Looking Beyond Our Similarities: How Perceived (In)Visible Dissimilarity Relates to Feelings of Inclusion at Work

We investigated how the perception of being dissimilar to others at work relates to employees’ felt inclusion, distinguishing between surface-level and deep-level dissimilarity. In addition, we tested the indirect relationships between surface-level and deep-level dissimilarity and work-related outcomes, through social inclusion. Furthermore, we tested the moderating role of a climate for inclusion in the relationship between perceived dissimilarity and felt inclusion. We analyzed survey data from 887 employees of a public service organization. An ANOVA showed that felt inclusion was lower for individuals who perceived themselves as deep-level dissimilar compared to individuals who perceived themselves as similar, while felt inclusion did not differ among individuals who perceived themselves as surface-level similar or dissimilar. Furthermore, a moderated mediation analysis showed a negative conditional indirect relationship between deep-level dissimilarity and work-related outcomes through felt inclusion. Interestingly, while the moderation showed that a positive climate for inclusion buffered the negative relationship between deep-level dissimilarity and felt inclusion, it also positively related to feelings of inclusion among all employees, regardless of their perceived (dis)similarity. This research significantly improves our understanding of how perceived dissimilarity affects employees by distinguishing between surface-level and deep-level dissimilarity and by demonstrating the importance of a climate for inclusion

Naar een inclusieve werkvloer : Seksuele oriëntatie en genderidentiteit op het werk

In this abbreviated version of my inaugural lecture, I advocate for an inclusive workplace in which there is room for sexual orientation and gender identity. I discuss how this topic is researched by social and organizational psychologists and what we have learned from this to date. I pay attention to potential obstacles on the road to an inclusive workplace and to blind spots in diversity policy, but also to potential solutions and to the opportunities that an inclusive workplace has to offer to organizations and their employees. Then I present a program of research aimed at gaining the necessary insights in how an inclusive workplace can be realized. Here I focus on the psychological processes that stand in the way of a truly inclusive workplace for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees, and what we can learn from these processes in order to come up with practical solutions. I emphasize the importance of paying attention to minority and majority group members alike and of collaboration between science, civil society, the public sector and industry

Not quite over the rainbow: the unrelenting and insidious nature of heteronormative ideology

Heteronormative ideology refers to the belief that there are two separate and opposing genders with associated natural roles that match their assigned sex, and that heterosexuality is a given. It is pervasive and persistent, carrying negative consequences. Because it is embedded in societal institutions and propagated through socialization and other widely held ideologies, it is prevalent among both cis-hetero and LGBTQI+ individuals. In the current article, we discuss the unrelenting and insidious nature of heteronormative ideology, review some of the social-psychological mechanisms that contribute to its maintenance, and provide directions for future research that could inform efforts to combat it. We argue that threat reactions to non-heteronormative behavior reinforce heteronormative beliefs and that interventions are needed to address both prejudice and its underlying mechanisms

Naar een inclusieve werkvloer: Seksuele oriëntatie en genderidentiteit op het werk

In this abbreviated version of my inaugural lecture, I advocate for an inclusive workplace in which there is room for sexual orientation and gender identity. I discuss how this topic is researched by social and organizational psychologists and what we have learned from this to date. I pay attention to potential obstacles on the road to an inclusive workplace and to blind spots in diversity policy, but also to potential solutions and to the opportunities that an inclusive workplace has to offer to organizations and their employees. Then I present a program of research aimed at gaining the necessary insights in how an inclusive workplace can be realized. Here I focus on the psychological processes that stand in the way of a truly inclusive workplace for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees, and what we can learn from these processes in order to come up with practical solutions. I emphasize the importance of paying attention to minority and majority group members alike and of collaboration between science, civil society, the public sector and industry

The right thing to do or the smart thing to do? How communicating moral or business motives for diversity affects the employment image of Dutch public and private sector organizations

Many organizations have diversity statements in place in which they publicly declare their appreciation of and commitment to workforce diversity. These statements can either contain moral motives (e.g., “diversity reduces social inequalities”), business motives (e.g., “diversity enhances innovation”), or a combination of moral and business motives. In a desk study involving 182 Dutch organizations, we found that (a) private sector organizations more often than public sector organizations communicate business motives, (b) that public and private sector organizations are equally likely to communicate moral motives, and (c) that public sector organizations more frequently than private sector organizations communicate a combination of moral and business motives. Next, we used an experimental design to examine the causal influence of communicating different diversity motives on organizations' employment image (i.e., perceptions of organizational morality, competence, and attractiveness) among prospective employees (n = 393). Here, we used a scenario in which a healthcare organization was portrayed as either a public or a private sector organization and communicated either only moral motives, only business motives or a combination of moral and business motives for diversity. We found that for a public sector organization communicating moral instead of business motives for valuing diversity induced a more favorable employment image. For a private sector organization, there were no differences in employment image depending on the motive communicated. Together, these two studies shed new light on the role of diversity motives in establishing a positive employment image

Het Moet Wel Werken

Een vergelijkende analyse en duiding van patronen in de data verzameld onder ondertekenaars van het Charter Diversiteit en deelnemers aan de Nederlandse InclusiviteitsMonito

Antecedents and consequences of system justification among Iranian migrants in Western Europe

Seeing the sociopolitical system as fair and legitimate is important for people’s participation in civic duties, political action, and the functioning of society in general. However, little is known about when migrants, without life-long socialization in a certain system, justify the sociopolitical system of their host country and how system justification influences their political participation. We examined antecedents of system justification using a survey among Iranian migrants in eight European countries (N = 935). Subsequently, we examined the relationship between system justification and political participation intentions. We found that system justification beliefs are generally high in our sample, mainly stemming from an assessment of opportunity to achieve changes in intergroup relations. Stronger social identity threat, feeling disadvantaged, a longer residence in Europe, and perceived intergroup stability all relate to less system justification. Conversely, stronger efficacy beliefs bolster system justification. Furthermore, we found some support for a curvilinear relationship between system justification and political participation intentions, but the size of this effect is small. The results show that the high levels of system justification of Iranian migrants are at risk when discrimination and disadvantage are perceived to be stable facets of society. Surprisingly, political participation to better Iranian migrants’ societal position is barely affected by system justification. We discuss implications and further research that can increase understanding of system justification among migrants

De Nederlandse InclusiviteitsMonitor: Inzichten uit 2019-2020

In totaal hebben in 2019 en 2020 20 organisaties met bij elkaar bijna 21000 medewerkers deelgenomen aan de Nederlandse InclusiviteitsMonitor. In deze factsheet vatten we de belangrijkste bevindingen en adviezen samen