Title: A maladjustment and power conceptualisation of diversity in organisations: implications for cultural stigmatisation and expatriate effectiveness

Authors: Arthur D. Martinez, Gerald R. Ferris, Sharon L. Segrest, M. Ronald Buckley

Addresses: Department of Management and Quantitative Methods, College of Business, Illinois State University, Normal, IL 61790, USA. ' Department of Management, College of Business, Florida State University, 821 Academic Way, P.O. Box 3061110, Tallahassee, FL 32306-1110, USA. ' Department of Management, College of Business, University of South Florida St. Petersburg, 140 Seventh Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701, USA. ' Division of Management, Michael Price College of Business, University of Oklahoma, 307 West Brooks, Norman, OK 73019, USA

Abstract: Belonging to a group that is in the minority in an organisation (e.g., racial, cultural) inherently puts individuals at a social disadvantage among the majority group, which can position them in ways so as not to be able to build political skill and acquire power and influence in organisations. Those in the minority must feel genuinely committed to their groups while simultaneously leveraging opportunities outside their groups, if they are to secure and maintain personal power. The propositions provided in this conceptualisation argue that individuals who are less committed to their group tend to be significantly more personally maladjusted, which, in turn, reduces the degree of political skill they develop and undermine their personal power levels and effectiveness.

Keywords: organisational diversity; politics; maladjustment; political skill; personal power levels; personal effectiveness; minorities; expatriate effectiveness; expatriates; expats; cultural stigmatisation; culture.

DOI: 10.1504/IJHRDM.2011.041674

International Journal of Human Resources Development and Management, 2011 Vol.11 No.2/3/4, pp.235 - 256

Published online: 30 Oct 2014 *

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