The Role of Belonging and Uniqueness Within Inclusion

diversity + inclusion diversity equity inclusion leadership

Diversity is what you have. Inclusion is what you do.

Diversity is what you have. Psychological, physical, and social differences that occur among individuals; including but not limited to race, color, ethnicity, nationality, religion, age socioeconomic status, veteran status, education, marital status, language, gender, gender expression, gender identity, sexual orientation, and abilities. A diverse group, community, or organization is one in which a variety of social and cultural characteristics exist.

Inclusion what you do. Inclusion is the act of bringing traditionally excluded individuals and/or groups in – into processes, activities, decision and policy making in a way that shares power.

The problem with leading diverse teams is that people think inclusion happens automatically. Inclusion requires deliberate and intentional action. Start thinking of inclusion as a verb. Remember, diversity is what you have. Inclusion is what you do.

So What is Belonging?

According to Baumeister & Leary (1995) humans have a fundamental need for belongingness, which is the need to form and maintain strong, stable interpersonal relationships. The inclusion framework by Dr. Lynn M. Shore and colleagues is a way of seeing belonging as a component of inclusion. Inclusion is viewed as a 2 x 2 framework of the feeling of belongingness and the value of uniqueness.

Are You Stuck in Assimilation or Differentiation?

Many teams and organizations are stuck in assimilation and differentiation. An example of assimilation is when a woman of color says she must straighten her hair in the workplace. Showing the natural texture of her hair is not OK because it is perceived as “unprofessional” in the workplace. She knows because she has received comments from colleagues about her hair. Thus, she feels the need to conform to the dominant culture and downplay uniqueness.

I heard a Hispanic/Latino(x) team member say: “the only reason I’m on the project is because I speak Spanish.” That’s a clear example of differentiation – it feels like tokenism. They didn’t feel a part of the work group and felt their unique characteristic of being bilingual was required for the group success.

Being treated like an insider or part of the work group means you feel respected and valued. You have access to critical information and resources.

Now that we have broken down inclusion, what box is your team in? What box would different members of your team feel they are in? Do you have diversity on your team? Do you have inclusion on your team?

We'll talk about the components of workplace inclusion in the next blog post!

Sources Mentioned:

Baumeister, R. F., & Leary, M. R. 1995. The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 117: 497-529.

Shore, Lynn & Randel, Amy & Chung, Beth & Dean, Michelle & Ehrhart, Karen & Singh, Gangaram. (2011). Inclusion and Diversity in Work Groups: A Review and Model for Future Research. Journal of Management. 37. 10.1177/0149206310385943.

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