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Workplace Diversity: A Social–Ecological Framework and Policy Implications
Author(s) -
Bond Meg A.,
Haynes Michelle C.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
social issues and policy review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.798
H-Index - 35
eISSN - 1751-2409
pISSN - 1751-2395
DOI - 10.1111/sipr.12005
Subject(s) - diversity (politics) , diversification (marketing strategy) , workforce , hierarchy , context (archaeology) , organizational studies , affect (linguistics) , public relations , sociology , knowledge management , organizational commitment , political science , business , marketing , geography , computer science , archaeology , communication , anthropology , law
The diversification of the global workforce brings both challenges and opportunities. We focus on diversity defined by membership in traditionally underrepresented groups. To harness the power of diversity, organizations must: increase representation of diverse individuals throughout the organizational hierarchy, attend to the social processes that emerge once diversity is present, and foster an organizational climate that supports the full inclusion of diverse individuals. We review dynamics at multiple levels of analysis that affect organizations in these three realms. Policy recommendations are grounded in the following ecological principles: (1) organizational issues are nested within multiple levels of context, (2) any organizational event can have reverberating effects throughout the system, (3) people's experiences of events shape their reactions and the impact of practices on varied groups shapes organizational consequences, and (4) people are continually adapting to one another and to organizational resources and requirements.