A Significant Sociological Issue

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Discrimination is one of the main problems in the USA as it has deep roots and reflects ethical diversity and cultural differences of the population. Today, there is a large Hispanic community in the country that supports newcomers and old generations of immigrants. In spite of great democratic changes in the USA, Hispanic people are faced with prejudice, segregation, and racism. The discrimination is based on cultural and religious differences between Americans and Hispanics and is heated by unemployment and millions of immigrants coming from Hispanic countries.

The prejudices are a part of the negative image of the Hispanic ethnic group associated with terrorist attacks and the jihad movement. Although behavior cannot always be predicted on the basis of whether it is culturally shaped or socially learned, it is probable that employer recognition considerably encourages acceptance of diversity. Overt behavior is likely when there is a willingness to accept the Hispanic ethnic group as a part of the staff (Chattopadhyay, 1998). Some companies act out their anti-diversity attitudes no matter how negatively management reacts to them. Segregation and racism are interlinked and become apparent in all social spheres of life. Hispanic ethnic group experiences segregation in education (schools and university), in healthcare, and law enforcement (Chattopadhyay, 1998). These negative attitudes are learned mainly from mass media and negative publicity. The American society learns most of the attitudes from TV news and the press. As ego-deflating, as it may be to accept, it is a fact that a few political leaders invent attitudes for most people. An attitude about racial diversity, for instance, is a complex perceptual invention, and society is not perceptually creative. The superiority of native citizens or inferiority of the Hispanic group (as contrasted to that of an individual) is not obvious; not many casual observers can perceive significant group differences. Also, there are more differences within racial or ethnic groups than between them. Unfortunately, most companies bring Arab-Muslims to work with the–bags packed by other people (Aguirre and Turner, 2006).

Hispanic people from South America are one of the groups faced with the dual labor market, double jeopardy, institutional discrimination, reverse discrimination, glass ceiling, etc. All of these problems are caused by prejudices and segregation against Hispanics. The most dangerous prejudices are negative attitudes directed toward Hispanics. These problems take the form of assumptions or generalizations about all or most members of the Hispanic group. In some cases, I hear such comments as “You know how those people are!” (Chattopadhyay, 1998). This kind of in-group versus out-group antagonism disrupts work interactions and subverts organization efficiency. The behaviors, customs, and values of Hispanics are labeled strange or weird. Employee attitudes of acceptance of culturally different employees are learned in much the same manner denial is inculcated. In many cases, other cultural groups lived in America most often learn as children to reject culturally different people (Chattopadhyay, 1998).

The Hispanic population often experiences institutional discrimination, reverse discrimination, and a glass ceiling as they are perceived as low skilled workforce with poor knowledge and professional expertise. Thus, many Hispanics have a perfect education and excellent knowledge in their sphere of business (Gilbert 2001). When employees who hold anti-diversity attitudes are confronted by managers with logic or with new facts, they usually do not change their personal values. Instead, these employees tend to hide their true beliefs and pretend to have been converted, particularly if their managers are monitoring the organizational culture (Ensher et al 2001).

Regardless of the manner chosen to define race, researchers have found that the individual differences within races are greater than the differences between them and that all individuals vary to some degree in nearly every factor that combines to constitute human beings. Of far greater importance than the variations among humans are the similarities that inextricably lead to defining the human condition. Acknowledging this truth, many writers believe that incumbent upon Homo sapiens is the collective responsibility of creating a world in which all human beings are accorded the status of “persons” and are not regarded as “things” or “objects” to be exploited (Gilbert, 2001).

The demographic shift in favor of Hispanic population minorities over whites of European origin is already seen in the composition of public school students. By the year 2000, one of every three Americans and half of all school-age children will be a member of an ethnic minority group. This will result in a large number of workers in the twenty-first century for whom English will not be their primary language. Workplaces will be noticeably punctuated with Spanish, Vietnamese, Korean, and other “foreign” languages. Thus cultural diversity will be seen in the living colors of the workers and heard in their speech. For the first time, the United States will reflect the diversity commonplace throughout most of the other nations of the world. Even so, our school curriculums and businesses will probably remain primarily Eurocentric (Schuman et al, 2003).

In the USA, the dual labor market and double jeopardy are problems caused by illegal immigration and denial to employ of Arab-Muslims by private companies. In many situations, the Hispanic population looks for other sources to support their beliefs, such as biblical passages or anti-diversity research findings. Methods and approaches such as an exceedingly emotional appeal or cautiously crafted experiential exercises focusing on cultural diversity often are more successful than highly structured scientific lectures. What is true and what is personally attractive are not always the same. Most attitudes towards the Hispanic population, such as those supporting racism, sexism, and ageism, are seldom originally formed by logic, nor are they frequently altered by logic (Schuman et al, 2003).

In spite of the problems mentioned above, the Hispanic population identifies themselves with the American mainstream culture and feels like a part of it. Hispanic population value and follow my cultural traditions, but they do not contradict with the American culture. In reality, the amount of attitude change depends on people’s initial position regarding cultural differences, their attention to the message and to the interaction, their understanding of the message, and their acceptance of the other ethnic group (Gilbert, 2001). Depending on the motivational bases for new attitudes, acceptance of cultural values will be positively affected by diversity activities that provide tangible pay-offs. For most of the Hispanic population, the experience of digestion and redefinition of self is a result of negative images created by mass media and the press. In the best-case scenario, educated and culturally competent American citizens learn to accept themselves and peoples of other cultures as co-workers and friends of equal human worth (Aguirre and Turner, 2006).

In the context of international business and cultures, cross-national interaction involves complex human relations dynamics. From this perspective, the interchange of ideas, thoughts, and motives must be communicated at appropriate levels of cultural awareness. Thus, for our purpose, the term cross-national interaction is used to mean the interchange and interrelation of culturally different ideas, thoughts, and motives in business dealings. Being in a foreign country brings most people face-to-face with their foremost fear: fear of the unknown. Consequently, foreigners (or strangers as they are frequently called) are cultural outsiders. Words cannot adequately describe the fear that comes from being a stranger in a strange land. The stranger, no matter how cultured in his or her native country, is often unable to read signs, menus, newspapers, or legal documents. Further, he or she must learn to survive in a place filled with unintelligible sounds, unfamiliar smells, and “foreign” people. Reasons such as this cause countless foreign workers who are glib and socially facile in their homeland to resort to grunting, gesticulating, and otherwise acting like impatient children (Gilbert, 2001).

The distinction between foreign workers and immigrants is a hazy one. Many writers believe that immigration is a one-step process wherein an individual leaves his or her home country with no plans of returning. In practice, however, most foreign workers who never intended to move to the United States permanently have stayed either as legal or illegal aliens or as citizens. Nevertheless, it is prudent to consider immigrants as being foreign workers, at least until they become American citizens. Culturally debilitating behaviors on the part of Americans when interacting with people from different countries are most dramatically seen when Americans travel abroad. This behavior is magnified when foreigners come to the United States. We will focus first on Americans who work and live in foreign countries. Specifically, it is their negative attitudes, stereotypes, prejudices, and ethnocentrism that become barriers to including foreigners in diversity plans. Americans often become defensive and feel threatened by foreign workers. Even when they are in other countries as foreigners and must adjust to a dominant culture, they resist (Gilbert, 2001).

Typically, Americans assign positive or negative attributes to citizens of other countries on the basis of the category or group to which they belong. For example, negative stereotypes might lead to the belief that peoples of “developing” countries are uncivilized or of lower intelligence. Conversely, positive stereotypes foster the belief that the peoples of Western industrialized countries are highly civilized and quite intelligent. Indeed, Americans are predisposed to behave in certain ways toward people solely because of their national group membership (Aguirre and Turner 2006). For example, countless Americans who visit Mexico avoid eating in Mexican restaurants because they attribute an inferior or unacceptable quality to the foods of the host country. This behavior is magnified when foreigners come to the United States. We will focus first on Americans who work and live in foreign countries.

Opponents of diversity look for other sources to support their beliefs, such as biblical passages or antidiversity research findings. Techniques such as an exceedingly emotional appeal or carefully crafted experiential exercises focusing on cultural diversity often are more effective than highly structured scientific lectures. What is true and what is personally desirable are not always the same. Most attitudes such as those supporting racism, sexism, and ageism are seldom initially formed by logic, nor are they frequently altered by logic. Merely placing culturally diverse people together in training or job situations can sometimes be counterproductive. The participants may observe members of the out-group responding in stereotypical ways (e.g., women crying when frustrated; ethnic minorities behaving as inarticulate, ingratiating people; older workers falling asleep during lectures) (Gilbert, 2001).

Antidiscrimination attitudes can be formed or changed by personal experience (1) if the attitudes are not in conflict with more powerful motives; (2) if the experiences are carefully selected to place the participants in peer, egalitarian relationships; and (3) if the attitudes to be changed involve perceptions that are so simple as to be obvious examples of empirical contradiction. That is, all participants are placed in a win-win situation in which there are no losers when the diversity initiative is completed. Hispanic people regard openness as a form of weakness, and they try not to allow the outside world to penetrate their own world. Everyone in the group needs to take part in some way in group decisions. The human resource managers in a diverse organization should not get upset when the participants withdraw during group activities. Some people feel uncomfortable in group interactions, and others will use any excuse for not cooperating. There are also instances when employees will be confused by an exercise and withdraw (Aguirre and Turner, 2006).

In sum, discrimination of the Hispanic population in the USA affects all spheres of life and work. In spite of great cultural and social changes, the Hispanic population is seen as foreigners in contrast to the native white and black Americas. Specifically, it is their negative attitudes, stereotypes, prejudices, and ethnocentrism that become barriers to including foreigners in diversity plans. Americans often become defensive and feel threatened by foreign workers. Even when they are in other countries as foreigners and must adjust to a dominant culture, they resist.

References

Aguirre, A., Turner, J.H. (2006). American Ethnicity: The Dynamics and Consequences of Discrimination. McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages.
Chattopadhyay, P. (1998). Beyond direct and symmetrical effects: The influence of demographic dissimilarity on organizational citizenship behavior. Academy of Management Journal 42 (1): 273-287.
Ensher, E. A., Grant-Vallone, E. J., & Donaldson, S. I. (2001). Effects of perceived discrimination on job satisfaction, organizational commitment, organizational citizenship behavior, and grievances. Human Resource Development Quarterly 12, (1): 53-72.
Gilbert, D., Fiske, S., Lindzey, D. (Eds). (2001). Stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination. In The handbook of social psychology: Vol. 2. 4th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, (2): 357-411.
Schuman, H., Steeh, C., Bobo, L., Krysan, M. (2003). Racial attitudes in America: Trends and interpretations. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

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A Significant Sociological Issue

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