Tag: plan

Research Plan: Tim

What question is guiding your research?

The main question that I am focusing on for my research is why there is a lack of observable diversity in the field of historical education, both the educators themselves and the content taught in classes. My research will look into how historical education and the employment of ethnic minorities in said field will change based on current information.

Why this question?

There are a few reasons I picked this specific topic, given that I am very interested in the field of history and have already begun creating content which aim to increase general interest in this field and expand the availability of niche parts of history to a larger audience through media. And having experience attending both secondary school and university-level courses related to historical education, I realized that the representation of minorities in that field is not very visible and that there needs to be an improvement in the diversity of topics (especially related to history outside of the West, e.g. Africa, Asia and Oceania).

How will your professional/internship/organizational/course work inform your inquiry?

Certainly my experience within the field of history allowed me to see for myself the lack of ethnic minorities within the field. Although I have spent most of my life in Hong Kong and it is only natural that most of the other students are of Chinese descent, but it was during my trip to Virginia for an international history bowl competition where I discovered that the vast majority of participants in the US were white, and not indicative of the statistics of the ethnic makeup of the country. While I am not blaming academia or anyone for this reality, I do hope that more of the ethnic minority population of the states can become interested in the wider scale of history, and not be limited by the narrative of a nationalistic viewpoint that began in 1776.

What fields matter most in your inquiry?

Almost definitely the field of history. However, I will also like to look into fields related to that such as archeology and museum studies. In a wider view of things, I will also like to touch upon the diversity of educators in academia since it will certainly be related to my area of interest.

Research Plan

“How can a workplace be more inclusive of and equitable to Black workers?” I started thinking about this as a research question for a myriad of reasons, one of which included my interest in the work Dylan and Edward did on the roles company leadership plays in workplace diversity and inclusion practices. This question also connects to me personally, not only because I am a Black woman who works, but I am a union representative who is in a position to advocate for people in the workplace.  

Over the years I’ve seen inequitable treatment of workers in all underrepresented groups, however in my experience, the people who seemed most overlooked, underutilized, misunderstood, underpaid, underemployed and excluded from workplace culture have consistently been Black people. I have seen younger professional Black people start working with lots of enthusiasm and innovative ideas only to be ignored, told they should stay in their lane or that they were too aggressive. Sometimes they have been told to “relax” and that they were too “detail oriented”. Many found themselves in a “damned if I do, damned if I don’t” situation. I could see their enthusiasm wane over time. Numerous Black employees were asked to jump through hoops that their white peers were not asked to go through, yet those same peers were often promoted above them. Too often, no concrete indicators were established that indicated how to move up in the company. No upper-level managers took them under their wing like they did with other junior employees. Black staff was never seen as leadership material.

Two years ago, in my capacity as a union official, I had to gather data (job descriptions, performance evaluations, the amount of revenue generated based on work done and promotions) for both Black female employees and their white female counterparts in several departments at my job. I presented this data, along with personal statements from Black female employees to our CEO because it showed a glaring disparity in how white women were being promoted versus Black women, in multiple departments. Earlier, several Black women had come to me complaining that they were not being recognized for their work or considered for promotions. In some cases, other people took credit for their ideas. Some of them had asked their bosses directly what they could do to be promoted. Many were given vague answers. Some were in fact given specific answers, so they tailored their work to meet those expectations, but when new promotions were announced, their names were never among the promoted. To his credit, the CEO (who has since left the company) really listened and heard these women. Some of them were promoted shortly after our meeting. Our current CEO, however, has a bit of a way to go in getting to the same philosophical place as the former.

The experiences at my workplace are not unique. A friend of mine says her brother, who attended an ivy league school and had an MBA, felt othered by his finance co-workers and managers. He worked well into the night every day, he took golf lessons so that he would fit in at company outings, he worked above and beyond, yet white co-workers who didn’t put in as much effort were promoted and he wasn’t. His manager’s manager knew the names of the white junior employees and didn’t know his. He stopped being invited to golf trips. Ultimately, he quit.

I hope to use sources from the fields of Human Resources, Diversity Equity and Inclusion, Data Analysis, Organizational Psychology, Black Studies and even Journalism to provide some context on how Black people are perceived in society and how this perception informs how they are treated in the workplace. I will also use some of these sources to demonstrate first hand experiences and how Black people cope in those situations. Finally, I would like to include some concrete solutions on how organizations can be more inclusive and equitable to Black employees.    

Research Plan

When I began exploring ways I could contribute to the conversation about organizational culture and diversity and inclusion, my first instincts were telling me to focus my research on the most obvious problems like race, ethnicity, and gender. I wanted to see if I could identify new lines of inquiry, new solutions, or connect the dots in ways that others haven’t connected them before. Without even going too deep into the existing literature, what I found was decades of research and thousands of great ideas and potential solutions, but hardly any real progress where it matters most. After reading Ian Bogost’s article “The Problem with Diversity in Computing” and the contributions of my classmates, especially Sherri’s post on Algorithm-Driven Hiring Tools, I was inspired to turn my focus in a new direction to investigate the hidden biases that we might be building into today’s HR technologies. Coincidentally, I had recently taken an online personality test as part of an application for a job at my local golf course, which struck me as an odd requirement. Although the problems of the past are still with us, I fear that we might be creating new problems as organizations adopt new technologies without understanding how they work or what the risks are. After watching the documentary Persona and getting a good look at the personality testing industry, my decision to investigate this further was solidified. So the question I am trying to understand is: Are artificial intelligence technologies in human resources going to make organizations more diverse and inclusive, or will they make things worse?

There are several reasons why this question interests me. On a personal level, I have always thought of myself as a square peg, because of a birth injury, my ethnicity, my struggles with learning, and other aspects of who I am. Like most young adults, I want to fit in but I also want to be myself. I worry that artificial intelligence algorithms are being built that will limit opportunities for people like me before we even have a chance to prove ourselves in the work force. As a business major, I also want to understand how “people technologies” work and how they can be ethically used, the same way I need to understand how finance, accounting, marketing, investing, and other business technologies work. As the world gets more data driven, I want to understand the ramifications of artificial intelligence so I can be a better decision maker in my future career.

This inquiry connects directly with material from a Fundamentals of Management course I took last semester. In that course, we did three separate units on organizational culture (which focused on vision and values), diversity and inclusion (which focused on hiring practices and company policies), and personality (which focused on the advantages and limitations of personality tests). At the time, I did not see the linkages between these topics, which were spread out over 14 weeks. Now I clearly do. Last semester, the focus was mainly on improving performance, and technology was not discussed in depth regarding the three units above. But from the research I have done so far, I can see technology is going to change everything about human resources, and that means it’s going impact everything about an organization’s culture. With two years left at Whitman, I believe what I learn because of this research project will help me be a better student in my future business classes, and ultimately a better employee after I graduate.

My research takes place at the intersection of human resources management, organizational culture, diversity and inclusion, artificial intelligence, data analytics, personality assessment, and employment law. To begin my search for sources, I used SU library’s Summon Search to locate scholarly as well as professional and trade journal sources. Using Google, I was able to locate additional sources, including articles in newspapers and on trusted industry websites for the American Bar Association and Society for Human Resources Management, for example. By using LinkedIn, I found some articles, blog posts, and TED talks by faculty or industry professionals that didn’t appear in any other search results. While watching Persona, I took notes to capture potential quotes I could use, as well as noted the names of people to do further research on. I have also searched on YouTube to find relevant videos, which I plan to watch to gather more subject matter expert quotes. And finally, my searches have also led me to firms selling the artificial intelligence technology products for human resources. I have found it interesting to see the language they use when they market their products and may be able to use some of it. Overall, I have found lots of great material. The next steps of my research plan are to carefully review my sources, take notes and annotate them, and then organize them for easy access.

Research Plan : Oumou

What question us guiding your research?

I personally have several questions that I hope can be answered at the end of my research. Firstly I want to gain even more knowledge on Diversity and Inclusion individually because in my experience one is never mentioned without the other, so I’d like to research each individually. Secondly, I want to determine whether it is best for diversity to come before inclusion, or if it is best for inclusion to come before diversity. As of now I think it is best if diversity comes after inclusion because this way there won’t need to be more trial and error and potentially making people feel excluded. Although I’ve been coming across articles which say otherwise.

Why this question?

Aside from the reasons I mentioned in the previous question, these questions are interesting to me because I am a woman in STEM which is a predominately male dominated field. I’ve heard a lot of stories about gender inequality in the workplace so I want to make sure I know as much as possible about the topic of diversity and inclusion and how it relates to this, as well as methods to rectify this issue.

How will your professional/internship/organizational/ course work inform your inquiry?

I think my own experience will inform my inquiry someway because although I’ve only completed two semesters so far, I am an engineering major and more often than not I have been one of a handful of women in my classes. I feel like the men in my classes have been a bit too comfortable with interrupting the women in these classes while we speak and oftentimes try and dismiss our ideas (at least from what I’ve observed). I think there should be more emphasis placed on inclusion in courses like these especially since the diversity is somewhat there already.

What fields matter most in your inquiry.

I don’t have any specific fields that I am going to be focusing on. I will be using both professional, and academic articles (whichever I find) and I will also be using Ted-Talks and journals since I think they give good first person accounts.

Research Plan- Caitlin

My plan for my research project is to bring more awareness towards the misogyny women sometimes face within the medical field, either as doctors and nurses or as the patients.  The questions that I am primarily asking are related to why this sexism is so prevalent, especially within the healthcare field.  I really want to know the reason behind the unconscious biases that many male doctors have against women who go to hospitals with ailments.  The reason I want to research the misogyny against women is because I have heard many stories, either online or from my friends, that are firsthand accounts of their experiences with doctors who do not believe their pain or look past the real issue just because of their gender. 

I do not have any interesting reason related to why I chose to research this topic.  Personally, I just want to make this problem more well known to others that might not have been aware of it.  Sexism is prevalent in most places and careers so healthcare is not much difference in that sense, but in all those other instances, those prejudices are not in trouble of being life threatening.  Many people can and have died due to the thoughtlessness and biases of doctors who ignore issues regarding women. 

I think something the fields that will help me the most for this assignment are professional articles because they will solidify my arguments and help make my research more well-rounded.  In addition to the professional fields, the aspect of my project that will be the most appealing with be the personal anecdotes from a primary source that shows a firsthand example of their experiences with this issue.  This source will help counteract the logos of the articles and add an aspect of pathos to my writing.

Research Plan- Kate Mehne

When it comes to my ongoing research, there are a few questions I want to address that play into a larger picture. First, I want to ask, “how does pre-conceived or subconscious bias affect those who are marginalized, and how does it affect them at an intersectional level?” Subconscious bias towards particular groups, specifically women, takes many emotional and physical tolls for them. Not only are women seen as the subordinate gender lower than men, but when race and sexuality come into the picture, women are even more oppressed and misunderstood. Second, I want to study if somehow bias was reversed if these intersectional factors would still feed off each other.


Intersectionality is the interconnected nature of social categories, such as gender, race, class, and sexuality. The interconnected/ overlapping nature is due to systems made from discrimination or disadvantages towards those who are marginalized. So, I want to understand how bias came to be towards different social categories. If taken away or reflected upon, could intersectionality have less of a damaging impact and rather be understood? Could our corrupt systems be reversed, therefore creating an appreciation for women and all of the social categories they fall into?


I want to ask these questions because I have been curious about them since I took a Women and Gender Studies class with Dr. Depietro. Their class encouraged me to push the boundaries of my thinking and understand intersectionality and its massive toll on our lives. In this class, I have been very interested in bias, whether towards those with disabilities, or those within different social categories, which we have seen through various readings. I thought it would be fascinating to combine these two aspects and see how they bounce off each other. I want to challenge intersectionality and bias together and see how they overlap.


My course work will inform my classmates very well since I have recently learned a lot about intersectionality and its impacts on women of all social categories, so I am very eager to share my thoughts. Not only am I keen to share my thoughts, but my other professor’s, as well as ideas from scholars and marginalized women themselves. To see the clear picture, I believe it is crucial to hear real accounts from women and professional claims to help understand the reality. What excites me about this topic is that all readers can carry it with them in their lives, and I hope my work can create this impact. This way of thinking is crucial when it comes to understanding the systems that have led us here. By understanding the systems and how they started, perhaps with bias, we can hopefully dismantle them.

Research plan: Julia

What question is guiding your research? (What do you want your research to understand?)

I am using my research to help figure out the reasoning behind the lack of representation of women in STEM, more specifically in finance. STEM and finance have always had a dominant male presence, and I would like to understand that although more women are getting STEM-related degrees than ever, why there is still a lack of representation. By researching both the biological and social reasons for this issue, I will be able to better comprehend the problem.

Why this question? (Help us understand how it connects to your career/personal interests)

I am interested in researching more about women’s lack of representation in finance because, in a world where equity is becoming more critical as each day passes, I think it will impact my career. Also, a woman majoring in finance and accounting, I believe that it is beneficial to understand how to bring more representation to the industry. Even now, I am beginning to see this topic appear. I can see it even this year, as  I am the only female in this class year to enter into the OVF program at Whitman.

How will your professional/internship/organizational/course work inform your inquiry? (What connections can you see with the work that you are a part of in the world beyond the course?)

As stated in the previous paragraph, it personally, as well as professionally, impacts my life. It seems as though every professional event that I attend with an organization is an event to promote women in finance or listen to someone who has beaten the odds and become a woman in a senior position. It seems as though there is a ‘we have to stick together’ mentality in the industry because there are so few women that are present in certain roles. Even in a few of my classes, there are not a lot of women taking the class it seems like. By understanding the reasons why there are not more women trying to obtain careers in finance, I will be able to better understand the subject.

What fields (academic and professional) matter most in your inquiry? (Where are you going to be looking for source material?)

I believe that professional fields will matter most in my inquiry, however, I feel that academic articles will also be important. By fielding professional articles, I will be able to find views that use logic and statistics to back up their views. I would also like to get some personal stories from media sources like TED talks, or news channels. Academic sources will be more important in helping me understand the biological reasoning behind the lack of representation of women in finance/STEM. As always, I will be using the SU library database, the TED talk website, along Google to find my sources.

Research Plan – Zoe Miller

I am using my research to understand more about why there are people who are discriminated against for something they cannot control and is no one else’s business. I would like to also understand what effects being discriminated for something like that has on people. While this is the case for most qualities that people are discriminated against for, in this case I am researching people who are a part of the LGBTQ+ community.

The reason I am interested in researching discrimination in the LGBTQ+ community is because a lot of information has come to light regarding it over the last few years. I do not think that it is fair for people to be discriminated against based off of something that only differs to what people are “used to” at home. I also think that the fact that people care so much about qualities and aspects about other people that have absolutely nothing to do them is interesting but also do not understand it.

I am an ally of the LGBTQ+ movement and know a few people who are a part of the community. It is being reported all over the news and social media and I would like to expand my knowledge on it. I have a disability that people are discriminated against for, while I have experienced a little bit about what it is like to have issues with people because of that disability, I would like to expand my knowledge on discrimination against other topics.

Professional fields matter most to my inquiry because there are more people who are aware that they are a part of this community and who may not necessarily rub it in everyone’s faces but who are also not hiding it in the professional world rather than in the academic world. I plan to continue to look for personal journals with experiences and news articles or posts on social media that discuss what people have had to deal with and what the effects and consequences, if any, there were.