Research Considerations for Fostering and Evaluating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives in Organizations

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have each become major topics of discussion in contemporary life. This chapter will focus on how an organization or other interested party could find out whether DEI initiatives are actually effective for improving diversity, equity and inclusion. Specifically, in this chapter, we will begin by exploring the distinction between mechanisms for explaining versus changing diversity, equity, and inclusion. Then, we will lay out the key phases of using that mechanistic knowledge to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion, including diagnosing the problem, developing prospective intervention strategies, testing the intervention, and implementing the intervention. Last, we will conclude by considering the methods available to researchers for evaluating the effects of interventions.