Date of Award

2008

Degree Type

Thesis

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Slane, Steve

Subject Headings

Veterinary medicine, Veterinary medicine -- Study and teaching, African Americans in the professions, Cultural pluralism, Veterinary profession, Veterinary medicine

Abstract

The lack of racial and ethnic diversity in the profession of veterinary medicine is widely recognized. Despite this recognition, minority representation in veterinary colleges remains very low. No demographic data shows exactly how many minority veterinarians exist however, Elmore (2003) extrapolated numbers from recent graduates and suggested that about 91 of all veterinarians in the United States were white, 5 were Hispanic, 2 were African American, 1 were Asian/Pacific Islander, and less than 1 were American Indian/Alaskan Native. For minority groups, these percentages are significantly lower than the racial distribution in the population of the United States. Limited progress has been made toward achieving diversity in the veterinary profession. Previous research (qualitative interviews) has identified several reasons for the lack of proportionate minority representation in animal-oriented fields including veterinary medicine (Brown, 2005): Previous research (qualitative interviews) has identified several reasons for the lack of proportionate minority representation in animal-oriented fields including veterinary medicine (Brown, 2005): 1. Economic disparities 2. On-going civil rights struggle 3. Moral obligation to serve people 4. Unattractive career incentives 5. Inadequate career exposure and recruitment 6. Non-supportive environments 7. Negative images of the field 8. Little or no positive animal experience 9. Racial discrimination and prejudice. About 10 of veterinary students in United States colleges of veterinary medicine today are minorities. More quantitative research is necessary to understand the reasons for this lack of proportionate representation. The current study is the first large scale project to survey a group of high achieving underrepresented college-bound and undergraduate students that are in pursuit of mathematics and science-based careers in order to understand the reasons they are less likely to choose veterinary medicine than other health fields as a profession. Results indi

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