what is the social impact of diversity in australia

Most of this literature focusing on OECD countries has addressed how diversity can affect trust, voting patterns, civic participation, preferences for redistribution and investment into public goods. Desmond Tutu once stated; Differences are not intended to separate, to alienate. Table2.3 shows that most studies on board diversity suggest that the relation between board diversity and performance is not significant or only very weakly positive (for meta-studies on gender board diversity, see Post and Byron (2015[13]) and Pletzer etal. There is a large, multi-disciplinary interest on the impact of diversity, including the field of management and HR, psychology and economics, including labour economics, trade and the political economy literature. Before I begin I would like to acknowledge the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation, the Traditional Owners of the land upon which we gather today. This appears to be linked to biased managers interacting less with minorities, thereby leading minorities to exert less effort (Glover, Pallais and Pariente, 2017[25]). The majority of these studies has focused on Western European and North American countries and looks at the micro level impact, i.e. by looking at the impact of newly introduced gender quotas for boards, also tend to find that a subsequently higher share of women does not have a significant effect on firm performance (see for example Ferrari etal. Social and Economic Impacts of Racism | SpringerLink With increasingly diverse societies, there has been a strong interest in better understanding whether and how diversity affects economic outcomes. No complaint under these acts can go to a court, unless and until the matter has been considered by the Commission. 37/3, pp. 85-96. [9] Brunow,S. and B.Stockinger (2013), Establishments and regions cultural diversity as a source of innovation: Evidence from Germany, NORFACE Discussion Paper, No. 267-291. [8], Not only have we witnessed an increase in racial discrimination through our formal complaints mechanism we have also seen a disturbing rise of racial abuse in the public domain, whether it be on public transport or on the sporting field. Some studies seek to quantify the cost of continuing non-inclusion of diverse populations. Social Capital and Race in British Neighbourhoods. [34] Alesina,A. and E.La Ferrara (2005). 987-1015. People of all cultures, background and faith have contributed to the development of the cultural and religious landscape of Australia. due differences in worldviews, discrimination, Trade facilitation and new markets: easier access to markets abroad, better understanding of diverse customer base, new clients, Increased availability of goods and services: e.g. [23] Horwitz,S. and I.Horwitz (2007), The Effects of Team Diversity on Team Outcomes: A Meta-Analytic Review of Team Demography, Journal of Management, Vol. And when this occurs, this positive effect of diversity trumps the initial challenges. Retaining Long-Term Employees 3. Parts of this chapter are based on a background report on the economic impact of diversity, provided by Ceren Ozgen (Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellow at the Department of Economics and the Institute for Research into Superdiversity (IRiS) at the University of Birmingham). Some examples of how multiculturalism has affected the social and political spheres are found in revisions of curricula, particularly in Europe and North America, and the expansion of the Western literary and other canons that began during the last quarter of the 20th century.Curricula from the elementary to the university levels were revised and . (ed.). [14] Pletzer,J. etal. The report emphasises that racism and discrimination disrupt all social cohesion dimensions this was evident from national and international literature and also the community case studies that were conducted as part of their research. Indeed, a field testing study has found that compared to natives, candidates with a foreign sounding name are equally often invited to a job interview if they apply for occupations for which vacancies are difficult to fill (Baert, Cockx and Gheyle, 2015[49]). The Racism.It stops with me campaign aims to empower Australians to take practical action against racism. Some meta-analyses find no significant impact of gender composition, ethnicity or age on team performance (Horwitz and Horwitz, 2007[19]; Schneid etal., 2016[20]), while others find negative, but very small impacts (Bell etal., 2011[21]; Joshi and Roh, 2009[22])3. It is a combination of our differences that shape our view of the world, our perspective and our approach[1]. Theory on human evolution and social diversity largely contends that the human brain has evolved a predisposition to protect our own groups, as survival was dependent on cooperation with members of that group. 286-313. On average, however, more gender equal boards have a negative effect on corporate performance. 46, pp. 44/3, pp. Another study including around 200 European regions suggests that the impact of migrant diversity on innovation is positive and shows an inverse U-shape relationship. Social Integration. To answer that I think we need to define what it is. Accounting for these characteristics generally increases the size of the relationship between team performance and diversity and therefore partially explains the mixed results of individual studies. [12] Parrotta,P., D.Pozzoli and M.Pytlikova (2014), Labor diversity and firm productivity, European Economic Review, Vol. [41] Delhey,J. and K.Newton (2005), Predicting Cross-National Levels of Social Trust: Global Pattern or Nordic Exceptionalism?, European Sociological Review, Vol. Employers will increasingly feel the cost of discriminatory behaviour in the context of growing labour market shortages, as their competitiveness will suffer from irrational hiring preferences (Gary Becker, 1957). [2] Markus, P. (2013). France, for example, could gain around EUR150 billion, or 6.9% of the 2015 GDP, over 20years (i.e. [43] Stolle,D., S.Soroka and R.Johnston (2008), When Does Diversity Erode Trust? This shows that the relationship between more gender balanced boards and firm performance are complex and may impact different areas of performance differently. When racist abuse rears its ugly head we will never as a club do what this person has done: disappear into anonymity. During the election campaign, the Coalition promised to repeal or wind back Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act, to prevent any repetition of the Bolt case. : An assessment of their (in)effectiveness using administrative data., http://oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190274801.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780190274801-e-13, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264281318-en. As individuals we all have the capacity to combat racial discrimination and change attitudes about racism. The Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford. [27] Cooke,A. and T.Kemeny (2017), Cities, immigrant diversity, and complex problem solving, Research Policy, Vol. Why is Diversity Important? - Diversity for Social Impact The other positive outcomes the survey revealed is that 92% of people surveyed said they feel they belong to Australian society. These changes have had many positive effects such as filling important gaps in the labour market and challenging cultural insularity. Panel data fixed effects models, which often help accounting for unobserved heterogeneity, do not work for firm-level studies due to the small within-firm variation. In Europe, research has also found a positive relationship between innovation and the share of the foreign-born population on a regional level (Ozgen, Nijkamp and Poot, 2012[5]). This is particularly likely in settings where people encounter each other as equals and as part of a routine or with a common goal, e.g. In addition, Gonzalez and Denisi (2009[24]) show that in different branches of a large US company the diversity climate, i.e. This video reminds us that there are practical things all of us can do to counter prejudice and discrimination. Particularly for board positions, however, members may be diverse on aspects such as gender or ethnicity, but in other aspects such as educational background, values or professional experiences they might be very similar, hence not always adding much in terms of new perspectives or novel ideas. 2018/09, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/89bae654-en. They also show that, by focusing only on the short term, we may draw an inaccurate, pessimistic conclusion about the impact of diversity. It stops with me campaign and is a good example of the educational and advocacy work of the Commission. [18] Trax,M., S.Brunow and J.Suedekum (2015), Cultural diversity and plant-level productivity, Regional Science and Urban Economics, Vol. Internationally, multiculturalism in Australia is seen as a success story, and stands as a good example on how to build a cohesive and inclusive society. [21] Bell,S. etal. Since post-war migration began, Australia has been taking in a million immigrants each decade from all regions of the world. Note: (+) = impact is positive and statistically significant; (-) = impact is negative and statistically significant; (/) = impact is statistically insignificant. The key role that Australia's immigrants played in this economic achievement cannot be taken away. The literature shows that a number of factors have a strong mediating impact; social exclusion and disadvantage, inequality, inter-group contact and social interactions as well as the role of governance and institutions are important explanatory factors. There is a large literature that goes beyond the economic impact of diversity and seeks to assess how ethnic and immigrant diversity affects social cohesion and preferences for redistribution. [37] Letki,N. (2008), Does Diversity Erode Social Cohesion? In the context of increasingly diverse populations, there is a clear interest in gauging the economic impact of diversity. [33] Ager,P. and M.Brckner (2013), Cultural diversity and economic growth: Evidence from the US during the age of mass migration, European Economic Review, Vol. I would also like to highlight that apart from our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, all of us came to this country as immigrants or are the descendants of immigrants. While it is disheartening to see the extent to which racism exists in our society, the positive outcome out of these recent events has been the extent to which society has stood up and confirmed that there is no place in sport, public transport or any other aspect of our society, for racism. Cultural diversity in Australia | ILM Australia Workplace cultural diversity and productivity are closely related. The supporting HR Associations included the Australian HR Institute (AHRI), Chartered Professionals in Human Resources (CPHR, Canada) and Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA, Canada), Association Nationale des DRH (ANDRH, France), Deutsche Gesellschaft fr Personalfhrung (DGFP, Germany), Associazione Italiana per la Direzione del Personale (AIDP, Italy), HR Norge (Norway), Associao Portuguesa de Gesto das Pessoas (APG, Portugal) and Fundacin para el Desarrollo de la Funcin de Recursos Humanos Fundipe (Spain). ), Migration Impact Assessment: New Horizons, Edward Elgar Publishing. The most significant piece of work in Australia on social cohesion is conducted by the Scanlon Foundation. (2017), Wider-community Segregation and the Effect of Neighbourhood Ethnic Diversity on Social Capital: An Investigation into Intra-Neighbourhood Trust in Great Britain and London, Sociology, Vol. Lastly, how diversity influences social cohesion hinges on the quality of governance structures and institutions. Age diversity is not found to have a significant impact. First, the individual or interpersonal level, which includes everyday racism that happens with speech, glances. [24] Gonzalez,J. and A.Denisi (2009), Crosslevel effects of demography and diversity climate on organizational attachment and firm effectiveness, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. In addition to the narrow definition the Commission has expressed its concern about the breadth of the exemption in subsection (4) of the exposure draft. While other nations have faced racial tensions and riots, we have experienced long-term social stability. Research into the Current and Emerging Drivers for Social Cohesion, Social Division and Conflict in Multicultural Australia. Our culturally diverse society is now made up of people with origins in over 200 nations. 21-40. Using historic data from 18701920 from the age of mass migration to the UnitedStates, Ager and Brckner (2013[33]) find that higher immigrant diversity is related to stronger economic development at the county level, whereas a stronger polarisation, i.e. Impact of Racism and Discrimination - diversity.social 2, pp. There are a lot of factors that affect a person's socioeconomic status. Parent's Education and Wealth The previous generation's socioeconomic status has a huge impact on the socioeconomic status of the current generation. Looking at regions within 12 EU countries,4 higher immigrant diversity is found to have a positive impact on the productivity and wages of natives. In 1975, the Racial Discrimination Act came into force, making discrimination in different parts of public life against the law. Following the latest incident, Esseden announced that they had cancelled the membership of one of their supporters who was, after an "extensive investigation", found to have abused Goodes. What is Social Diversity? | Life Persona Despite the extensive examination by socialists and theorists there is no universally agreed definition of social cohesion. (2016), Age diversity and team outcomes: a quantitative review. Social Impact of Racism Racism can occur at three levels. 104/4, pp. From an economic perspective this can be very detrimental, as we need all Australians to be able to fully contribute to the growth of the nation, drive innovation and productivity. Such events have been labelled as casual racism.. (2017), Wider-community Segregation and the Effect of Neighbourhood Ethnic Diversity on Social Capital: An Investigation into Intra-Neighbourhood Trust in Great Britain and London. Contrary to the often assumed, direct positive impact of diversity on business performance, research shows that at the firm level, the business case for diversity is not particularly strong. 101-138. People of all cultures, background and faith have contributed to the development of the cultural and religious landscape of Australia. Through multiculturalism, the Australian experience has shown has that diversity can go hand in hand with a stronger social cohesion. These findings point in the same direction as the literature focusing on the firm level, as they suggest that diversity is likely to have a stronger positive impact in high-skilled employment. 311-327. Under the leadership of Judge Rauf Soulio the AMC has acted as an important adviser to the Government on multicultural affairs and has been a champion in advancing multiculturalism. Neighborhood Diversity, Interpersonal Trust and the Mediating Effect of Social Interactions. In addition, the composition of migrants in terms of different countries of origin is found to be a more important driver for innovation than the regional population size of foreign-born. Social diversity is a global issue and it has contributed to major geopolitical events such as Brexit and the fractious nature of the European refugee crisis. Our findings show that, despite initial resistance, humans can cope with the documented challenges of diversity. Second, the institutional or systemic level, which involves organizations like governments and the education or justice system. Report prepared for: Joint Commonwealth, State and Territory Research Advisory Committee (RAC) March 2013. Therefore, economic models of cultural diversity mostly focus on only one dimension. This chapter examines the evidence on the economic impact of diversity, which yields a rather complicated picture. 444-462. The Scanlon Foundation utilises five indicators for social cohesion: I think you will all agree that in general Australia is a cohesive society, this backed by the research. (2008), Cultural diversity and economic performance: Evidence from European regions. In 2013 Scanlon Foundation found a marked increase in reported experience of racial discrimination. Susanne Ricee is the Diversity and Inclusion Specialist and Researcher at Diversity for Social Impact. 35, pp. But diverse communities also provide an opportunity for people from different racial and ethnic backgrounds to come into contact with each other, and we thought that these experiences would create a positive effect on people's identities: specifically, the extent to . Social diversity is all of the ways that people within a single culture are set apart from each other. For the first time, the 2013 Scanlon Foundation report asked respondents about multiculturalisms impact on the Australian way of life and whether it has been good for Australia. this study focuses on estimating the economic and social impacts to Australia of the . [47] Bon-Maury,G. etal. 20, pp. (2011), Getting Specific about Demographic Diversity Variable and Team Performance Relationships: A Meta-Analysis, Journal of Management, Vol. Miguel R. Ramos received funding for the project discussed in this article from the Nuffield Foundation. labour market discrimination; positive selection of who migrates, More intra-group conflict: e.g. When everyone can actively take part in work life, we will immediately increase the number of productive workers contributing to our economy. PDF Deloitte US | Audit, Consulting, Advisory, and Tax Services Diversity is good for our communities. Here's the evidence But we believe that they might be incompatible with fast-changing societies, where people living in mixed neighbourhoods are having contact with new cultures, norms and values. Economic and social impact of increasing Australia's humanitarian [7] Bratti,M. and C.Conti (2014), The effect of (mostly unskilled) immigration on the innovation of Italian regions, IZA Discussion Paper No. The consequence is that, for the first time in decades, an Australian government is seeking to water down legislation protecting human rights, and to reverse a trend towards increased protection for of the rights of minorities and vulnerable Australians. This may suggest that when women or ethnic minorities are perceived as newcomers rather than just another colleague, more intra-group conflict may arise or minorities may have difficulties in being heard and taken seriously. [46] Kemeny,T. and A.Cooke (2017), Urban Immigrant Diversity and Inclusive Institutions. At: http:// www.uws.edu.au/social_sciences/soss/research/challenging_racism/findings_by_region (viewed 15 August 2013). As part of our Racism.It stops with me campaign we have tried to build on this bystander approach and have released a community announcement featuring Racism.It stops with me Ambassador, Adam Goodes. As a nation we embraced this diversity and recognised the economic and social benefits that come this brings. [4] The report highlighted that experiences of racism and/or discrimination denote a lack of recognition in the community and can disrupt belonging, inclusion and participation. The study developed six key recommendations to enhance social cohesion in Australia one of the six focussed on addressing racism and discrimination. Another area of the literature looks specifically at the impact of inequality between groups on public goods provision and attitudes towards redistribution. [19] Horwitz,S. and I.Horwitz (2007), The Effects of Team Diversity on Team Outcomes: A Meta-Analytic Review of Team Demography. [20] Schneid,M. etal. At: http://migrationobservatory.ox.ac.uk/briefings/immigration-diversity-and-social-cohesion (viewed 23 June 2014). Matthew Bennett received funding for the project discussed in this article from the Nuffield Foundation, but the views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily the Foundation. For high-skilled migrant workers, their findings are not significant. [6] Dohse,D. and R.Gold (2014), Determining the Impact of Cultural Diversity on Regional Economies in Europe, WWW for Europe project WP no 58. We are all aware of the incidents involving Australian of the Year, Adam Goodes. Although discrimination varied within sub-groups; Malaysian-born respondents reported the highest level of race discrimination (45%), followed by respondents who were born in India and Sri Lanka (42%), Singapore (41%), Indonesia (39%), and China and Hong Kong (39%). For these reasons, we hypothesised that initial contact resulting from diversity may prove challenging, but that these challenges should be overcome with time. Bennett has also received funding from the ESRC for related work. One of our own supporters did it. 21, pp. The Paris Principles set out the international minimum standards for the status and functioning of national human rights institutions. This rich, cultural diversity is one of our greatest strengths. AT http://www.scanlonfoundation.org.au/research.html (viewed 23 June 2014).Demireva, N. (2014). AT http://www.scanlonfoundation.org.au/research.html (viewed 23 June 2014), page 13. 76-97. Similarly, if the gender gap in labour force participation across the OECD were to be reduced by 25% by 2025, this could add one percentage point to projected baseline GDP growth across the OECD over the period 2013-25, and almost 2.5percentage points if gaps were halved (OECD, 2017[48]). The literature shows that a number of factors have a strong mediating impact; social exclusion and disadvantage, inequality, inter-group contact and social interactions as well as the role of governance and institutions are important explanatory factors. [42] Alesina,A., J.Harnoss and H.Rapoport (2014), Immigration, Diversity and Attitudes to Redistribution: A European Perspective. [21] Bell,S. etal. Similarly, panel data on US states over the 1960-2010 period indicates that diversity among highly educated immigrants has positive impact on economic growth, whereas diversity among low-skilled migrants has a no effect (Docquier etal., 2018[28]). The Commission conducted consultations as part of the National Anti-Racism Strategy, we asked respondents to tell us how racism made them feel. But they have also fuelled growing tensions and division, illustrated by Donald Trumps most recent race controversy. As a nation we embraced this diversity and recognised the economic and social benefits that come this brings. [22] Joshi,A. and H.Roh (2009), The role of context in work team diversity research: A meta-analytic review. The Effect of Employee Diversity on Innovation. By excluding people, you are making them more vulnerable to entrenched disadvantage. Multiculturalism's impact on education. 31-56. Finally, the chapter notes ethical reasons for fostering a just and equitable labour market alongside the economic argument for diversity. Academia has reacted to these. Social Diversity In Australia: Professionally Profitable 1. [11] stergaard,C., B.Timmermans and K.Kristinsson (2011), Does a Different View Create Something New? [40] Baldwin,K. and J.Huber (2010), Economic versus Cultural Differences: Forms of Ethnic Diversity and Public Goods Provision. [35] Montalvo,J. and M.Reynal-Querol (2014), Cultural Diversity, Conflict, and Economic Development, in Ginsburgh, Victor A. Throsby,D. 987-1015. Social Diversity and Social Progress | Organizational Behavior and We provide education about human rights to improve awareness, understanding and respect for rights in our community and Ill discuss this with you in the context of racial discrimination a little later. It is the position of the Commission that we need legislative protection across all human rights not just racial discrimination. Parrotta, Pozzoli and Pytlikova (2014[12]) find for Denmark that diversity in educational background has no impact on patent applications, whereas diversity in country of origin among employees has a positive impact. What do we mean by diversity and inclusion? | Victorian Government Continue to open the publication page on OECDiLibrary to find: Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, All Hands In? As I highlighted earlier prejudice and discrimination are barriers to fair treatment and equal opportunity. Most studies do, however, find a positive relationship between team performance and having teams with different professional backgrounds and other task-related characteristics (Bell etal., 2011[21]; Horwitz and Horwitz, 2007[23]; Joshi and Roh, 2009[22]). Benefits of Social Diversity | Organizational Behavior and Human Relations This currently includes the Australian Human Rights Commission, a number of government departments, the Australian Multicultural Council, Federation of Ethnic Communities Councils, and National Congress of Australias First Peoples. Appendix A: Factors that influence views of diversity 271-280. The campaign now has support from organisations across business, sport, education, local government and civil society. [13] Post,C. and K.Byron (2015), Women on Boards and Firm Financial Performance: A Meta-Analysis. . No.10239, Institute for the Study of Labor. Those that come to the Commission are conciliated at no cost to those involved. 4. Gaining a better understanding on how contextual factors mediate the impact of diverse teams is therefore an important area for future research, but due to the limited availability of data on such micro-level aspects of team composition and management, these studies will most likely have to focus on individual firms rather than a representative sample. 53, pp. 2/18. When asked: Have you experienced discrimination because of your skin colour, ethnic origin or religion? 19% of respondents answered yes to the question; an increase of 7% on the previous year. Submissions closed on 30 April 2014, and approximately 5,300 submissions were received. [2] The United Nations defines a socially cohesive society where all groups have a sense of belonging, participation, inclusion, recognition and legitimacy.[3]. Race hatred laws have been one of the vital foundations for our enviable multicultural society. The reasons is that the words 'intimidate' and vilify, have been so narrowly defined that is highly unlikely that anything will fall under these definitions. ), The Oxford Handbook of Social and Political Trust, Oxford University Press, http://oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190274801.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780190274801-e-13. [35] Montalvo,J. and M.Reynal-Querol (2014), Cultural Diversity, Conflict, and Economic Development, in Ginsburgh, Victor A. Throsby,D. 2018/02, OECD Publishing, Paris, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/869ef2ec-en. Before I move on to the issue of racism in Australia, Id like to provide you with a brief overview of the Australian Human Rights Commission. (ed.). Joshi and Roh (2009[22]) show in a more fine-grained analysis that contextual factors, such as type of industry and the relative share of women or ethnic minorities in these teams have a moderating impact on team performance.

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