Throughout Unit 1 we explored different aspects of diversity in relation to organized culture. From our weekly readings to expanding the canon, there was a plethora of information added to help our understanding of what diversity is, where it can be seen, and how important it is to increase inclusion and maintain it. The sources helped give me a general overview but as the weeks progressed I was still left with questions. One of the questions that stood out to me most was, why it took the world so long to work towards acceptance of everybody? This leads me to focus on empathy and perspective concerning diversity and inclusion because I believe that understanding diverse groups can help increase acceptance. I will use my research to understand the foundational idea of empathy, and why understanding the perspective of diverse individuals is so crucial when working towards a more inclusive world.
In my personal life and career, I see many people, including myself, struggling to think beyond themselves. As a Communications Design major our assignments are focused on creating new ways to communicate through the means of design. One way our teachers push us to come up with better work is to have an audience for our projects that excludes ourselves, that way we have to put ourselves into other’s shoes to think about what they want and how we can target and connect the best. I often find understanding and curating things towards groups I am not apart of difficult, especially when I try to include ones that I know little about. To make this process easier I have to do research on their perspective and figure out how the world affects them and not just me.
For my internship, as a Graphic Design intern at a beauty corporation, I often create content for the brand that must be inclusive and accepting of all. Since I am not apart of many diverse groups that I have to represent on things such as our Instagram feed I often struggle with how to do so properly. The company I work for is relatively small resulting in a lack of diversity so I feel as though if there was an increase in diversity it would allow me to have conversations with those different then me about, how the company can continue to post inclusive and positive content for all. That added perspective would help me do my job better then I could just on my own.
Since perspective is one main focus in my research, the inclusion of one or more primary sources is very important when making sure diverse voices are heard. Along with primary sources, it feels necessary for my source material to consist of a majority of scholarly texts. The effects of something especially empathy can be extremely subjective which is why it is so important to include facts and data to address all sides and provide solid evidence. Scholarly journals that include investigations or reviews on the results of empathy and perspective with diversity are beneficial because they provide solid analysis and include real-life results that will add to our knowledge of how to address diversity in organized culture. Understanding and empathizing with a group is a key strategy I have learned to use in my work and through my research, I hope to show how it can help create more efficient and inclusive organized cultures.