Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Racial and gender discrimination in the workplace is still prevalent in western
society. Authoritarian organizational hierarchies may further embed stereotypes and
prejudice that reduce the likelihood for inclusion and equity within organizations.
Democracy as an alternative governance structure for organizations has been proposed
and practiced in organizations within western societies demonstrating effectiveness in
reducing class disparities, but limited work has investigated racial and gender-based
disparities. Employees working in democratically and non-democratically governed
organizations were surveyed on their level of participation in organizational governance
and attitudes toward their organization. Employees within democratically governed
organizations experience on average higher positive job attitudes compared to employees
in non-democratically governed organizations regardless of gender or race. It is found
that women, Asian American, and Pacific Islander employees participate in
organizational governance at equivalent rates as White male colleagues, but Black,
Indigenous, and People of Color employees do not. Members of minoritized groups
within democratically governed organizations experience similar feelings influence over
organizational outcomes and psychological ownership compared to their White male
colleagues. Findings also imply having an ownership stake in the organization plays a
significant role individual participation but cannot fully account for racial disparities in participation rates within democratically governed organizations. These results imply
democratically governed organizations may effectively increase racial and gender
inclusion and equity, but not fully reduce existing racial disparities. Future work should
continue to explore additional mechanisms that influence individual participation in
organizational governance and how perceptions of status and competence differentiate
between governance structures within organizations.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:IUPUI/oai:scholarworks.iupui.edu:1805/30866 |
| Date | 12 1900 |
| Creators | Grabowski, Matthew T. |
| Contributors | Ashburn-Nardo, Leslie, Williams, Jane, Stockdale, Margaret, Merritt, Cullen |
| Source Sets | Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Dissertation |
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