Diversity awareness, diversity climate, and individual career outcomes: A counseling psychology perspective

The number of women and ethnic minorities in the U.S. workforce has increased substantially over the last two decades. Contemporary workplaces can respond proactively to the diverse workforce through management practices that establish a positive and multiculturally sensitive organizational climate. There is ample evidence that organizational climate influences a wide variety of employee outcomes. The present study tested a modified version of Cox's (1994) model indicating that the diversity climate of an organization predicts the individual affective career outcomes of its employees. The modified model added the construct of diversity awareness, such that employee diversity awareness influences perceptions of the diversity climate, which in turn influences affective career outcomes. Additional hypotheses explored (1) the relationship between diversity awareness and diversity training events and (2) the relationship between diversity awareness, diversity climate, and minority status. This study employed a non-experimental, cross-sectional survey design. Data was collected from a sample of 195 individuals working in office-place settings with 10 or more employees. The results of this study were consistent with the Cox model but not the modified model. There was not a significant relationship between diversity awareness and diversity training experiences. In addition, minority individuals reported less favorable reactions to how diversity was managed in the workplace and lower organizational commitment than did their non-minority counterparts. These findings suggest that an individual's experience in the workplace is influenced by the diversity climate of the organization, which may predict their job satisfaction and commitment. Implications for organizational practices and future research are presented.