Attached.

Running head: DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

Diversity and Inclusion
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

1

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

2
Diversity and Inclusion

Cultural Dimensions
The culture of any given place or group of people can be described using four primary
dimensions. Hofstede (2011) contends that uncertainty avoidance, femininity versus masculinity,
Power distance, and individualism versus collectivism are major dimensions of cultural diversity.
As the name suggests, the first dimension, power distance, examines how the particular society
handles matters relating to inequalities, including educational, physical, economic and political.
Under masculinity versus femininity, the central values of society are examined and categorized
as either masculine or feminine. The masculine values are represented by gender roles which are
socially defined, aspects such as toughness and assertiveness, as well as materialism. In contrast ,
feminine values deal with issues concerning co-occurring gender roles and the overall quality of
life. Individualism describes a social set up where people are concerned only about their social
well-being and that of their close or immediate family. On the other hand, a society practicing
collectivism considers the interests of the entire community or groups of people. Lastly,
uncertainty avoidance addresses society's ability to tolerate ambiguity or uncertainty (Hofstede,
2011). Here, the presence of structures, or lack of thereof, and society’s level of comfort is
evaluated to determine differences from one to the next, (Syed & Ozbilgin, 2015).
The Asian American and Asian Cultural Group
The cultural group I identify with is the American Asians and Asians. Being the fastest
growing group in the country, the American Asians and Asians are extremely diverse with
numerous languages and ethnicities. Given the notable difference between our culture and that of
the host nation coupled with the need to assimilate, maintaining the cultural heritage of the group
over the years has proven to be a challenge. Ideally, the group has traditionally been hierarchical,

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

3

structured, and paternal, an aspect which is reflected in their families. These values are derived
from the philosophies of Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism which are common across the
group. Therefore, in an effort to maintaining peace, harmony, and balance, members of the group
try to be indifferent, passive or indecisive. For this reason, communications within the
community are mostly indirect. On the family level, pride is highly valued. As a result, children
are encouraged to protect family integrity and discouraged from bringing shame to the family.
Difference between Diversity and Inclusion
Although diversity and inclusion are sometimes interchangeably used, the two concepts
significantly vary from each other, creating the need to understand their differences. By
definition, diversity refers to the different dimensions that are used to tell apart one social group
or community from another (Syed & Ozbilgin, 2015). Therefore, diversity encourages the
empowerment and respect of these groups by fostering appreciation and respect. In other words,
it is through diversity that people get to understand and appreciate the elements that make one
group different from another, leading to mutual respect. Examples of aspects which make groups
different and contribute to diversity include gender, age, ethnicity, education, sexual orientation,
disability, religion, and national origin among others. By understanding these elements, members
of society learn to tolerate, accommodate and value the differences, cultivating positive
relationships among members of different cultures.
On the other hand, inclusion refers to the effort...