Organisational Psychology research articles
Here, we share research articles written by Inclusioneering founder, Jo Stansfield, during her MSc Organisational Psychology. These articles are of high relevance to diversity, equity, and inclusion topics in tech and engineering firms. These span topics touching into gender and race, global cultures, neurodiversity, talent management, multinational organisations, and organisational change.
This page is intentionally unlinked from the parent site.
Master’s Thesis: Lessons for gender and racial diversity in technology
This research is the basis of “The Agile Inclusion Paradox”, the finding that despite sharing many characteristics with inclusive practices, Agile methodologies do not necessarily equate to equitable environments for women and people of minoritised race or ethnicity.
Abstract
Background:
Women and racial minorities are underrepresented in the White, male-dominated technology industry (BCS, 2020), and are characterised by low rates of progression and retention (Glass, Sassler, Levitte, & Michaelmore, 2013; Hunt, 2016). Despite growing recognition for the business case for diversity (PWC, 2017), and a growing portfolio of interventions (Annabi & Lebovitz, 2018), little progress has been made for a decade (BCS, 2019). Research of differential task-assignment in tech teams highlights gender differences (Fowler & Su, 2018), but little research has been identified that links to differential workplace outcomes by gender or race.
Aims:
To examine how assignment of tasks within Agile technology development teams may relate to Career Aspiration, Job Satisfaction and Career Commitment by gender and race.
Method:
An online survey was conducted, gaining 124 participants from Europe and North America. Analysis compared the responses of women and racial minorities to the majority group of white men.
Results:
Women reported lower task technicality than men, but no differences in Job Satisfaction or Career Commitment. Conversely, racial minorities reported no differences in assignment of tasks, but lower Job Satisfaction than White participants. Women and racial minorities reported the highest Career Aspirations, above that of White men.
Originality/Contribution:
Little research distinguishes between STEM domains, despite wide variety in gender/race balance and outcomes amongst these fields (Cheryan et al., 2017). The present research is unique in its examination of the technology domain, and in relating assignment of tasks to outcomes by gender and race.
Conclusion:
Women and racial minorities were found to report distinct task assignment patterns and attitudes to their careers, highlighting that membership of an underrepresented group does not equate to identical experience across groups. Findings are partially supported by existing literature, and challenge popular explanation for low progression and retention rates that people from these underrepresented groups are less interested, committed, or ambitious than White men (Abhouzahr et al, 2017; Gino et al., 2015).
Keywords
Gender, Race, Technology, Tasks, Job Satisfaction, Career Aspirations, Career Commitment
Background:
Women and racial minorities are underrepresented in the White, male-dominated technology industry (BCS, 2020), and are characterised by low rates of progression and retention (Glass, Sassler, Levitte, & Michaelmore, 2013; Hunt, 2016). Despite growing recognition for the business case for diversity (PWC, 2017), and a growing portfolio of interventions (Annabi & Lebovitz, 2018), little progress has been made for a decade (BCS, 2019). Research of differential task-assignment in tech teams highlights gender differences (Fowler & Su, 2018), but little research has been identified that links to differential workplace outcomes by gender or race.
Aims:
To examine how assignment of tasks within Agile technology development teams may relate to Career Aspiration, Job Satisfaction and Career Commitment by gender and race.
Method:
An online survey was conducted, gaining 124 participants from Europe and North America. Analysis compared the responses of women and racial minorities to the majority group of white men.
Results:
Women reported lower task technicality than men, but no differences in Job Satisfaction or Career Commitment. Conversely, racial minorities reported no differences in assignment of tasks, but lower Job Satisfaction than White participants. Women and racial minorities reported the highest Career Aspirations, above that of White men.
Originality/Contribution:
Little research distinguishes between STEM domains, despite wide variety in gender/race balance and outcomes amongst these fields (Cheryan et al., 2017). The present research is unique in its examination of the technology domain, and in relating assignment of tasks to outcomes by gender and race.
Conclusion:
Women and racial minorities were found to report distinct task assignment patterns and attitudes to their careers, highlighting that membership of an underrepresented group does not equate to identical experience across groups. Findings are partially supported by existing literature, and challenge popular explanation for low progression and retention rates that people from these underrepresented groups are less interested, committed, or ambitious than White men (Abhouzahr et al, 2017; Gino et al., 2015).
Keywords
Gender, Race, Technology, Tasks, Job Satisfaction, Career Aspirations, Career Commitment
Gender Pay Gap Reporting: A Qualitative Case Study of its Impact to Women in Technology Careers
The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify themes in the career accounts, attitudes and intentions of mid-career women working in technology, using semi-structured interviews. It asks the question, what impact do events that make gender bias salient, such as the U.K. gender pay gap reporting, have to the perceptions, attitudes and intentions of women working in male-dominated technology industries?
It was found that, despite its saliency, the gender pay gap was not perceived as a strong influence, which can be explained in terms of its impersonal nature (Glasman & Albarracín, 2006). Findings about group identity may open new avenues of research for how to encourage more women to enter and remain in technology careers.
The effectiveness of an appraisal process in a multinational software organisation
This qualitative study evaluates the effectiveness of the appraisal process in a multinational software organisation. Drawing upon semi-structured interviews with two HR professionals, it examines its international utility and seeks to identify barriers that affect likelihood of identifying individuals as talented.
Assessing efficacy of cross-cultural coaching
Executive coaching has grown to a multi-billion global market, moving away from its origins of addressing toxic leadership towards development of high-potential performers, becoming a leadership development best-practice. Yet the coaching industry is fragmented and unregulated with supporting evidence-base still growing. This paper examines Positive Psychology coaching and the Universal Integrative Framework (Law, 2013), considering the embededness people’s lives within a social, cultural and organizational context.
Systematic review of effectiveness of interventions to increase recruitment of women to STEM careers
Despite growing practitioner publications of best practices of recruitment for diversity (e.g. PWC, 2017), little recent scholarly research has been identified. While Tsui (2007) reviewed strategies to increase diversity in STEM fields, she found little quality empirical research or systematic attempt to compare effectiveness. In the intervening decade, discourse and research has progressed. This systematic review fills a gap to examine recruitment interventions for increasing proportions of women in STEM careers. Particularly, it seeks empirical evidence to back practitioner findings, evaluate contextual differences, and provide a means to rank interventions by effectiveness to enable focused effort and resources to those with greatest impact.
Analysis of a Cross-Cultural Personality Inventory: Adapted IPIP Big-Five Factors in Inuktitut speaking Inuit children
This article is the literature review from a larger piece of work.
The Five-Factor Theory of personality describes a broad-bandwidth structure of personality across the lifespan (McCrae & Costa, 2008). It has been widely validated and applied extensively across diverse cultures and age groups. In translation to additional languages, cross-cultural validity must be established. A prominent concern is of cultural bias arising from generalisation from convenience samples of middle-class Western participants (Berry, 2015; Heine & Norenzayan, 2006). Amongst other diverse populations, Indigenous people in the Americas are underrepresented in research (Berry, 2015). Inuit culture is known to differ from Western culture, and this population has been subject to extensive historical trauma. This literature review explores these complex factors and considerations in adapting a personality inventory for use in Inuit children.
Deepwater Horizon oil spill – perspectives from organisational psychology
This report critically examines the factors leading to the Deep Water Horizon Oil, that led to significant organisational and regulatory change.