Abstract
Over the past few years, investigators have endeavored to discover the impacts of diversity on workgroups and teams. This research intends to evaluate current developments and highlight new tendencies in diversity study. Furthermore, it will consolidate the findings from preceding readings to deduce a shared understanding regarding the influence of diverse work factions in companies. It has been highlighted that although their lack commonly acknowledged the impact of diversity on productivity, it usually has adverse effects on solidity, integration, and interaction. On the contrary, variety helps to enhance problem-resolution procedures and decision-making through improved innovation and creativity prospects. Moreover, it was established that responses from workers to diversity diverge; thus, there is an absence of connections between workplace dynamics and diversity. This is because numerous elements control the link between the two variables. However, this paper explores how managers of multiethnic organizations can utilize diversity founded on the acumens of this analysis.
Statement of the Problem
There is a diverging query of if and how diversity impacts the work culture of various companies and communication in general. The argument in question is that numerous organizations incorporate diversity in a manner that can affect them positively. Both profit and non-profit corporations are identified as a structural foundation with guidelines-oriented conduct that can improve how diversity is perceived. Equally, they are determined to play a significant part in the purpose of diversity.
Literature Review
In contemporary business environments, employee diversity is described in various companies with its associated challenges and upsurging intricacy. Therefore, multiplicity control has presumed monumental relevance in moderating the encounters of workplace assortment. The disparity in workers linked to the integration of individuals from distinct backgrounds is denoted as workplace range (Linabary, 2020). The experiences that influence divergence amongst persons comprise nationality, community, and race, gender to establish group, age classifications, organization, and religion to institute a work diversity. Therefore, it is the constant communication of personnel from diverse cultural backgrounds within a business.
Soukup et al. (2018) note that the leading elements of diversity are physical capability, social stratification, religion, age, national origin, and values. Soukup et al. (2018) further illustrates that diversity entails incorporating multiple perceptions and social backgrounds within a workplace. According to Soukup et al. (2018), diversity identifies that individuals are exceptional and different in numerous noticeable and non-visible conducts. The elements that establish diversity are usually studied and understood to determine how they can impact the productivity of companies (Soukup et al., 2018). The researcher assumes that when inclusivity is embraced in organizations, the workers are appreciated, boosting their morale to handle various tasks. This helps in improving the output of the company and the cash inflow.
Flipsen et al. (2021) investigated workplace diversity and company productivity in the technological sector in India. The examination aimed to establish how staff insights of diversity administration impact productivity and determine if worker viewpoints of diversity are connected to their backgrounds in the Indian IT domain. The researchers utilized preliminary information gathered from 402 participants. The analysis of variance, factor evaluation, extraordinary means, regression, and averages was conducted to evaluate the data. Findings indicated no substantial connection between staff’s background and diversity management (Flipsen et al., 2021). However, the supposed advancement of gender diversity through workers was established to affect their productivity positively.
Choi (2019) examined workplace diversity and administrative efficiency in the Nigerian distilling sector to analyze the impact of employee diversity on efficacy in the brewing domain using specific breweries in Nigeria. The researchers utilized the study design and employed stratified random selection to choose participants. The statistics occasioned were scrutinized using correlation and linear regression. They concluded that personnel diversity and managerial efficiency were positively connected, and the relation was statistically substantial (Choi, 2019). Notably, cultural diversity was identified to be more functional. Similarly, workgroup building and workforce training mediate between team diversity and executive value.
Motschnig & GĂĽver (2019) created a multidimensional framework to identify workgroup aspects, managerial elements, and social factors that can impact the efficient management of workplace diversity. They exhibit an ideal that aims to establish the basis for prospective study and determine probable restriction and substantial effect of the archetype for handling diversity in firms. Similarly, Wen (2021) studied managerial inclusion and its connection to productivity past diversity management. An investigative design was utilized to produce information from public administrators in Texas businesses. The findings indicated that diversity management is not beneficial in improving productivity in corporations. Therefore, the two studies were similar in various ways concerning the topic of diversity.
The first similarity is that Motschnig & Güver (2019) and Wen (2021) both assess how diversity influences company performance. Furthermore, they examined this subject since inclusivity effectively determines the productivity of various factions of an institution. The second comparison is that Motschnig & Güver (2019) and Wen (2021) both effort to understand how diversity helps organizations handle the issue of diversity. The third resemblance is that both pieces of the literature evaluate how managing diversity diverges depending on various companies. They both indicate that businesses handle diversity differently. Finally, the readings are comparable since they do not perceive diversity as the center of a corporation’s success.
Godwin et al. (2020) examined organizational productivity and diversity management in Indian companies to determine the level of inclusivity management and managerial efficiency in private and public industry businesses. The researchers elicited data from 50 middle-level administrators from public and private corporations in Delhi. Furthermore, the scholars utilized the organizational productivity scale and diversity measure in the investigation (Godwin et al., 2020). The information was evaluated using correlation and a T-test. The outcomes established that private and public domain enterprises diverged substantially in diversity management. The conclusions also illustrated that diversity management plays a significant constructive impact on the organizational productivity of private institutions.
Lau et al. (2021) examined the diversity and its influence on a company’s productivity. The researchers utilized thematic assessments of the descriptions of diversity in administrative writings to affirm the level to which the divergence is consistent with diversity management’s practical or theoretical discussions. The findings determined that variation in the workplace plays a substantial part in diversity management (Lau et al., 2021). Therefore, according to the conclusions of the literature, a diverse culture necessitates effective leadership to achieve success. Despite the assessments of the literature, there are various gaps in the writings concerning working in diverse teams.
Theory
Cognitive Diversity Theory
Various studies indicate that diversity has no connection to team productivity, and others conclude that there is a strong connection between the two ideas. The research regarding the lack of connection between diversity and efficiency assumes that increased diversity translates to poor performance. The outcomes can be linked to the disparity in how diversity can impact team members. Cognitive diversity states that group participants’ differences in individualities, such as sex, race, and age, positively affect their success (Syed & Ozbilgin, 2019). This is because employees contribute distinctive cognitive characteristics centered on their encounters from a demographic context. Additionally, some works of literature back the association between team productivity and task diversity as highlighted in personalities, such as occupational skills, education, and capabilities. Conversely, the connection between bio-demographic multiplicity and group enactment has generated varied results (Syed & Ozbilgin, 2019). For instance, Watson and partners investigated the contrast of team achievements between culturally heterogeneous and socially homogenous.
According to the model, homogenous teams tend to out-perform socially divergent groups. Over a significant period, varied employee factions gain from an expansive range of understandings and ideas since they can select relevant concepts for resolving issues. Established on the cognitive diversity theory, such advantages devise from the numerous viewpoints shaped by the ethnic assortment of group members (Yadav & Lenka, 2020). On the contrary, it necessitates time for workers of diverse sets to work collaboratively, owing to their unfamiliarity with one another. This helps to illustrate why homogenous factions overtake unrelated teams in the early phases of group functionality. From the literature, the theory supports culturally divergent sections of responsibilities that necessitates decision-making and are more innovative and creative (Yadav & Lenka, 2020). Whereas homogenous workplaces can be more effective, heterogeneous personnel sacrifice productivity for value in other domains. Therefore, the model highlights that diversity amongst individuals will significantly influence the success of a team and the overall company.
Similarity-Attraction Paradigm
The cognitive diversity model describes how diversity improves company outputs and revenues. The similarity-attraction theory illustrates how diversity can influence adverse impacts on a company. According to the paradigm, employees in diverse teams tend to become less attached and are occasionally absent from their workplaces (Nkomo et al., 2019). Furthermore, the model argues that diversity can foster conflicts and increase staff turnover. Similarity-attraction framework concludes that such instances are instigated by employees’ inclination to work with individuals with shared attitudes (Nkomo et al., 2019). The theory further stipulates that beliefs and attitudes are shared backgrounds to relational attraction.
Conversely, other personalities, comprising age, socioeconomic status, race, and sex, are indications to display deep-level traits of an individual. For instance, several kinds of research reviewing the employees’ conduct have indicated that persons are usually drawn to organizations whose hiring processes compare to images and statements that reflect their identity group (Klarsfeld et al., 2019). Another research displayed that firms professed to uphold diversity centered on their staffing works favor racial minorities and women compared to white individuals. Another study revealed that when businesses employ hiring materials that focus on sexual factions, the desirability of study contributors deteriorates amongst heterosexuals (Klarsfeld et al., 2019). Finally, the native-born prospective employment candidates are inclined to companies that depict global workers in their recruitment advertisements. From the assessment of the theory, it is evident that diversity has a substantial influence on a company.
Hypothesis
- H1: Diversity in teams boosts the performance and morale of workers.
- H2: There is no direct connection between staff background and diversity management.
- H3: Personal diversity and managerial efficiency are directly connected.
- H4: Diversity management is not fundamental in determining organizational productivity.
- H5: Private and public sector enterprises diverge substantially in diversity management.
- H6: Divergence in work teams plays a substantial part in diversity management.
Methodology
Based on the inconsistent outcomes and near-zero relationship between the subject of diversity and group performance in literature review investigations, this paper chooses to construe the current writings descriptively. While undertaking this approach, the report intends to establish an assessment according to the systematic analysis of research articles. This research methodology was relevant for the study since it involves the evaluation of several writings linked to the subject of working in diverse groups.
Findings
From the assessment of the previous works of literature, there is no relationship and generally established a direct connection between diversity and team performance. There are various reasons for the zero-connection and inconsistent findings from the literature studies. To begin, each diversity research aimed to answer how diversity impacts group productivity from distinct perspectives. The writings investigated the influence of different types of diversity on specific kinds of workers with varied sizes, longevity, and companies. The used factors were various that the outcomes were incomparable and insufficient to conclude. The reason assigned to the group performance and the performance valuation were dispersed in the research. For instance, Soukup et al. (2018) described productivity as the effectiveness of staff operations and the level of creativity launched by a team, whereas Wen (2021) stated that performance was determined by quality and output.
Contemporary assessment from Flipsen et al. (2021) backed this argument by enlightening that gender diversity has diverse impacts on distinct performance. While job output denotes a particular achievement, contextual performance is connected with the factors of a person’s output that upholds and improves a company’s social links and the mental climate back technical assignments. They determined that gender diversity adversely influences contextual productivity, but not on duty performance. Additionally, the evaluation technique (external and self-reported), the measurement kind, and the research situations fluctuated across the literature. Various diversity readings do not detect and integrate the level of heterogeneity, and analysis writings endeavored to achieve shared outcomes from research with teams of distinct diversity networks.
Additionally, existing assessment research on supposed diversity (2020) backs this assumption by incorporating the perception of team heterogeneity and viewpoint of self-to-tea diversity and sub-division differences when evaluating diversity. Motschnig & GĂĽver (2019) contended that the purpose for unstable outcomes is linked to categorizing diversities into diverse classes. They claimed that the categorization of diversity does not expose the actual connection between diversity and team achievement. Additionally, several extrinsic and intrinsic corporate cultures and group tenure influence the correlations between diversity and team productivity.
Discussion
Comparable to the research of William and O’Reilly (1998), this study utilized cognitive diversity theory and the similarity-attraction paradigm in describing the impacts of diversity in workgroup teams. The research-backed the idea proposed by William and O’Reilly (1998), who contended that diversity influences team procedures and performance adversely from a cognitive diversity theory and similarity-attraction mode and positively from a data-processing viewpoint. Despite being challenging to determine a conclusion regarding the direct impacts of diversity on team output, the assessment has highlighted the advantages and disadvantages (Uman et al., 2022). Diversity enables increased output owing to its positive effect on decision-making and problem resolution operations. This positive influence results from rising innovation and creativity from the accessibility of distinct experiences, skills, expertise, backgrounds, and cultural understanding of the target culture. The enhanced resource group and variety increase the number of substitutes to the issues and certify an extensive discussion of problems.
On the contrary, team productivity is diminished by diversity due to responsibility uncertainty and the concealment effort of group participants. Diversity boosts turnover due to employees’ lack of trends and personal turnover. Similarly, diverse groups highlight declined obligation, inclusivity, fulfillment, and feasibility. According to these factions, lower commitments are influenced by reduced cooperation, team recognition, additional team categorization, workplace conflicts, and unreliable communication procedure (Løvold et al., 2020). These are usually relationship-centered outcomes of diversity arising from a surge in psychological stress and anxiety, stereotype, and an adverse team environment. Furthermore, distinct social staff factions exhibit increased interaction challenges through language barriers and disparity in the methods of expression, non-verbal behaviors, government guidelines, and values. Consequently, group managers’ and participants’ communication and social abilities and skills play a significant role in the success of diverse workplaces.
Despite these theories, notably cognitive diversity theory and similarity-attraction standards contributing substantially to comprehension of the impact of diversity in groups, varying outcomes in past literature. These previous studies designated that diversity reviews need more inclusive approaches. In response to these requirements, new investigations were launched and incorporated innovative perceptions of diversity. The conceptualizations included the multidimensional diversity strategy differentiating amongst diverse diversity, difference, and variability types. These presumptions, precisely the multidimensional diversity approach, have underwritten considerable advancement. Conversely, the process would need more review to deepen the comprehension of diversity subtleties and offer dependable rules for team managers and executives.
Summary
This research underwrites the literature by displaying the procedure and the tendencies in diversity review. The study undertook an inclusive approach by disclosing numerous factors that should be considered when investigating diverse groups. This perception is anticipated to present indisputable evidence to investigators for future diversity research. Previous studies have highlighted that diversity is a multidimensional idea whose impacts are facilitated by extrinsic and intrinsic variables. Furthermore, this appraisal inferred that moderators have an essential effect on the results of diversity in group dynamics. Likewise, future literature focusing on the representatives and their control of group subtleties will add importance to the research area.
Culture is predominately a significant team formation element since ethnic diversity is a primary categorization factor. Therefore, cultural diversity in workplaces should be investigated further to determine its importance in diversity in teams. Future investigation should assess the efficiency and aptitude of current perceptions of diversity highlighted in this study. Future research can gain from concentrating on handling and managing diverse workgroups. In essence, the investigators should ask what a person should do when working in diverse teams. It is vital to comprehend the subtleties of diversity at workplaces, the elements facilitating such dynamics, and the impacts on team procedures to establish more significance to the area. Diversity scholars have not placed consideration regarding how to develop the transformations that are required in workgroups. As a result, considering the findings confirmed in this research, the diversity study can gain from investigating the methods to handle diversity and co-exist with work teams. Therefore, prospective assessments should discover aspects of addressing the risks of diversity and determining its future advantages.
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