Relying on second opinions for potentially racist encounters

• Date: 01 January 2020
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/EDI-09-2019-0242
• Published date: 01 January 2020
• Pages: 219-234
• Author: Olga Chapa,María del Carmen Triana,Pamela Gu
• Subject Matter: HR & organizational behaviour,Employment law,Diversity,equality,inclusion

Relying on second opinions for

potentially racist encounters

Olga Chapa

Department of Management and Marketing,

University of Houston–Victoria, Victoria, Texas, USA, and

María del Carmen Triana and Pamela Gu

Department of Management and Human Resources,

University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA

Abstract

Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to examine how employees’perceptions and the perceptions of others

close to them influence employee reactions to perceived racial discrimination at work.

Design/methodology/approach –Integrating the interactional model of cultural diversity (IMCD) with

signaling theory, this study examines how othersclose to an employee can influence employee job satisfaction

and turnover in response to potentially racist encounters. The research question is tested using a field study.

Findings –Results from a field study of paired participants (surveying the employee plus a paired

participant who knew them well) showed that employees’reactions to perceived racial discrimination are

influenced by the perceptions of others close to them. For employees who perceive low discrimination, job

satisfaction is lower when others close to them perceive high discrimination against the employee. While the

probability of turnover for employees who perceive low discrimination is similar whether paired participants

perceive low or high discrimination, their probability of turnover is highest when both they and the other

person perceive high racial discrimination against the employee.

Research limitations/implications –Suggestions are provided to avoid the appearance and/or practice of

discriminatory acts.

Originality/value –This paper integrates the influence of others close to employees in the IMCD diversity

climate, individual career outcomes and organizational effectiveness.

Keywords Job satisfaction, Turnover, Racial discrimination

Paper type Research paper

Research shows that discrimination exists in theworkplace (Bell et al., 2013, 2010 ; Cox, 1993;

Dietz, 2010; Hosodaet al., 2012). In 2017, the US EqualEmployment Opportunity Commission

received 84,254 discrimination charges, the most prevalent of which (33.9 percent, or 28,528)

were race related (EEOC, 2018). Racial discrimination is both morally wrong and illegal

(US National Archives, 2019). Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employment

discrimination based on race, color, sex, national origin and religion in the USA (Bell et al.,

2013). When employees file discrimination lawsuits, employers can incur losses to public

images and millions in legal expenses (King and Spruell, 2001).

Racism is communicated through actions (van Dijk, 1987). “Because interpersonal

communication and persuasion are mainly verbal, it is also crucial to pay special attention to

the structures, the strategies, and the processing of the “messages”on which they are based”

(van Dijk, 1987, p. 251). Interpersonal communications in a social context is an “enactment

of intra-group communication and of intergroup perception and interaction”(p. 252).

Intergroup conflict, derived from culture group identities and differences, can be a

consequence of diversity (Cox, 1993). Recent literature explains that discrimination can be

blatant or subtle (Bell et al., 2010; Colella and King, 2018; Dipboye and Colella, 2005; Jones

et al., 2016), complicating the process of deciphering whether discrimination took place. An

individual may knowingly be practicing racism and wants the recipient to experience it

(blatant) or may not know that their actions are racist due to a lack of education and/or

understanding of cultural differences. “Intergroup conflict between diverse groups may also

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion:

An International Journal

Vol. 39 No. 2, 2020

pp. 219-234

© Emerald PublishingLimited

2040-7149

DOI 10.1108/EDI-09-2019-0242

Received 26 May 2019

Revised 15 November 2019

Accepted 15 November 2019

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:

https://www.emerald.com/insight/2040-7149.htm

219

Racist

encounters

occur because of misunderstandings and misperceptions that are related to the different

worldviews of culture groups”(Cox, 1993, p. 142). For example, research has shown that

African–American and Anglo-Saxon individuals may see organizational events differently

such as when they are asked whether qualified black employees were promoted more

rapidly than white employees (see Alderfer and Smith, 1982). Majority group members may

interpret the same incidents minority groups interpret differently (Cox, 1993). One way in

which individuals might cope with such uncertainties is by discussing them with others

(Schreurs et al., 2012). In addition to the subtleness of racist intentions, different worldviews

also lend credence to the need for a second opinion to better understand the actions of

another as a possibly racist encounter. Therefore, others close to employees serve as a

second source of information that helps employees determine whether encounters could be

discriminatory (Feagin and Sikes, 1994; Feagin, 2006). Employees who feel discriminated

against tend to experience higher stress levels, higher rates of job dissatisfaction and have

higher turnover intent (Dipboye and Colella, 2005; Triana et al., 2010). Because racial

workplace discrimination can harm both employees and employers (Colella and King, 2018;

Dipboye and Colella, 2005; Goldman et al., 2006; Jones et al., 2016), it is crucial to understand

the factors that influence employees’appraisals of discrimination. The interactional model

of cultural diversity (IMCD; Cox, 1993) maintains that the organization’s diversity climate

can be defined as including factors such as discriminatory acts, ethnocentrism, culture and

acculturation processes, which influence individual career outcomes. Job satisfaction is a

specific career outcome in the IMCD shaped by employee experiences on the job (Cox, 1993;

Herrbach, 2006; Mowday et al., 1982). Studies have supported the IMCD, linking

discrimination to negative job attitudes such as job dissatisfaction, which is an antecedent

to turnover (Griffeth et al., 2000) and higher turnover intent (Dipboye and Colella, 2005;

Triana et al., 2010). These factors influence organizational effectiveness outcomes such as

work quality, productivity, profitability and meeting goals (Cox, 1993; McKay and Avery,

2015; McKay et al., 2007; Triana et al., 2010).

The present study expands upon the IMCD to include how the opinions of others modify

employees’reactions to workplace discrimination, including job satisfaction and leaving the

organization.It is essential to fill this gap in the discrimination literaturebecause the reality in

organizations is socially constructed (Salancik and Pfeffer, 1978; Takeuchi et al.,2011).This

study considers the opinions of others and expands on the organizational context factors

within the IMCD model, suggesting that models of employee behavior in organizations could

include the influence of others when assessing discriminatory acts, individualjob satisfaction

and turnover.

This study makes a practical contribution to organizations by helping them understand

the possible influence of others in perceptions of potentially discriminatory acts, which can

help organizations continue to improve their diversity practices. The implications for

companies arise when employees and others close to them agree that discrimination has

taken place because employees will be more likely to pursue legal action (Groth et al., 2002).

Thus, the findings could help organizations deter irreparable public image issues and avoid

legal expenses (King and Spruell, 2001).

Theory and hypotheses

Discrimination is defined as denying certain people equality of treatment because of their

group membership (Dietz, 2010). We integrate the IMCD model (Cox, 1993) and signaling

theory (Spence, 2002) to examine how the opinion of others in regard to possible racist

encounters affects employee and organizational outcomes. Signaling theory describes the

behavior of two parties –individuals or organizations –where the parties have access to

different information (Miller and Triana, 2009). Typically, and asymmetrically, the parties

choose whether and how to communicate (or signal) that information. The receiving party

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