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Evaluation of the FAIR program: teaching diversity awareness and social justice to at-risk youth

Date

2010

Authors

Weiler, Lindsey Michelle, author
Le, Thao, advisor
Palermo, Francisco, advisor
Banning, James H., committee member

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Abstract

The increasing ethnic, cultural, language, and class diversity in the United States calls for a proactive approach in helping young people develop into socially competent adults. FAIR: Fairness for All Individuals through Respect is an experiential multicultural education program that addresses fairness in social interactions. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of FAIR for at-risk youth aged 11 to 19 in five treatment facilities in Northern Colorado. Outcome measures included youths' awareness of privilege and oppression, multicultural attitudes, and ethnocultural empathy. Results revealed that scores on those measures for the youth who participated in FAIR remained fairly stable, whereas scores for the knowledge, empathic feelings and expression, and empathic awareness subscales for the control group decreased. For the care subscale, results revealed a decrease for participants in both the experimental and control group. The current study highlighted the need for diversity education programs for youth in residential and day treatment, as well as the need for continued research with this population. Results and implications for research and practice are discussed.

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Department Head: Karen Caplovitz Barrett.

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