the the different generations: Baby
Boomer, Generation Xers, and Generation Y. The proposed study would take place at JMU
because JMU offers diversity training in many of the location of employment. Baby boomers are
work-centric, meaning that they are extremely hardworking and motivated by position, perks and
prestige. Furthermore, they are goal-oriented and very competitive. Generation Xers are more
technological adept because they are the first generation to grow up with computers, technology
is woven into their lives. Generation Y are more tech-savvy and many times relay on them to
perform their jobs better.
The sampling technique that will be used is random sampling, is a subset of a statistical
population in which each member of the subset has an equal probability of being chosen

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(Bhamidi, Hannig, Lee, & Nolen, 2013). The reason as to why it would be considered random is
because even though I will select the organization, the individual will be random. I will send out
the surveys to them and I am not going to have control over who chooses to participate.
Moreover, a simple random sample is meant to be an unbiased representation of a group.
Instrumentation
The method that I will use to analyze the data collected from the survey through Google
Forms is Excel. Once I have the questionnaire uploaded into google forms, a link will be created
that I will then send out to the chosen participants. The survey forms will be structured as
follows: first, an introductory statement will be included with the survey which briefly
summarizes the survey's purpose and addresses confidentiality. Second, directions will be
explained to the participants that will address how answers should be indicated. Third,
participants will be asked to circle their generational cohort (Baby Boom Generation: born
between 1943 and 1960, Generation Xers: born between 1961 and 1981, and Generation Y: born
after 1982). Lastly, the questions will follow. The way in which that data will be analyzed will be
explained under the section Description of the data analysis.
The Society for Human Resource Management developed the survey instrument with an
internal committee of SHRM staff and HR expertise also provided valuable insight and
recommendations for the instrument. The survey explored advantages and disadvantages that HR
professionals observe due to an intergenerational workforce. While the survey has 43 questions, I
am only going to use 15 question that will be adaptive and catered specifically to the
participants experience at James Madison University. They suggest to mail the participants the
information and have the participants to mail back completed forms.

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Reliability and validity of the research design are essential to the success of this study.
Given this fact, I will look to minimize any concerns that may cause the instrument being used to
be questioned. As mentioned, the instrument that I will be using to collect data is a questionnaire
in a form of a survey that is focused on the attitude of the employees. Surveys are the best
method for the research as it allows for more anonymous amongst the members. By having the
survey be anonymous, I anticipate that the responses will be an accurate reflection of the how the
employees feel about diversity training programs. This is important as the whole purpose of the
study is to find out the affects that diversity training programs have in a multi-generational
workforce.
Validity which refers to the appropriateness, meaningfulness, correctness, and usefulness
of the inferences a researcher makes (Fraenkel, et cl., 2015). In other words, the extent to which
an instrument measures what it is supposed to measure and performs as it is designed to perform.
The way in which I will ensure validity in the research is by using an instrument that has been
development by a trusted source, Society for Human Resource Management which was retrieved
at www.shrm.org/research. Moreover, I will use content-related evidence as another means to
ensure validity, which allow for me to ask an expert about the questionnaire and get feedback
about the instrument. In this case, the expert would be considered the professor, I will seek her
feedback about the instrument and adjust/change it as needed.
Furthermore, to ensure reliability, which refers to the consistency of the scores obtained
(Fraenkel, et cl., 2015), my top choice would be to administer the survey twice. This will allow
for me to be able to compare the results against each other. But seeing as this may not be feasible
because of time constrain, using internal consistency reliability can increase reliability. Internal

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consistency reliability refers is a measure of how well the items on the test measure the same
construct or idea (Cleary, Skornyakov, 2014). In order to do this, all terms will be defined and all
questions will be analyzed and outliners will be thrown out.
Procedures
The time frame for the study will be as follows:

Phase

Timeframe

Phase 1:

Fall semester of 2016

Identify organization that is considered a

multigenerational workforce.
Phase 2: Develop and submit the IRB
application

Fall semester of 2016

Phase 3: Send out survey

Spring Semester of 2017 (January)

Phase 4: collect survey

2-3 weeks (February)

Phase 5: Analyze

Interpret the results

The data collection procedure will be as follows:

1) Use questionnaire from SHRM.
2) Upload questions into Google Forms.
3) Send surveys out to the target audience.
4) Will allow 2-3 weeks for response.

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5) Collect and analyze data.

Threats
Morality, location, and employee attitude all pose a threat to this study. Morality, which
refers to the loss of the subject, may occurs as some employees may be absent from work during
the collection of data or fail to complete questionnaire. As Fraenkel (2015) stated, loss of subject
can introduce bias-if those subjects who are lost would have responded differently from those
from whom data were obtain. Moreover, once a subject drops out of the study, there is no way of
ensuring that the next participant can make up for the loss even of selected at random.
Furthermore, the employees at James Madison University play a critical role in this study and
their input in important for the success of this research.
Location is critical when conducting research as this may create alternative explanation
for the way in which the employees respond. For example, if the organization/department that
the employees work in has an environment that fosters diversity, they most likely would respond
as having a positive outcome as of result of the diversity training on the survey. Moreover, the
same can be said about an employee who feels that the department/organization that they are
working for is not very diverse. In both of these cases, the employees response is based on the
environment (location) that they are working in, not about the training program.
The attitude of the employees is another threat to the study. The way that employees view
themselves in this study and their role or in this case, their generation, in the survey, will affect
their response to the questions. For instance, employees who feel that they are part of the study
may respond as having a positive outcome as of result of the training program because they may

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feel that in doing so, they will receive special treatment. This may lead to data inaccurate as their
response will not reflect how they feel about the diversity training program.
Protection of Human Subjects
In order to protect the participants involved in my research study, the first step is to
complete the certification required by the Institutional Review Board (IRB), which I have
completed. Furthermore, in order to actually conduct the research, I will have to receive approval
from James Madison Universitys Institutional Review Board (IRB). The IRB committee
provides oversight to research conducted at James Madison University and ensures that no harm
comes to the participants in the study (http://www.jmu.edu/researchintegrity/irb/). Another way
that I will provide protection of the human subject is that there will be no deception involved in
the study as the participants will have the full disclose of information describing the purpose of
the study. Additionally, a disclaimer will be provided to the participants which will inform that
participating in the survey is completely voluntary and if they choose to partake in the research,
there identify will be anonymous. Lastly, all surveys will be kept in Google drive and in an USB
file, once the research has been complete, the information will be discarded.

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Data Analysis
As mentioned earlier, the tool that I will be using to gather the data is Google Forms,
which is a tool that is part of Google Drive for creating surveys, tests, or web input forms. By
using this tool, I will be able to import the data directly into Excel Spreadsheet. Additionally,
one of the questions on the survey will involve the participants to identify their generation
cohort, I will be able to separate the generations and place them into generational category. By
placing the generations into categories, I am able to use ordinal measurement, ordinal categorical
data can be ranked (Bettany-Saltikov, & Whittaker, 2014). Furthermore, using the rating scale of
1-5, the participants to rate how they feel about the diversity training. Table 2 below shows the
scale:
Table 2.
Scale

Response

Strongly Disagree

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

Disagree

Natural

Agree

Strongly Agree

21

Interpretation:
I will take the scores reported (the results) on the survey and place them in an Excel
sheet, from there, I will run test such as Mean, Medium, Mode, and Standard deviation. Once I
have the numbers, I will use those numbers and apply it the measurement below. By using the
level, I will be able to apply the results from the Excel and place them into one of the levels.

Level 1: Our program is just beginning to work in this area and has an urgent need to
address this practice. Our program can be much better at this than we are currently.

Level 2: Our program has done some work in this area but will need targeted support to
move to the next level. Our program is making progress, but can improve further.

Level 3: Our program has achieved a high level of proficiency in this area and needs only
a little additional work to be exceptionally proficient. Our program is very good at this
practice.

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Level 4: Our program is exceptionally proficient in this practice and can demonstrate this
in observable ways. This is an area of quality practice where our program can serve as an
example for others.

Standards retrieved: http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/diversity

Conclusion & Limitations

The purpose of training is to disseminate information to inform employees of the
organizations strategy and expectations, which in this research, is diversity training. Training to
create change can be divided further into awareness and skill training. The instrument used
during the testing process can change the results as well. This ties back to participants knowing

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about the study and as of result, become more concentrated or primed, or having unconsciously
changed the criteria they use to make judgments. Furthermore, the most important limitation is
the actual training that the employees took, there are two types of diversity training, diversity
training can be described within two broad categories: training designed to disseminate
information and training designed to create behavioral change (Peretz, Levi, & Fried, 2015).
Another limitation of the research is researcher bias, which is a form of response bias that
occurs whenever there is a flaw in a survey's research design (Stauffer, Pai, 2015). This is one of
the biggest bias that I because I have done diversity training and did not have a good experience
with it. The training did nothing as far as providing additional knowledge of diversity for the
company that I work for. The way that I will ensure that the questionnaires remain as bias free as
possible is making the participants response anonymous.
Overall, the research methodology that I propose will allow for me to gather authentic
information about how diversity training programs affect baby boomers, generation Xers, and
generation Y. The ranking scale will allow for me to measure how each generation feels about the
training. As stated earlier, by having the participants identify their generation, I will be able to
separate them into their respective age groups

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doi:10.1080/15555240.2014.933961
Homan, A. C., Buengeler, C., Eckhoff, R. A., van Ginkel, W. P., & Voelpel, S. C. (2015). The
interplay of diversity training and diversity beliefs on team creativity in nationality

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

26

diverse teams. Journal Of Applied Psychology, 100(5), 1456-1467.

doi:10.1037/apl0000013
IRB Mission Statement. Retrieved from: http://www.jmu.edu/researchintegrity/irb/
Kalinoski, Z. T., Steele-Johnson, D., Peyton, E. J., Leas, K. A., Steinke, J., & Bowling, N. A.
(2013). A meta-analytic evaluation of diversity training outcomes. Journal Of
Organizational Behavior, 34(8), 1076-1104. doi:10.1002/job.1839
Lindsey, A., King, E., Hebl, M., & Levine, N. (2015). The Impact of Method, Motivation, and
Empathy on Diversity Training Effectiveness. Journal Of Business &
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Long, C. (2016). A social cognitive account of relational work. Journal Of Politeness Research:
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Pitts, D. W., and L. R. Wise. (2010). Workforce diversity in the new millennium: Prospects for
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Proctor, S. L., & Simpson, C. (2016). Improving service delivery to ethnic and racial minority
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doi:10.1177/1467358412466668

Appendix A
James Madison University

Human Research Review Request

FOR IRB USE ONLY:
Exempt:
Protocol Number:
Expedited
:
Full
Board:

2nd Review:

IRB:
Received:

Project Title:
Project Dates:

1st Review:

rd

Reviewer:
Reviewer:

Review:

An investigation of the effects of Diversity Training

Programs in Todays Multi-Generational Workplace
From:
01/08/17

To: 05/09/17

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

MM/DD/YY

(Not to exceed 1 year

minus 1 day)

Minimum # of
Participants:
Maximum # of
Participants:

29
MM/DD/YY

100
250

External Funding:

Yes:

No: X

Internal Funding:

Yes:

No: X

If yes, Sponsor:
Will monetary incentives be offered with funding? Yes:

No: X

If yes: How much per recipient? In what form?

Must follow JMU Financial
Policy:

Responsible
Researcher(s):
E-mail Address:
Telephone:
Department:
Address (MSC):

http://www.jmu.edu/finprocedures/4000/4205.shtml#_Toc460225002
Juan Bautista-Cruz
bautisjx@dukes.jmu.edu
(540)560-7603
Adult Education/Human Resource Development
6913
Faculty
Undergraduate Student
Administrator/Staff Member
X Graduate Student

Please Select:
(if Applicable):
Research Advisor:
E-mail Address:
Telephone:
Department:
Address (MSC):

Investigator: Please respond to the questions below.

responses to evaluate your protocol submission.
1. X YES

The IRB will utilize your

NO Does the James Madison University Institutional Review Board define the
project as research?

The James Madison University IRB defines "research" as a "systematic investigation designed to develop or
contribute to generalizable knowledge. All research involving human participants conducted by James
Madison University faculty and staff and students is subject to IRB review.

2. X YES

NO Are the human participants in your study living individuals?

Individuals whose physiologic or behavioral characteristics and responses are the object of study in a research
project. Under the federal regulations, human subjects are defined as: living individual(s) about whom an
investigator conducting research obtains:
(1) data through intervention or interaction with the individual; or (2) identifiable private information.

3.

X YES

NO Will you obtain data through intervention or interaction with these

individuals?

Intervention includes both physical procedures by which data are gathered (e.g., measurement of heart rate or
venipuncture) and manipulations of the participant or the participant's environment that are performed for
research purposes. Interaction includes communication or interpersonal contact between the investigator and
participant (e.g., surveying or interviewing).

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

4.

YES X NO

30

Will you obtain identifiable private information about these

individuals?

"Private information" includes information about behavior that occurs in a context in which an individual can
reasonably expect that no observation or recording is taking place, or information provided for specific purposes
which the individual can reasonably expect will not be made public (e.g., a medical record or student record).
"Identifiable" means that the identity of the participant may be ascertained by the investigator or associated with
the information (e.g., by name, code number, pattern of answers, etc.).

5.

YES X NO Does the study present more than minimal risk to the participants?
"Minimal risk" means that the risks of harm or discomfort anticipated in the proposed research are not greater,
considering probability and magnitude, than those ordinarily encountered in daily life or during performance of
routine physical or psychological examinations or tests. Note that the concept of risk goes beyond physical risk
and includes psychological, emotional, or behavioral risk as well as risks to employability, economic well being,
social standing, and risks of civil and criminal liability.

CERTIFICATIONS:
For James Madison University to obtain a Federal Wide Assurance (FWA) with the Office of Human Research Protection (OHRP), U.S.
Department of Health & Human Services, all research staff working with human participants must sign this form and receive training in
ethical guidelines and regulations. "Research staff" is defined as persons who have direct and substantive involvement in proposing,
performing, reviewing, or reporting research and includes students fulfilling these roles as well as their faculty advisors. The Office of
Research Integrity maintains a roster of all researchers who have completed training within the past three years.

Test module at ORI website

http://www.jmu.edu/researchintegrity/irb/irbtraining.shtml
Name of Researcher(s)
Juan Bautista-Cruz

Training Completion Date

11/13/14

For additional training interests, or to access a Spanish version, visit the National Institutes of Health Protecting
Human Research Participants (PHRP) Course at: http://phrp.nihtraining.com/users/login.php.
By signing below, the Responsible Researcher(s), and the Faculty Advisor (if applicable), certifies that
he/she is familiar with the ethical guidelines and regulations regarding the protection of human research
participants from research risks. In addition, he/she agrees to abide by all sponsor and university
policies and procedures in conducting the research. He/she further certifies that he/she has completed
training regarding human participant research ethics within the last three years.

_________________________________________
Principal Investigator Signature

________________
Date

_________________________________________
Principal Investigator Signature

________________
Date

_________________________________________
Principal Investigator Signature

________________
Date

_________________________________________
Faculty Advisor Signature

________________
Date

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

31

Submit an electronic version of your ENTIRE protocol to researchintegrity@jmu.edu.

Provide a SIGNED hard copy of the Research Review Request Form to:
Office of Research Integrity, MSC 5738,
601 University Boulevard,
Blue Ridge Hall, Third Floor, Room # 344

Purpose and Objectives

The purpose of the study is to explore the effects that diversity training programs have on a
multi-generational organization. Attaining value from nationality diversity requires
active diversity management, which organizations often employ in the form of
diversity training programs. There is minimal research on how does the training affects a multigenerational workforce, more specifically, the baby boomers, generation Xers, and generation Y.
The goal of this research is to see how diversity training affect different generations in the

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

32

workplace, specifically, what does it affect the employees after taking the training. The objective
it to determine what effects does diversity training program have an on generations mentioned
above in the workplace. The research questions are shown below:
Does diversity training affect the performance of the organization?
How the diversity training affects the organization? Positive or negative?
Does diversity training affect how different generations view each other?

Procedures/Research Design/Methodology/Timeframe
The time frame of this study ranges from the time of pending IRB approval through May
9, 2017. It is anticipated that the research will begin no later than December 6, 2016, so as to
ensure participants have sufficient amount of time to response and the researcher time to
analyze the data.
The participant sample will be composed of employees at JMU. The sample size will be
no less 100 participants (minimum) and no more than 250 (maximum) to ensure that
sufficient power exists to detect statistical relationships between training programs
(independent variable) and bridge the differences amongst different generations (dependent
variable) in the workforce? Diversity training can be defined as any program designed to
facilitate positive intergroup interaction, reduce prejudice and discrimination, and generally
teach dissimilar others how to work together effectively.
This research will be conducted at the completion of the fall 2016 semester through the
implementation of an anonymous, web-based Google Form survey distributed to the faculty
employed at JMU via e-mail. It is anticipated that the survey should take ten to 15 minutes
to complete. The email will include a consent form with a cover letter requesting voluntary
consent to participate in the survey, as well as a direct link to the Google survey.
Describe the design and methodology, including all statistics, IN DETAIL.
What exactly will be done to the subjects? (Emphasize possible risks and
protection of subjects)
The research will be survey-based, and the surveys will be
administered to the employees at James Madison University via e-mail.
Completion of the survey will be voluntary and participant responses will
be completely anonymous. Participants can withdraw at any time during
the surveying process without consequences of any kind. However, once
participant responses have been collected and have been anonymously
combined with other participant responses to form the aggregate data set
(see data analysis below), participants cannot withdraw from the study.
The survey (see attached) includes no items that require participants to
provide their name, id number, or any other identifying information; thus
ensuring complete confidentiality and anonymity and very low risk to all
participants. The surveys will be distributed via e-mail surveys. After

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

33

faculty have completed the surveys, information will be collected and kept
on Google Forms. The completed surveys will be destroyed when the
research project is completed.

Will data be collected from any of the following populations?

Minors (under 18 years of age); Specify Age:
Prisoners
Pregnant Women
Fetuses
Cognitively impaired persons
Other protected or potentially vulnerable population
X___ Not Applicable
Where will research be conducted? (Be specific; if research is being conducted
off of JMUs campus a site letter of permission will be needed)
All research will be conducted at James Madison University. Surveys will be
administered via e-mail to the employees James Madison University.

Will deception be used? If yes, provide the rationale for the deception:
No deception will be used in this study.
What is the time frame of the study? (List the dates you plan on collecting
data. This cannot be more than a year, and you cannot start conducting
research until you get IRB approval)
The study will conclude by May 10, 2017. Data collection will begin when
IRB approval is granted, but
it is anticipated it will begin January 09,
2017, and conclude by May 10, 2017.

Data Analysis
What methodology will be taken to ensure the confidentiality of the data
(i.e., how and where data will be stored/secured, how data will be
analyzed, who will have access to data, and what will happen to data after
the study is completed?)
Data will be stored and analyzed within Google Forms, the online survey instrument
being utilized for this research project. The survey being issued will be anonymous, in that there
will be no identifying information attached to any of the research questions being asked, thus

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

34

ensuring participant anonymity. The researcher will not be present while the survey is being
completed. Once the on-line surveys are collected, the surveys will be reviewed for data
completeness. The data on each survey will then be entered by the researcher into an Excel
spreadsheet to form an aggregated data set. The aggregated data set will be used to perform
statistical analysis utilizing the advanced statistics functions (correlation) of Excel. Only the
researcher will have access to the aggregated data set. After the research project is completed,
the researcher will delete and destroy all files containing the aggregated data set.
Reporting Procedures
Who is the audience to be reached in the report of the study?
The audience to be reached in the report of this study is the
researchers committee members, which consists of three graduate
faculty members within the AHRD/LTLE graduate school
How will you present the results of the research? (If submitting as exempt,
research cannot be published or publicly presented outside of the
classroom)
The results of this research will be presented to a Research Review Committee in a formalized
classroom to the committee members listed above through a defense of the research and the
resulting findings.
How will feedback be provided to subjects?
Within the consent form contained in the email being sent to the survey participants, the
researchers email address will be printed, so as to allow the participants to contact the researcher
with feedback, questions or concerns regarding the study, as well as to give them the opportunity
to learn about the results of the study, if they choose to inquire.

Experience of the Researcher (and advisor, if student):

What is the prior relevant experience of the researcher, advisor, and/or
consultants?

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

35

Cover letter (Used in Anonymous Research)

Identification of Investigators & Purpose of Study
You are being asked to participate in a research study conducted by Juan Bautista-Cruz from
James Madison University. The purpose of the study is to explore the effects that diversity
training programs have on a multi-generational organization. By understanding the relationship
between diversity training and their effects on the multi-generational workplace, organizations
are better suited to face the challenges. This study will contribute to the researchers completion
of his masters research in the Adult Education/Human Resource Development program.
Research Procedures
This study consists of an online survey that will be administered to individual participants using
Google Forms. You will be asked to provide answers to a series of questions related to the
diversity training program that your organization offers.
Time Required
Participation in this study will require 10-15 minutes of your time.
Risk
The investigator does not perceive more than minimal risks from your involvement in this study
(that is, no risks beyond the risks associated with everyday life).
Benefits
There are no explicit benefits to be realized from participation in this study. However, this study
will help the researcher to better understand the impact the independent variables have on the
dependent variable.
Confidentiality
The results of this research will be presented to a Research Review Committee comprised of
faculty members from the College of Education. While individual responses are obtained and
recorded anonymously and kept in the strictest confidence, aggregate data will be presented
representing averages or generalizations about the responses as a whole. No identifiable
information will be collected from the participant and no identifiable responses will be presented
in the final form of this study. All data will be stored in a secure location accessible only to the
researcher. The researcher retains the right to use and publish non-identifiable data. At the end of
the study, all records will be destroyed.
Participation & Withdrawal
Your participation is entirely voluntary. You are free to choose not to participate. Should you
choose to participate, you can withdraw at any time without consequences of any kind.
However, once your responses have been submitted and anonymously recorded you will not be
able to withdraw from the study.

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

36

Question about the Study

If you have questions or concerns during the time of your participation in this study, or after its
completion or you would like to receive a copy of the final aggregate results of this study, please
contact:
Juan Bautista-Cruz
Adult Education/Human Resource development
James Madison University
bautisjx@dukes.jmu.edu
Questions about Your Rights as a Research Subject
Giving of Consent
I have read this cover letter and I understand what is being requested of me as a participant in
this study. I freely consent to participate. I have been given satisfactory answers to my questions.
I certify that I am at least 18 years of age.
_________________
Name of Researcher (Printed)
_________________
Name of Researcher (Signed)

EFFECTS OF DIVERSITY TRAINING

37
APPENDIX B

The purpose of the study is to explore the effects that diversity training programs have on a
multi-generational organization. The goal of my research is to see how diversity training affect
different generations in the workplace, specifically, what does it affect the employees after taking
the training.
Disclaimer:
Participation in the survey is on a voluntary basis and all answers will be kept strictly
confidential. Please do not place your name on the survey.
Year of Birth: Pick one.
1943 1960
1961 - 1981
1982 2005
Instructions: Below are a number of statements about you with which you may agree or
disagree. Using the response scale below, indicate your agreement or disagreement with each
item by placing the appropriate number on the line preceding that item.
1
2
3
4
5
Strongly Agree
Disagree
Neutral
Agree
Strongly Agree
1) ______ Being in a diverse environment is stressful for me.
2)
3)
4)
5)

_______
_______
_______
_______

I
I
I
I

have an appreciation for diversity.

feel that diversity leads to harmony.
believe that diversity gets too much attention.
feel diversity training leads to positive outcomes.

6) _______ I feel that diversity training is a waste of time.

7) _______ I have found that the diversity training provided by the
organization/department is useful to me.
8) _______ I am able to resolve difficult situations without relaying on
stereotypes.
9) _______ I am comfortable working with people that are different from
me.
10)
_______ As of result from the diversity training, I am better equip
to work with different generations.
Thanks for your participation!