Diversity Training Increases Prejudice and ‘Activates Bigotry’ Among Participants, New Study Says

New Study Finds Diversity Training Can Lead to Increased Prejudice and Activates Bigotry among Participants

February 13, 2024 TruthUSA

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training is controversial, counter-productive, and may even lead to increased prejudice among participants, according to a recent study by Canadian professor, David Haskell. His study, released on Feb. 12 for the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy, challenges the effectiveness of DEI training and calls it a “reality check.”

Haskell’s study points to a growing number of high-profile cases suggesting that diversity workshops and materials promote questionable claims, leading to hostility towards those who challenge DEI claims. The study claims there is often a disconnect between the evidence and the claims made by DEI advocates.

Richard Bilkszto, a Toronto District School Board principal who had challenged DEI claims, took his own life on July 13, 2023, after experiencing harassment following DEI training in 2021, according to his lawyer, Lisa Bildy. The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) confirmed that he had been the subject of “workplace harassment and bullying.”

Haskell’s paper disputes claims that Canada and other Western countries are “systemically racist” and cites colleague Matthew Lau, pointing to evidence showing Asians outperforming the white population in areas such as income, educational attainment, and test scores.

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Haskell’s paper questions the purported positive results of DEI training, arguing that focusing on “implicit bias, white privilege, and micro-aggressions” does not promote harmony and that the effectiveness of DEI instruction is unreliable.

In an annual review of psychology published in 2022, U.S. research psychologists Patricia Devine and Tory Ash criticized the use of “proxy measures for success,” stating that there is insufficient evidence to support the effectiveness of DEI programs.

Several systemic reviews and meta-analyses reviewed by Haskell found insignificant positive results from DEI training.

Neil Macrae and fellow researchers also concluded that efforts to suppress stereotypic thoughts can have a harmful “rebound effect.”

Isolation and Demoralization

Haskell’s study suggests that DEI training can create a sense of “isolation and demoralization” among individuals from the dominant culture, while leading to a “clear double-standard” and fostering a reluctance to engage with minority populations.

Erin Cooley, an associate professor of psychological and brain sciences at Colgate University, found that learning about white privilege reduces sympathy and increases blame for white people struggling with poverty, according to a 2019 paper.

In an interview, Haskell pointed out how Asian success challenges DEI doctrines, influencing school boards to deny the existence of Asians and classify them as white, leading to a “catch-all term for oppressor.” He also highlighted the significant discrepancy in exam scores required for admission to certain institutions.

Haskell argues that whereas the U.S. Supreme Court has struck down racial quotas, Canada’s allowance for discrimination against the majority population has resulted in job postings explicitly promoting reverse or ‘recycled racism.’

In conclusion, Haskell hopes his analysis will encourage institutions to reconsider DEI training, which he believes is being used to destroy existing society.

“We have a real history in the West of snake oil being passed off as scholarship. And this is just another example of that in a long, long line of con games,” Haskell said.

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