Diversity Research Symposium

Permanent URI for this collection

https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14291/200022

The Diversity Research Symposium (DRS) was co-founded in 2009 by Linh Nguyen Littleford (Associate Professor in the Department of Psychological Science) and Charles R. Payne (former Assistant Provost for Diversity, former Director of the Office of Institutional Diversity, and Professor of Secondary Education), both at Ball State University. The DRS aims to 1) provide an educational environment in which faculty, staff, community members, and students from all disciplines who are interested in cultural diversity issues can learn, interact, share ideas, and network with one another and 2) encourage members of academic institutions to infuse cultural diversity issues into their research, curricula, and professional development.

Organizing and hosting responsibilities are rotated every year among three universities (Ball State University, Indiana State University, and Indiana University Southeast). In selecting the symposium's theme, keynote speakers, and activities, the organizers highlight the diversity-related values and objectives at their respective institutions while achieving the goals of the DRS.

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Recent Submissions

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    Diversity Research Symposium Journal 2014 front matter
    (2016) Littleford, Linh; Alexander, Charlene; Payne, Charles
    Includes cover page, table of contents, introduction, acknowledgements, sponsors, and conference highlights.
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    The More the Obstacles Fall Between Us: An Interactive, Multi-Media Performance to Develop Empathy and Prompt Action
    (2016) Schuette, Allison E.; Wuerffel, Elizabeth T.
    The Welcome Project at Valparaiso University began as a response to demographic shifts on campus and to the tension and conflict that attend the increasing diversity of a previously homogenous culture. Since its inception, we have believed that collecting the stories of those experiencing that tension help us better navigate the conflict. Research in neuroscience, intergroup dialogue, and interactive theater demonstrates the power of empathy and disequilibrium to move people from identification or dis-identification to potential action. In this chapter, we use that research to frame how an interactive, multi-media performance engages participants in empathy and disequilibrium by presenting excerpts from Welcome Project facilitated conversations and audio stories. In watching actors take on a range of reactions to the stories and to each other, participants can test out their own responses against these to make decisions about how best to act in their communities. First performed at the Porter County Museum in Valparaiso, Indiana, the performance has been adapted for conference and classroom settings. Future research includes developing a pre- and post-survey to assess the way our project’s various practices impact participant interest in diversity and willingness to work for inclusion.
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    Recruiting and Retaining LGBT Athletes Lessons from the Population
    (2016) Barbour, Channell L.; Roberts, Gregory; Windover, Rebecca
    This paper explores the experiences of gay and lesbian college student athletes. Participants of the study played at National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I or National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) institutions. All contributors were engaged in an hour to 90 minute interview. They were asked a range of questions regarding their family environments and attitudes, institutional climates, and the process of disclosing their sexuality. The primary research question explored was, What are the experiences of gay and lesbian college student athletes on college campuses? Intentions for the study were to bring awareness to the treatment of gay and lesbian athletes on college campuses, and how they navigated their college surroundings. The submitted chapter provides an outline of implications for athletics and for higher education, overall. Information was collected through resources provide by the NCAA on inclusivity of LGBT student athletes (Morrison, 2012).
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    Implementing A Psychodynamic Approach With South Asian Women
    (2016) Methikalam, Bindu; Sandhu, Simrun Kaur; McClincey, Sneha
    South Asians are a diverse group and South Asian women are a cultural group that has received minimal attention in the psychological literature. The current chapter explores the benefits of using and conceptualizing psychological concerns that might be presented by South Asian women from a psychodynamic perspective. It has been argued that more structured psychotherapies are preferred by such clients. Scholars have argued that psychodynamic psychotherapy is highly applicable to ethnic minorities, particularly immigrants and immigrant, women given their ability to explore the multi-layered meaning of cultural identity (Tummala-Nara 2011). South Asian culture emphasizes interpersonal relationships and embracing familial and cultural history, both of which are core aspects of psychodynamic psychotherapy. Furthermore, psychodynamic psychotherapy addresses the complexity of balancing cultural expectations that are often the source of profound emotional conflicts and are integral to understanding the individual (Roland, 1996). Finally, clinical implications with this population will be discussed.
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