Introduction

Internal Dimensions and External Dimensions are adapted from Marilyn Loden and Judy Rosener, Workforce America!

The Four Layers of Diversity Model

Internal Dimensions and External Dimensions are adapted from Marilyn Loden and Judy Rosener, Workforce America! (Business One Irwin, 1991) Gardenswartz & Rowe, Diverse Teams at Work (2nd Edition, SHRM, 2003)

In this assignment, you'll explore the social constructions that create discrimination. In general, the high-tech industry has a diversity problem, which can potentially be remedied by the use of artificial Intelligence, diversity initiatives, and legislation.

Your Contribution

  1. Collaborate in the current Google Slides template (available via Canvas) to summarizes your chosen topic and readings.
  2. Then ask each other questions and suggest revisions by using the Slides Commenting feature. Be sure to @name to alert your classmates of your comments.
  3. Download/Print a PDF of your slide and the Bibliography slide that includes your entries.
  4. Submit the PDF in Canvas for a plagiarism check and score.

You'll write about new concepts and examine a company through a cultural lens to analyze its diversity in relation to an ethical theory.

Discrimination

Have you ever been discriminated against in school, at work, or socially, based on your age, gender, culture, race, class, or abilities? Or, has your privilege insulated you from discrimination?

Which of the following five problems is your experience most likely due to?

These problems...

Stereotype Threat

is "to believe unfairly that all people or things with a particular characteristic are the same" (Mariam-Webster 2016) Segment from the Human Development class at Palo Alto university Business Psychology Program.

Insularity

is the ignorance of or lack of interest in cultures, ideas, or peoples outside one's own experience. (Oxford Dictionary 2010)

Disparity

is the lack of opportunity, education, wages, jobs, access to technology, etc.

Lack of a Moral compass

is when a person's ability to judge what is right and wrong and act accordingly. (Google) Your Moral Compass Could Be Broken, Freethink, 2020.

Unconscious biases

are automatic quick decisions about people or situations based on the brain's prejudices of past experiences. Google staff discuss unconscious bias.

...create discrimination by...

Culture

is "the integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to succeeding generations" (Mariam-Webster 2012) Cultures, Subcultures, and Countercultures: Crash Course Sociology #11.

Gender

is "the behavioral, cultural, or psychological traits typically associated with one sex" (Mariam-Webster 2012) Off the Record (Bristol) and Educational Action Challenging Homophobia (EACH) as part of the Government Equalities Office funded Inspiring Equality in Education programme.

Race

is a human construct whereby people are grouped by ancestry. The myth of race, debunked in 3 minutes. Vox 2015.

Class

creates a system where attitudes, behaviors, policies, and practices benefit the wealthy at the expense of the poor. (Wikipedia)

Age

may create unfair treatment of a person based on their age. It impacts their confidence, job prospects, financial situation, and quality of life. Dr. Sabina Brennan of Trinity College Dublin. © 2016 University of Dublin

Continue reading about marginalized groups as well as the concept of inclusive design:

Reading List

The Leaky Pipeline

The Leaky Pipeline: Reasons why women and marginalized gorups leave STEM jobs at high rates.
Open in a new tab to click on the sources

Reading List

Inclusive Design

Example illustration revised for inclusion
Inclusive Design, © 2022 Nielsen Norman Group.

The Nielsen Norman Group, which focuses on research-based user experience, describes the inclusive design as "methodologies to create products that understand and enable people of all backgrounds and abilities. It may address accessibility, age, economic situation, geographic location, language, race, and more." (Joyce 2022)

Reading List

Hiring Laws

The USA requires government agencies and businesses that receive government funding to hire according to several laws under the Department of Labor, which may affect you in the future:

Reading List

Refer to writing instructions under each page of the template provided in step 7.5. Open articles in new tabs and add them to your bibliography tool.

Besides laws, many companies offer special programs to train, support, and boost diversity among their employees:

Bias in AI

Research shows AI is often biased. Here's how to make algorithms work for all of us © British Medical Journal

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) of the US Dept of Commerce provides policy documents for computing professionals. Their 2022 report Towards a Standard for Identifying and Managing Bias in Artificial Intelligence (2022) provides an excellent guideline for tackling the problems noted in their recent video:

Many major tech companies are now using AI to help hire developers as well as detect and eradicate bias in product development.

NIST contributes to the research, standards and data required to realize the full promise of artificial intelligence (AI) as an enabler of American innovation across industry and economic sectors. Working with the AI community, NIST seeks to identify the technical requirements needed to cultivate trust that AI systems are accurate and reliable, safe and secure, explainable, and free from bias.

Reading List

State of the Industry

Bias in AI

Bias in Security

Hiring with AI

Advertising with AI