Cultural diversity

In the present day, it is impossible not to hear the word cultural diversity since that is what
everyone talks about at school, work, on the news, while watching football, and so on. So, in
this paper, I will try to describe what the phrase cultural diversity means in a brief, as well as
the two concepts that comprise it, culture and diversity, as well as the strategies for managing
diversity.

The term "cultural" in cultural diversity is an adjective that stems from the noun "culture,"
which is difficult to define due to its multifaceted and context-dependent nature. Scholars from
various disciplines have investigated its meaning and potential parameters over the years, but it
remain a highly contested and enigmatic concept to this day. The term culture is derived from
the Latin term cultra or cultus, which can mean "cultivate", "culture", "civilisation", "adoration",
"worship", "way of life", "dress", "attire" and "adornment". For many years, it has been the
focus of cultural anthropologists and sociologists, but lawyers are now increasingly joining the
quest to find a workable definition of culture. While the search continues, we are left with a
plethora of divergent perspectives on culture's precise meaning, nature, and relevance. Culture
is defined as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of
society or a social group, that encompasses, not only art and literature, but lifestyles, ways of
living together, value systems, traditions, and beliefs (UNESCO, 2001), Edward Burnett Tylor in
the first paragraph of his Primitive Culture (1871):"Culture . . . is that complex whole which
includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits
acquired by man as a member of society." From both of these definitions, we can see how
complex culture is, how it teaches us how to express ourselves. We have to eat, but society tells
us when, what, and how at different periods, in different places, and in different jobs, everyone
belongs to distinct cultures and lastly we can see how much vast the components that make it
up are.

Moving on from these attempts to establish a fixed meaning for culture, the next mission is to
investigate the meaning of the word "diversity" in the phrase "cultural diversity." Diversity is a
noun derived from the Latin word dīversitās, which means the state of being diverse or
different. Diversity as defined by Merriam Webster is a condition of having or being composed
of differing elements: VARIETY. But what exactly are these elements? The definition of UNSECO
provides a more precise definition, People’s differences which may relate to their race,
ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, language, culture, religion, mental and physical ability,
class, and immigration status.’ (UNESCO, 2017: 7). So the term diversity denotes to differences
in methods or elements that cannot be limited simply from gender to ways of thinking.
Now that we have defined those two terms lets defined the term cultural diversity even though
is a debatable, open-ended concept that may simply refer to a diverse group of peoples or
societies with different origins, religions, and traditions living and interacting together, or it
could actually represent something broader which is rather simplistic and seems to apply to any kind
of diversity. like Cox (1994) defines cultural diversity as, ―identities such as race, ethnicity,
nationality, religion, gender, and other dimensions of difference derived from membership in
groups that are socio culturally distinct, that is, they collectively share certain norms, values or
traditions that are different from those of other groups.

Cultural diversity has its own characteristics which are (1) is a this double-edged sword that can
be both a competitive advantage and a driver of contention and unhappiness in a company if it
is neglected by mistake.. (2) Cultural diversity encompasses not only primary dimensions
(gender, age, race, ethnicity, etc.) but also secondary dimensions (such as religion, personality
differences, education etc). (3) Cultural diversity is not one time task but a life-long process that
must be carried out in response to the changing requirements and demands of a diverse
workforce.

Thus, it can be summed up that, ―Cultural diversity is basically workforce diversity and thus
includes all those visible and non-visible factors that cause differences among people, e.g.
gender, religion, physical disability, family status, age, race, hierarchical status, language,
education, profession and life style etc.‖

Diversity management-Ways of managing cultural diversity

Diversity management is a management theory that contends that acknowledging and
respecting difference in organizations may benefit both organizational performances.Managing
diversity is a continual process that unlocks the unique skills and capabilities that a diverse
population contributes to a company, society, and country in order to create a healthy,
inclusive atmosphere that is "safe for differences," allows individuals to "reject rejection,"
embraces variety, and leverages the full potential of everyone in a cultural context where
everyone benefits. The art of managing variety is consequently of significant significance to all
those tasked with the obligation of monitoring everything from the work of others to the whole
country. So, in this subtopic, we will try to explore such methods.

Recognizing Cultural Diversity

This approach views recognizing different cultures and identities associated with them as the
first step to teaching about cultural diversity. In a society where people with different cultures
mix together both in private and public areas, it is crucial to provide everyone with a sense of
belonging. Recognized culture is essential for fostering a sense of belonging. This approach
basically argues for political recognition, social recognition, curricular recognition, and personal
recognition (at individual and psychological levels). These four categories have some overlap
with each other while differing in some ways. Political recognition refers to recognition of
cultures in legal and political areas, such as citizenship and the right to vote. social recognition
which demands diverse groups of individuals to recognize and respect one other's cultures and
identities in a society's public domain. curricular recognition insists that fundamental diverse
cultures and identities should be reflected in the curricula. Personal recognition focuses on
individual interactions as well as psychological feelings and concerns in a private relationship.

Treating People with Different Cultures Equally

This approach points out that No one should be discriminated and hence everyone should be
entitled to participate equally in decision-making processes. This approach focuses on making
proactive programed for ensuring equal opportunity, fair treatment, recruitment and observance of
Equal Employment Opportunity conditions for everyone. This means that it simply refers to the
belief that all people are morally equal and should be taken seriously by others as individuals
capable of making decisions. But Treating other cultures and identities equally does not imply
that individuals must treat strangers as equally as they treat family, or neglect that humans are
unequal in many ways, such as mentality and weakness. For this approach, difference is neither
the issue nor the solution; hence emphasizing differences among individuals is wrong since it
would make us focus on one of the group disadvantages. Common demands, shared
disadvantages, and individual freedom of choice should be prioritized.

Effective communication
Building an efficient communication system is crucial for keeping a diverse workforce engaged
and on the same page at all levels, whether national, community, or corporate. Overcoming
cultural and language obstacles should be a top priority for the leadership or management
team. If necessary, essential documents such as security information should be translated. To
guarantee that everyone understands, use warning signs with visuals and icons.

Psychological safety
Managers and leaders must create an environment in which people feel safe to contribute,
speak out, share their thoughts, and be authentic. The biggest distinction between high-
performing teams and low-performing teams, according to a Google experiment, was not the
team members' IQ, background, experience, or education, but how successfully the team
manager built a culture of psychological safety on the team. Furthermore, in psychologically
secure teams, team members feel welcomed and valued.
Multiculturalism

Multiculturalism is defined as: “a system of beliefs and behaviors t hat recognizes and respects the

presence of all diverse groups in an organization or society, acknowledges and values their socio-
cultural differences, and encourages and enables their continued contribution within an
inclusive cultural context which empowers all within the organization or society