Chapter 4 Diversity in Groups 1 A Balanced Approach to Group Diversity a Your success and that of your group depends on your ability to handle the inevitable dialectic tensions that arise in diverse groups b The Institute for Global Ethics identifies seven core global values that transcend individual cultures and personal differences love truthfulness fairness freedom unity tolerance responsibility and respect for life c Culture is a learned set of shared interpretations about beliefs values and norms which affect the behaviors of a relatively large group of people d Within most cultures there are also groups of people members of co culture who coexist within the mainstream society yet remain connected to one another through their cultural heritage e When discussing group communication we use the term diversity in f its most general sense the quality of being different In addition to differences in member cultures a concept known as deep diversity describes characteristics that are much more difficult to observe such as members knowledge skills and abilities related to the demands of a group s task g Members of deeply diverse heterogeneous groups widen the range of possible solutions to a problem whereas homogeneous groups narrow the range of solutions they are likely to consider h Deep diversity promotes synergy and as a result group productivity i Three layers of diversity i Your core personality which permeates all the other layers is at the center and represents your unique ways of experiencing interpreting and behaving in the world around you ii The second layer represents internal dimensions over which you have no control Such as race and ethnicity iii The third and outer layer represents societal and experiential factors such as religion marital status income and educational background 2 Obstacles to Understanding Others effective group members develop strategies and skills for interacting with others from diverse backgrounds a Ethnocentrism b Stereotyping i Ethnocentrism is a belief that your culture is superior to others ii Ethnocentric group members offend others when they imply that they represent a superior culture with superior values i A stereotype is a generalization about a group of people that over simplifies their characteristics c Prejudice ii When we stereotype others we rely on exaggerated beliefs to make judgments about a group of people iii Stereotyping other group members does more than derail progress it prevents members from contributing their best skills and may create long lasting resentment and anger i Stereotyping leads to prejudices negative attitudes about other people that are based on faulty and inflexible stereotypes ii When you believe or express a prejudice you are making a judgment about someone before you have taken time to get to know that person and see whether your opinions and feelings are justified iii Such prejudices have several characteristics 1 They rarely are based on extensive direct experience 2 They result in irrational feelings or dislike and eve and firsthand knowledge hatred for certain groups 3 They justify a readiness to behave in negative and unjust ways toward members of the group i Discrimination refers to the behaviors in which we act out and express prejudice ii When we discriminate we exclude groups of people from opportunities available to others in areas such as employment promotion housing political expression and equal rights iii Discrimination has no place in groups d Discrimination 3 Personality Dimensions understanding personality theories helps a group balance its collection of diverse temperaments traits and talents a The Big Five Personality Traits i Psychologists use the Big Five Personality Traits to describe five factors that together describe a personality ii The five traits 1 Extraversion a Associated characteristics outgoing talkative sociable assertive active 2 Agreeableness a Associated characteristics cooperative friendly courteous flexible trusting good natured tolerant 3 Conscientious a Associated characteristics self disciplined organized thorough responsible hard working persevering 4 Emotional stability a Associated characteristics calm poised secure 5 Openness to experience a Associated characteristics imaginative curious broadminded intelligent original artistically sensitive iii Group researchers who study the Big Five Personality Traits conclude that high levels of agreeableness and emotional stability in groups are associated with group cohesiveness while conscientiousness is associated with task performance b The Myers Briggs Type Indicator the Myers Briggs Type Indicator MBTI developed by Katherine Briggs and her daughter Isabel Briggs Myers looks at the different ways in which people prefer to use their minds specifically the way they perceive and the way they make judgments i Extrovert Introvert attention 1 These two traits describe where you like to focus your 2 An extrovert focuses outward 3 An introvert focuses inward 4 Whereas an extrovert usually likes working in groups and on committees a introvert may prefer a solo assignment 5 Effective groups balance the needs f both personality types by accommodating the differences in communication style and tapping the best ideas from all members ii Sensor Intuitive 1 These two traits focus on how you look at the world around you picture 2 A sensor seeks the trees sensors like facts and details 3 An intuitive sees the forest intuitives prefer the big 4 Sensors like rules systematic explanations and detailed facts whereas intuitives prefer theoretical models and often avoid rules and details 5 Communication between sensors and intuitives can be difficult because they see things so differently and each believes that his or her information is more accurate valid and real 6 Groups need both kinds of members to function effectively and efficiently iii Thinker Feeler 1 These two traits explain how you make decisions 2 The thinker is task oriented and logical They often enjoy arguing and making difficult decisions they want iv Judger Perceiver to get the job done even if the cost is bad feelings among members 3 The feeler is people oriented and seeks group harmony They will spend time and effort helping others 4 When thinkers and feelers appreciate their differences as decision makers they can form an unbeatable team 1 The last two traits focus on how you deal with the outer world and its problems 2 The judger is highly structured and well