A LITERATURE REVIEW OF DIVERSITY MANAGEMENT RESEARCH &THEORIES

Essay by sthUniversity, Bachelor'sA, September 2008

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TABLE OF CONTENTS1.0ABSTRACT2.0 INTRODUCTION3.0TYPES OF WORK FORCE DIVERSITY3.1Role Diversity3.2Inherent Diversity4.0OVERVIEW OFEMPIRICAL RESEARCH5.0THEORIES ON DIVERSITY5.1Information and Decision-Making Theory5.2Social identification and Categorization Theory5.3Similarity and Attraction Theory6.0UNION PERSPECTIVE7.0DIVERSITY IN CANADA8.0CONCLUSION9.0REFERENCES1.0Abstract: In the hyper competitive global business market of today there are no certainties. Past successes and failures though important hold no sway on the future of an organization in a business environment that is in a constant state of flux. To help deal with uncertainty, an organization needs access to diverse perspectives and assumptions about how to manage and do business. Diversity provides this adaptive capacity by giving a business access to a broader scope of perspectives to help understand and clarify uncertainty. Also diversity helps companies by combining perspectives in innovative ways.

Demographic diversity in a workplace is a reality in terms of both composition and sheer numbers and this trend seems to grow with each day. On one hand research indicates that diversity is properly managed can lead to cost savings, a talented workforce and overall business success and prosperity but on the other hand it is suggested that the path to accomplish this is fraught with difficulties.

Diversity in work place brings many challenges and constraints related to political correctness. This in turn redefines the traditional understanding of support, empathy and mutual understanding in all business transactions. Effective management of diversity entails not only the acquisition of diverse workforce but also the ability to develop and share understanding of how to use the talents such individuals bring. Therefore it is prudent for us to look towards the scholars in the field of business and human psychology to develop an understanding of what work force diversity means and how to best utilize this asset. To this end in this paper I have sketched out the evolution of ideas, and...