Diversity can be described as the sum total of all individual attributes within an organization (Binder et al., 2008). It is therefore the case that the foundational basis for the diversity is dependent on an individual’s background, culture, and perception. Consequently, it is critical that I undertake a personal evaluation based on my background, culture, and perception so as to have a conscious idea within the wider construct of diversity in my organization.
Having been brought up in a contemporary middle class family, I never had to endure extreme struggles as is the case with some of the individuals that I know. One of the primary benefits of having been brought up in a middle class family that have had an adverse impact on my life is the ability to access education in a private school; private schools generally tend to have better standards of education in comparison to public schools.
However, the most defining aspect of the private school education is with regard to my social life. The number of students in my class was generally lower in comparison to what would have been the case was I in a public school. As a result, we tended to form closely knit relationships with my fellow students so much so that we regarded ourselves as family. Most of these relationships continue up to this day. Consequently, I am of the view that this helped shape my view of the interactions that I have with others. Until this day, I may not be as comfortable around a group of many individuals and would rather prefer a small group of closely knot individuals.
Such an inclination has also been reinforced by the fact that I have lived a very family centered life. My family has been a closely knit unit and has often formed the backdrop for any major decisions I made in life. As a result, it reinforced my attachment and high levels of trust towards small groups rather than an expansive number of persons.
The other defining aspect with which my education shaped my life’s perspectives is with respect to the nature of education given. In my elementary and post elementary education, there was always an emphasis on curiosity and inquiry rather than sheer conformity. As a result, from an early age, I learnt to view life from a broad perspective which has endeared me to having liberal views on numerous social and political issues.
However, despite my background and the perceptions that arose thereof, there a number of things that have changed over the years. In campus, my social environment changed such that there were a greater number of people from different racial, ethnic, and national backgrounds that I had to interact with during the course of the studies. The changes were particularly defining given that in the past, despite considering myself a liberal, I had never really interacted to a huge extent with people I would consider to have varying religious and ethnic/racial backgrounds from mine.
As a result, I experienced a culture shock with these changes; however, overtime I adopted something I attribute to my liberal upbringing and education. Presently, I have become versatile and can easily interact with both large and small groups of persons. However, even in large groups, I still tend to trust and confide in very few of them.
In terms of my in-group, I consider myself a liberal. Such was illustrated during one of the debates we had on immigration and cultural inclusivity. While a number of individuals were in support of strict adherence to contemporary cultural perspectives and limited immigration, I personally had no issue with numerous cultures being melted into one regardless of the loss of some cultural perspectives that would arise. This view was contrary to that of the out-group in my case; the conservatives.
References
Binder, A., et al (2008). Cultural Sociology and Its Diversity. Thousand Oaks, CA; Sage
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