Sessie 14: Diversity climate
and cognition
Cultural diversity at work: The effects of diversity perspectives on
work group processes and outcomes (Ely & Thomas)
This paper develops theory about the conditions under which cultural diversity enhances or
detracts from work group functioning. We identified three different perspectives on workforce
diversity: the integration-and- learning perspective, the access-and-legitimacy perspective,
and the discrimination-and-fairness perspective.
All three perspectives on diversity had been successful in motivating managers to
diversify their staffs, but only the integration-and-learning perspective provided the
rationale and guidance needed to achieve sustained benefits from diversity.
We set out to develop theory, grounded in people's experiences in culturally diverse work
groups, about the conditions under which diversity enhances or detracts from work group
functioning. From our research, we identified three different perspectives on workforce
diversity that people embrace, each with different implications for a work group's ability to
realize the benefits of its cultural diversity.
In this research, the demographic variables in which we were interested include race,
ethnicity, sex, social class, religion, nationality, and sexual identity, all of which contribute to
cultural identity.
Cultural identity, as we understand it, is socially constructed, complex, and dynamic.
There is much theoretical and empirical support for the notion that paying attention to
differences in power and status is critical for understanding diversity in organizations.
DIVERSITY AND WORK GROUP FUNCTIONING
Researchers interested in the impact of demography on individual and group behavior in
organizations have taken several different approaches, two of which are especially relevant
to our work.
1. Effects of proportional representation.
a. Much of the literature on proportional representation has focused on the
question of whether increasing the number of traditionally underrepresented
groups, such as white women and people of color, has a positive or negative
impact on members of those groups. Some theorists have argued that
increased numbers of women, for example, should lead to greater contact
between men and women, less stereotyped perceptions of women, and less
spillover from sex roles to work roles; hence, discrimination against women
should subside as their numbers increase. This line of reasoning suggests
that increasing the numbers of people in traditionally underrepresented groups
in organizations will ultimately enhance a work group's effectiveness by
removing the barriers associated with minority status and thereby enabling all
people to be maximally productive.
b. Blalock (1957) has argued, alternatively, that numeric increases in the
representation of groups traditionally in the minority threaten the majority.
c. Empirical evidence exists to support both claims. Proponents on both sides of
the debate tend to agree that increasing the numbers of traditionally
1
, underrepresented groups without altering power relations between dominants
and subdominants is unlikely to improve the position of those groups
substantially.
2. Effects of group composition.
a. The second approach to understanding how demographic diversity might
influence work groups is predicated on the notion that demographic diversity
increases the available pool of resources-networks, perspectives, styles,
knowledge, and insights-that people can bring to bear on complex problems.
b. The skepticism as well as mixed results concerning inter- group differences in
organizational behavior diminish the potential value of this line of research for
elucidating the relationship between cultural diversity and work group
effectiveness.
c. Heterogeneous groups are more likely to generate a diverse set of
recommended approaches to tasks or solutions to problems; this in turn
stimulates effective group discussion, which leads ultimately to high quality
decisions. For groups that are heterogeneous on the cultural identity variables
in which we are interested, the evidence for this hypothesis is mixed.
d. Recent studies of factors that moderate the relationship between cultural
diversity and work group effectiveness have begun to make some sense of
these findings, suggesting that when group members share common goals
and values, cultural diversity leads to more beneficial outcomes.
i. "Diversity perspective": group members' normative beliefs and
expectations about cultural diversity and its role in their work group.
e. We argue that diversity perspectives are classifiable into three types:
integration and learning, access and legitimacy, and discrimination and
fairness.
OVERVIEW OF THE PRESENT STUDY
With theory-generation in mind, we set out to investigate under what conditions cultural
diversity in a work group enhances or detracts from the group’s functioning.
We identified several kinds of intermediate outcomes that ought to be more proximally
related to the cultural composition of the work group, including both achievement and
affective outcomes. These included group processes and
individual experiences that seemed to follow from
diversity perspectives:
(1) the nature of race relations in people's immediate
work environment, including the nature of conflict
and conflict resolution;
(2) the extent to which participants felt valued and
respected by coworkers and supervisors; and
(3) the meaning and significance participants
attached to their own racial identity at work,
including whether and how they personally valued
and expressed themselves as members of their
racial identity group.
Although we were interested in examining diversity
across a range of cultural differences, we focus our analysis in this paper primarily on race,
because, even though the organizations in our study were all culturally diverse, different
kinds of cultural differences were salient in each.
2
and cognition
Cultural diversity at work: The effects of diversity perspectives on
work group processes and outcomes (Ely & Thomas)
This paper develops theory about the conditions under which cultural diversity enhances or
detracts from work group functioning. We identified three different perspectives on workforce
diversity: the integration-and- learning perspective, the access-and-legitimacy perspective,
and the discrimination-and-fairness perspective.
All three perspectives on diversity had been successful in motivating managers to
diversify their staffs, but only the integration-and-learning perspective provided the
rationale and guidance needed to achieve sustained benefits from diversity.
We set out to develop theory, grounded in people's experiences in culturally diverse work
groups, about the conditions under which diversity enhances or detracts from work group
functioning. From our research, we identified three different perspectives on workforce
diversity that people embrace, each with different implications for a work group's ability to
realize the benefits of its cultural diversity.
In this research, the demographic variables in which we were interested include race,
ethnicity, sex, social class, religion, nationality, and sexual identity, all of which contribute to
cultural identity.
Cultural identity, as we understand it, is socially constructed, complex, and dynamic.
There is much theoretical and empirical support for the notion that paying attention to
differences in power and status is critical for understanding diversity in organizations.
DIVERSITY AND WORK GROUP FUNCTIONING
Researchers interested in the impact of demography on individual and group behavior in
organizations have taken several different approaches, two of which are especially relevant
to our work.
1. Effects of proportional representation.
a. Much of the literature on proportional representation has focused on the
question of whether increasing the number of traditionally underrepresented
groups, such as white women and people of color, has a positive or negative
impact on members of those groups. Some theorists have argued that
increased numbers of women, for example, should lead to greater contact
between men and women, less stereotyped perceptions of women, and less
spillover from sex roles to work roles; hence, discrimination against women
should subside as their numbers increase. This line of reasoning suggests
that increasing the numbers of people in traditionally underrepresented groups
in organizations will ultimately enhance a work group's effectiveness by
removing the barriers associated with minority status and thereby enabling all
people to be maximally productive.
b. Blalock (1957) has argued, alternatively, that numeric increases in the
representation of groups traditionally in the minority threaten the majority.
c. Empirical evidence exists to support both claims. Proponents on both sides of
the debate tend to agree that increasing the numbers of traditionally
1
, underrepresented groups without altering power relations between dominants
and subdominants is unlikely to improve the position of those groups
substantially.
2. Effects of group composition.
a. The second approach to understanding how demographic diversity might
influence work groups is predicated on the notion that demographic diversity
increases the available pool of resources-networks, perspectives, styles,
knowledge, and insights-that people can bring to bear on complex problems.
b. The skepticism as well as mixed results concerning inter- group differences in
organizational behavior diminish the potential value of this line of research for
elucidating the relationship between cultural diversity and work group
effectiveness.
c. Heterogeneous groups are more likely to generate a diverse set of
recommended approaches to tasks or solutions to problems; this in turn
stimulates effective group discussion, which leads ultimately to high quality
decisions. For groups that are heterogeneous on the cultural identity variables
in which we are interested, the evidence for this hypothesis is mixed.
d. Recent studies of factors that moderate the relationship between cultural
diversity and work group effectiveness have begun to make some sense of
these findings, suggesting that when group members share common goals
and values, cultural diversity leads to more beneficial outcomes.
i. "Diversity perspective": group members' normative beliefs and
expectations about cultural diversity and its role in their work group.
e. We argue that diversity perspectives are classifiable into three types:
integration and learning, access and legitimacy, and discrimination and
fairness.
OVERVIEW OF THE PRESENT STUDY
With theory-generation in mind, we set out to investigate under what conditions cultural
diversity in a work group enhances or detracts from the group’s functioning.
We identified several kinds of intermediate outcomes that ought to be more proximally
related to the cultural composition of the work group, including both achievement and
affective outcomes. These included group processes and
individual experiences that seemed to follow from
diversity perspectives:
(1) the nature of race relations in people's immediate
work environment, including the nature of conflict
and conflict resolution;
(2) the extent to which participants felt valued and
respected by coworkers and supervisors; and
(3) the meaning and significance participants
attached to their own racial identity at work,
including whether and how they personally valued
and expressed themselves as members of their
racial identity group.
Although we were interested in examining diversity
across a range of cultural differences, we focus our analysis in this paper primarily on race,
because, even though the organizations in our study were all culturally diverse, different
kinds of cultural differences were salient in each.
2
