Diversity and Self-Awareness - Coursework Example

Diversity and Self-awareness This paper is prepared and submitted by [Client’s Name] Submitted to [Professor’s Name] In partial fulfillment of the course syllabus [Subject] [Date] Experience 1 Concrete Experience It was during my first year in the University as an international student. I have had difficulties with the English language since I do not speak the language as well as native speakers do, or as better as half of my foreign classmates do. Even though my English vocabulary is high and my grammatical structure is comprehensible, it seems as if my ability to understand and communicate the English language is marred, flawed, or useless when communicating to my classmates, friends, or professors. There were times in the class where I am left out uncomprehending; times where I am tempted to speak my native language in the middle of a conversation to get the message across; times where my excellent suggestions were not taken seriously simply because I could not express myself well. In one of my subjects in the class where we are divided into groups to perform a certain task and present the task to the whole class, I was so eager to take the lead. However, being a female and the youngest among the group members, and because I have a hard time forming and articulating English words that are within the context of the discussion, I am often ignored. At that moment, I also felt that my presence was not needed. My group member made me feel that they can do better without me and my broken English. Twice I have heard them complain that I am unable to contribute anything to the group because I am just silent in the corner. This upset me a lot. I know that my ideas were better than what they have presented because I have done a thorough research about the project and I have analyzed the project as much as I can. But the problem was they do not seem to understand what I am saying. By the time I was able to make myself and my arguments clear, the group readily dismiss my ideas because these ideas do not conform to the general consensus. Most of the members of the group regard my youth as a potential source of recklessness so they are reluctant to accept the boldness of my suggestions for the group project. One guy also attacked my gender and my language skills in order to deter the group from seriously considering my suggestions. This has outraged me and yet at that time, I could not form a coherent argument in English that would make these people from my group blush. Reflection At first, I was upset and hurt. This single experience allowed me to create strongly negative impressions about my MBA classmates, particularly those that I perceive as bullies and those who do not like me. It made me furious that they did not let me express myself and contribute my ideas to the group. I was so misunderstood that these people did not even pause to ask me how I feel about not being able to contribute at all. Adding injury to the insult is the fact that I caught some of them snickering at my back whenever I find it difficult to express myself and establish strong arguments to counter theirs. It just made me loath the group I was in and bring my negative perception about my group to a more general scale. Starting that day, I have avoided communicating with English-speaking people unless necessary. I have this notion that they are going to laugh at me if I mispronounce something or if I fail to get my message across. I was personally bothered by the developments of my communication skills and how it is difficult for the people around me, particularly the English-speaking people, to understand my difficulties. At some point, I came to loath my cultural background which did not give me enough training in English communication. Eventually, I realized that it was natural for them to alienate me. The group is expected to deliver results for the task we were assigned to do in a very short period of time. This means that the group has to perform already even if they have not gone through the normalization and conditioning stages proposed by Bruce Tuckman in his group development model (Tuckman, 2001). When the group was formed, we don’t have any idea of who we are working with, much more about their individual skills, abilities, and personalities. We just huddle together thinking that achieving the goal takes a totally objective path. I found out later that it didn’t. Secondly, my inability to express myself in coherent and fluent English bars the effective communication process required for effective problem solving. I could not express myself well because I am just a few months in my stay in the country and I am not used to speaking English as the primary language for communication. This means that even though I speak English, the context I am using to relay my thoughts and ideas are not English at all; that I am still using my native thoughts and perspectives to express my thoughts instead of bringing my thoughts and ideas on the English perspective. This is one of the common pitfalls of ESL speakers in communicating their thoughts and perceptions – the inability to depart from their native contexts when using the English language in communication (Rombault & Portes, 1977). Lastly, I realized that a big part of the blame is on me. I was not prepared to communicate that well and I did not exert a lot of effort on my communication skills thinking that my command of the English language is already fine. As it turned out, my use of the English is out of context and outright wrong. I only know the grammar part of the language but I am totally unaware that English should be spoken in the same context as the other language. Abstraction Communication is essential in cross-cultural relationships (Bex & Wards, 1999). Effective cross-cultural relationships would only occur when all parties involve are able to communicate under the same context using a common language. With the ability to communicate one’s thoughts, ideas, and emotions on a similar plane of understanding with the audience, cultural considerations can be neglected and strong relationships can be forged (Ron & Preisle, 1997). There are two major elements for learning related to diversity that can be derived from the experience mentioned. First, communication in a culturally diverse setting changes to take into account culturally diverse individuals. Second, successful and effective communication does not mean biases are lifted; rather, biases are understood and are taken into account during the communication process. The advances in telecommunications technology as well as the globalization of economy bridge the physical gap between and among people from various countries. As people begin to communicate with each other, the need to learn a common language where everyone would understand each other becomes apparent. English has become one of the most important languages in the business world as well as in other aspects of the society. It is very rare to find business organizations operating internationally where English is not a preferred language. In fact, some business organizations in non-English speaking countries require that their employees are literate and are able to communicate in English. Hence, the need to learn English as a secondary language is highlighted. English communication is more than just reading, writing, and understanding English (Bex & Wards, 1999), it also involves the need and the ability to construct words and sentences in an English-like fashion (Kachru, 1992) and pronounce or articulate English words as fluent and as correctly as the English speakers. Geert Hofstede argued that there is no universal method to address the issues of cultural diversity across the globe because things are just so relative. Instead of proposing a clean-cut solution for cultural diversity, Hofstede presented dimensions by which cultural differences are classified. The five categories are: small vs. large power distance index, individualism vs. collectivism, masculinity vs. femininity, uncertainty avoidance, and long vs. short term orientation. These cultural dimensions serve as a demonstration that cultural groupings affect the behavior of societies and organizations across time and space (Hofstede, 1997). Power distance is the degree of inequality among the people in a certain racial community that they perceive normal; Individualism vs. collectivism is the degree by which people feel they have to take care for, or be taken care of, by their immediate relatives; masculinity vs. femininity is the degree by which gender dominates in a particular culture; uncertainty avoidance is the degree by which the people in a country prefer structured or unstructured situations; and long vs. short term orientation is the degree by which the people of a certain country promotes values that have long term or short term effects on their lives. This means that a deeper understanding of the cultural context in small groups through the lens of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions could possibly enhance the problem-solving capabilities and offer a wide spectrum of cultural understanding. The group’s lack of exposure to the tenets of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions led us to create wrong assumptions about each and everyone’s cultural uniqueness.    People of a particular culture defined their social space based on what their culture demands of them and not on their personal preferences even though humans have the ability to sense space. Generally termed as proxemics, Hall defined the spaces with which human relationships operate which are intimate space, social (or consultative) space, and public space. The intimate space is the space that is closest to the person and entry to this space is often restricted to the closest people and to the most intimate relationships such as family members and married couples; Social space is the space where people would feel comfortable doing routine social functions like chatting and sharing feelings and emotions; and Public space is the area where people generally consider any kind of interaction as impersonal and relatively anonymous (Brown, 2007; Hall, 1966).       In the nutshell, Hall defines all the interactions that take place in the society into three forms – all of which operate under certain circumstances and must be understood in different planes. If a person is able to identify which space an interaction he is in and act appropriately based on the social demands of the space he belongs, he may be able to avoid unnecessary conflict with the rest of the society, particularly if he or she comes from a different culture or race from that of his companions. Thus said, it is no wonder for foreign students to feel like they do not readily fit in the community or society they are in especially if they are new to the place. Their biases and perspectives are strongly inclined towards their own cultures and communicating their thoughts grounded on the cultural contexts of their native lands will lead to an out-of-context communication. More often than not, the way they communicate their thoughts are based on how they understand what they want to communicate. In some situations involving cross-cultural communication, the words and thoughts become a jumble of coherent English words that do not mean a thing. This could explain why I am unable to communicate my thought very well and if I do, I don’t think that the group was able to understand what I am saying in the level of context I want them to understand. For this reason, I found myself in a very stressful situation. The second lesson I have learned from the experience related to diversity is that communication does not mean biases are lifted; rather, biases are understood and are taken into account during the communication process. Group dynamics involving individuals from different cultures are best understood using Trompenaars’ Trade Culture Dimensions. According to Trompenaars, there are seven cultural dimensions that describe the characteristics of the people from various cultures. These are achievement vs. ascription, individualism vs. communitarianism, internal vs. external, neutral vs. emotional, specific vs. diffuse, universalism vs. particularism, and time orientation (Hampden-Turner & Trompenaars, 1997). Among the cultural dimensions that were described by Trompenaars, there are two dimensions that are applicable in this experience. First, the achievement vs. ascription and the individualism vs. communitarianism. Most of the people from the Western cultures accord people by their status and achievements in life. Majority of my group mates have cultural attributes leaning to that achievement while my cultural background is more of from the ascription. While I regard the role of my group mates in the group dynamics, most of them look at me and my potential contribution to the group. When they perceive that I do not met their standard for an excellent group mate, they simply ignored my presence. Most of my group mates were highly individualistic. They are good on their own and they do not want the group to interfere with their thought process. This was very difficult for me to adjust since I am a person that loves to work in groups and performs better with the best group mates. Because we were not aware of any of these cultural dimensions, the group interaction did not yield positive results. Active Experimentation The understanding of the principles and concepts related to what occurred opened my eyes and made me aware of the importance of cross-cultural communication and small group development comprising individuals from various cultures. This new learning also allows me to look at cultural diversity from an entirely different perspective, especially from a positive lens. It made me realize that cultural diversity is not a bad thing; rather, the inability to take advantage of the features of cultural diversity and the inability to sort out serious issues related to cultural diversity could lead to serious issues and conflicts. For these reasons, I am resolved to do the following the next time I will be exposed to similar situations: (a) Be more open about my cultural orientation when dealing with culturally diverse groups. Culture is something inherent. Doing something that is not aligned with the native cultural perspective is like telling the water not to be wet. This means that being a foreigner comes naturally as breathing. However, not everyone understands that there is a phase involved in cross-cultural communication; that effective communication could only occur if everyone talks in the same plane. Thus, I would give the people I talk with a primer about my belief system and about how I see things from my end in order for them to seriously consider my ideas or thoughts on important matters without prejudging them. (b) Next time, I will be more aware of cultural differences in the group and how the group could easily normalize given the cultural diversity. Because I am already armed with the knowledge on how the group stabilizes and performs coherently, I will use this knowledge to ensure that the multicultural group I will belong in the future can skip the prejudices and focus on the task. (c) Lastly, I will school myself to pay closer attention to cultural differences between and among people around me and how I can fit in the general scheme of things. Being culturally aware would allow me to be more tolerant on cultural differences and more importantly, it would allow me to take advantage of the full features of cultural diversity and use it to increase my productivity, or efficiency, both in my school and in my workplace. Experience 2 Concrete Experience The organization I work with is not very open when it comes to workplace competition involving gender differences. I am a 27 year old vibrant young woman with an MBA to finish in a couple of terms and a wonderful career ahead of me. I am assertive and I know that my confidence is backed by experience, theories, principles, and common wisdom. In short, I am very excited with my life and with my career. However, my superiors and my colleagues do not share the same excitement. I am one of the very few women in the organization that holds a middle management position and I am the youngest among them. One time while the division I belong had a presentation to make to the Board, I was tasked to talk about the financials of the organization as well as synthesize data and information. The presenters before me were all men. When my report was over and the cross-fire (or the open forum) started, I noticed that a couple of older men from the Board directed off-handed questions at me. I felt as if their questions, despite all the formalities and politeness, are meant to gauge my capacity as a part of the management team with direct reference to my age and my gender. I was shocked upon realizing their motives but I stood firm and proved to them that I am worthy of my position in the organization and their outdated belief system about gender and organizational management would not allow growth and efficiency in the organization. Reflection I noticed that the gender biases held by these particular members of the Board is understandable. I believe that these individuals came from the era where gender equality is not yet accepted in the society. I think that they are Southerners and their cultural perspectives place strong emphasis on the domestic roles of women. Hence, I understand fully why my presence does not make a very good impression to them. Eventually though, after showing off my skills as a part of the management team and after proving to them my worth as an executive, they slowly, but noticeably lifted the veils of biases they had for me and they became my good mentors. Abstraction Organizations around the world have different perspectives towards the role gender plays within the organization’s context. Most Asian countries place high preference on male roles in organization while Western countries are known for their objective treatment of the roles gender play within the organization (Castles & Miller, 2003). Before feminism movements existed, gender bias is blatant in various societies. Gender bias in organizations is the view held by certain members of the organization towards gender groups. Biases can be positive or negative. For example, Japanese frown on women leading teams composed of Japanese men which is an attitude with a negative bias towards the roles women play in organizations. Societies impose roles gender must play for conformity. Societies demand that women must stay feminine and men must keep their masculinities to conform to the social roles they have to fulfill (Johns, 1975). This notion extends to organization’s behavior towards gender roles even in modern times although of moderate degrees. Modern-day organizations are more mindful to suppress and quell gender related issues within their confines due to the legal and ethical considerations. Various government and non-government agencies are actively pursuing lawsuits against organizations that impose and practice gender preferences in organizations, whether organizations are for-profit or non-profit. However, gender-bias cannot be completely controlled because of the emergence of diversity in organizations. Gender bias is an issue in organizations not because of its detrimental effects to affected individuals and groups but also because of the nature with which gender biases are formed. Because of the legal and ethical considerations of the practice of gender bias in organizations, it is becoming unpopular. Organizations exert much effort in making sure that gender equality is promoted in every aspect of the organization. However, there is no guarantee that gender bias would not exist in modern day organizations. This is particularly true since modern day technology, transportation, and communication allows people from various parts of the world to integrate and interact with each other. These people do not necessarily hold similar views towards gender and certain degrees of interactions would bring up their perspective on genders through acts, behaviors, and words. The worst case that would happen to the organization can be akin to lawsuits and poor financial performance because of bad publicity. However, certain things like prolonged inefficient performance on affected parties in the organization (which is typically reflects as high turnover rate, low employee morale, and poor job skills) is not impossible to happen. Gender preferences and gender biases exhibited in the interaction between and among individuals, social networks, and various departments within organizations can take form out of the interactions of individuals that have similar or related biases. When this occurs, organizations may find themselves in difficult situations. Understanding how small groups and social networks within the organization, starting with the basic elements of social networks, will be a great advantage for the organization because organizations will have a better idea about the level of intervention and the area with which intervention should be applied to the organization.   Active Experimentation Because I made myself aware of the legal and ethical contexts associated with unfair labor practices directed at genders, my workmates and my superiors are more careful around me. I do not mean to frighten them, however. I just want them to see me beyond my skirts and my make-up. I wanted to make an example that women too can be able to compete in the same level as men in a male-dominated corporate world that I belong. I plan to stress my presence and contribution as a woman professional in the organization I am with so that they may get something useful from me and my brilliance. I am hoping that the organization as a whole would initiate moves that would eliminate the prejudices and biases towards women and that the organization would promote equal treatment on the professional level. References Bex, T. & Wards, R. (eds). (1999). Standard English: The Widening Debate. Routledge. Brutt-Griffler, J. 2002. World English. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. Castles, S. & Miller, M. J. (2003). The age of migration: International population movements in the modern world. New York: The Guilford Press   Hofstede, Geert. (1997) Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind, http://www.geert-hofstede.com/ Hall, Edward. (1966). The Hidden Dimension. Garden City, New York. Doubleday. Hampden-Turner, C. & Trompenaars, F. (1997). Riding the Waves of Culture: Understanding Diversity in Global Business. McGraw-Hill. Kachru, B. (ed) (1992). The Other Tongue: English across Cultures. University of Illinois Press Rumbaut, R. G.  & Portes, A.  (1997). Immigrant America: A portrait. Los Angeles: University of California, Press.   Suarez-Orozco, M. & Suarez-Orozco, C.M. (2001). Children of Immigration. Cambridge. MA: Harvard University Press   Tuckman, B. (2001). Developmental Sequence in Small Groups. Psychological Bulletin. 6(3). 384 – 399 Rong, X. L.  & Preisle, J. (1997) Educating immigrant children: What we need to know to meet the challenges. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press   Read More