Intercultural Communication/Leadership and Diversity Section

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            In the workplace setting, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is one of the foundational values a team, organization, and company or corporation should have. DEI goes beyond the typical aspects an individual may think of – race or gender.  On the surface, it may appear as though everyone is similar, same organization, same company; however, when you peel back the first layer, everyone is unique. Allen (2011) writes “if organizations deal effectively with difference and embrace it as a positive force rather than as something to be shunned or feared, they can optimize accomplishing their goals” (p. 6).

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            When developing my project, I focused predominately on inclusivity ensuring that leadership gather feedback from all individuals within their organization, and in some cases, outside of their organization. It is important for everyone to feel as though they are a valued member of the organization who can provide feedback on how the organization is functioning and see if changes can be made. One of the communication theories that has bolstered my project is uncertainty reduction theory, or URT. This theory “focuses on how human communication is used to gain knowledge and create understanding” (Griffin et al., 2023, p. 108). Uncertainty is an initial concern when involved in a new interaction, and it increases in intercultural communication settings. William Gudykunst, a professor at California State University, Fullerton, assessed Charles Berger’s URT and noted that it does not go far enough to address anxiety. Gudykunst writes that “uncertainty is a thought; anxiety is a feeling”; when individuals are in a communication environment, there could be a feeling of anxiety, unsure of how the interaction will go (Griffin et al., 2023, p. 113). Gudykunst continues to write “uncertainty and anxiety [are] twin threats to be managed in order to achieve effective cross-cultural understanding” (Griffin et al., 2023, p. 113-114). When individuals work to reduce uncertainty within their interaction with others, a level of anxiety can also decrease, leading to an improved comfort level and more transparency.

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            An intercultural communication theory that relates to my project is communication accommodation theory, or CAT. Developed by Howard Giles, the concept of CAT is that people change, or accommodate, their communication and behaviors to create a decrease or increase in social distance (Griffin et al., 2023, p. 328). CAT and URT relate to each other in that URT is focused on uncertainty reduction within an interaction and CAT is focused on adjusting communication styles to accommodate another individual. When there is an increased in communication accommodation, it is possible for uncertainty to be reduced. Within CAT, there are concerns raised with social identity. If in a group setting and only one individual is from another race or gender, they may feel it is their duty to represent for all members of that group. This could lead to a change in their communication delivery to be more non-accommodating, which could create an increased divide with the receiver; however, if the receiver feels they are representing only themselves and their personal experiences, it can help to create more of an accommodating conversation, and reduce uncertainty (Griffin et al., 2023, p. 333). Since my project is focused on leaders gathering feedback from others, it is important for both the leader and the individuals providing feedback to assess the need to change their communication style to accommodate one another.

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            As with any new concept or process, there can be limitations which may not have been accounted for previously. One of those limitations is the comfort level of people speaking up and providing feedback to a leader in an individual or group setting. When I originally developed my project, I was planning to address DEI through diversity within the individuals providing feedback – diversity of background and skills. I did not originally consider looking beyond diversity of work background and skills to include factors such as race, culture, and gender. Due to cultural, language, and gender barriers, people may not feel comfortable speaking up and providing feedback to a leader within an individual or group setting due to fear of retaliation, fear of invalidation, or fear of being misunderstood. Allen (2011) writes “because dominant group members say they have not had similar experiences, they may downplay issues that matter to nondominant persons” (p. 6). If someone provide leadership feedback and it is invalidated by the leader or the group they are with, this can create a feeling of not being valued, accepted, or heard. One of the ways to reduce or eliminate this limitation is to look for opportunities to provide different ways of providing feedback including anonymous surveys. This can help encourage others to speak up on their own time without fear of being misunderstood or misrepresented. An additional way to address the limitation is to provide concrete examples of how feedback was captured by individuals from diverse backgrounds and change was implemented; this is the ‘act’ and ‘communicate’ elements of my project. The old saying of “actions speak louder than words” is truly something one cannot ignore when it comes to leadership feedback from team members. When individuals see that their feedback was documented and addressed, it can create a better, more productive workplace environment and enable inclusivity. These two ways of addressing the limitation can not only reduce it, but also continue to reduce uncertainty among employees. 

 

 

References

Allen, B. (2011). Difference matters: Communicating social identity. (2nd ed.). Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.

 

Griffin, E., Ledbetter, A., Sparks, G. (2023). Communication Accommodation Theory by Howard Giles. A first look             at communication theory (p. 328-342). (11th ed.). McGraw Hill.

 

Griffin, E., Ledbetter, A., Sparks, G. (2023). Uncertainty Reduction Theory by Charles Berger. A first look at                         communication theory (p. 108-119). (11th ed.). McGraw Hill.

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