Public management research on diversity suffers from a lack of coherence and little theory building. There have been few attempts to establish a comprehensive theoretical framework through which streams of research can unite and better inform public managers—rather, issues of recruitment, management, and cultural values are pursued as wholly separate areas of inquiry. This article critically evaluates the current ways in which public management research addresses the diversity issue and proposes a new comprehensive model for research. The model is based on three functions of diversity management: recruiting and outreach, building cultural awareness, and promoting pragmatic management policy. These functions are linked to organizational performance through a series of intermediate steps, and the resulting model for quantitative analysis is specified.
Adler, N. J. (1980). Cultural synergy: The management of cross-cultural organizations. In W. W. Burke & L. D. Goodstein (Eds.), Trends and issues in organizational development: Current theory and practice (pp. 3-19). San Diego, CA: University Associates.
2.
Adler, N. J. (1983). Domestic multiculturalism: Cross-cultural management in the public sector. In W. Eddy (Ed.), Handbook on public organization management (pp. 181-196). New York: Marcel-Dekker.
3.
Adler, N. J. (2002). International dimensions of organizational behavior (4th ed.). Cincinnati, OH: Southwestern College Publishing.
4.
Alexander, J., Lichtenstein, R., Jinnet, K., D’Aunno, T., & Ullman, E. (1996). The effects of treatment team diversity and size on assessments of team functioning. Hospital and Health Services Administration, 41(1), 37-53.
5.
Allmendinger, J., & Hackman, J. R. (1995). The more, the better? A four-nation study of the inclusion of women in symphony orchestras. Social Forces, 74(2), 423-460.
6.
Ancona, D. G., & Caldwell, D. F. (1992). Demography and design: Predictors of new productteamperformance. Organization Science, 3, 321-341.
7.
Aron, C. S. (1987). Ladies and gentlemen of the civil service. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
8.
Aufrecht, S. E. (1999). Missing: Native American governance in American public administration literature. American Review of Public Administration, 29(4), 370-390.
9.
Azevedo, A., Drost, E. A., & Mullen, M. R. (2002). Individualism and collectivism: Toward a strategy for testing measurement equivalence across culturally diverse groups. Cross Cultural Management, 9(1), 19-29.
10.
Bays, J. H. (1991). Women in public administration in the United States. Women and Politics, 11(4), 85-109.
11.
Behn, R. (1991). Leadership counts: Lessons for public managers from the Massachusetts Welfare, Training and Employment Program. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
12.
Behn, R. (1999). Do goals help create innovative organizations? In G. Frederickson & J. Johnston (Eds.), Public management reform and innovation (pp. 234-242). Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press.
13.
Bond, J. T., Galinsky, E., & Swanberg, J. E. (1998). The 1997 National Study of the Changing Workforce. New York: Families and Work Institute.
14.
Caudron, S., & Hayes, C. (1997). Are diversity programs benefiting African Americans?Black Enterprise, 27(7), 12-18.
15.
Cornwell, C., & Kellough, J. E. (1994). Women and minorities in federal agencies: Examining new evidence from panel data. Public Administration Review, 54(3), 265-270.
16.
Cox, T. H., Lobel, S., & McLeod, P. L. (1991). Effects of ethnic and group cultural differences on cooperative and competitive behavior on a group task. Academy of Management Journal, 34(4), 827-847.
17.
Denhardt, R. B. (1993). The pursuit of significance. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
18.
Dobbs, M. (1996). Managing diversity: Lessons from the private sector. Public Personnel Management, 25(3), 351-367.
19.
Dobbs, M. (1998). Managing diversity: The Department of Energy initiative. Public Personnel Management, 27(2), 161-174.
20.
Earley, C. (1993). East meets West meets Mideast: Further explorations of collectivistic and individualistic work groups. Academy of Management Journal, 36(2), 319-348.
21.
Falicov, C. J. (2001). The cultural meaning of money. American Behavioral Scientist, 45(2), 313-328.
22.
Fiedler, F. E. (1966). The effect of leadership and cultural heterogeneity on group performance: A test of the contingency model. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 2, 237-264.
23.
Fine, M. G. (1995). Building successful multicultural organizations. Westport, CT:Quorum Books.
24.
Fox, R. L., & Schuhmann, R. A. (2001). Mentoring experiences of women city managers: Are women disadvantaged?American Review of Public Administration, 31(4), 381-392.
25.
Gardenschwartz, L., & Rowe, A. (1993). Managing diversity: A complete desk reference & planning guide. New York: Irwin Press.
26.
Gest, R., & Maranto, R. (2000). Gaining practical insights from experience: Reflections on cases of racial discrimination in federal service. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 20(1), 55-67.
27.
Gore, A. (1993). From red tape to results: Creating a government that works better and costs less. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
28.
Grabosky, P. N., & Rosenbloom, D. H. (1975). Racial and ethnic integration in the federal service. Social Science Quarterly, 56(1), 71-84.
29.
Guy, M. E. (1993). Three steps forward, two steps backward: The status of women’s integration into public management. Public Administration Review, 53(4), 285-291.
30.
Hambrick, D. C., Cho, T., & Chen, M. (1996). The influence of top management team heterogeneity on firms’ competitive moves. Administrative Science Quarterly, 4(4), 659-684.
31.
Hargrove, E. C., & Glidewell, J. (Eds.). (1990). Impossible jobs in public management. Lawrence: University of Kansas Press.
32.
Henderson, G. (1994). Cultural diversity in the workplace. Westport, CT:Praeger.
33.
Ho, M. K. (1987). Family therapy with ethnic minorities. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
34.
Hoffman, L. R., & Maier, N. R. F. (1961). Quality and acceptance of problem solutions by members of homogeneous and heterogeneous groups. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 62, 401-407.
35.
Jehn, K. A., Northcraft, G. B., & Neale, M. A. (1999). Why differences make a difference: A field study of diversity, conflict, and performance in work groups. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(4), 741-773.
36.
Johnston, W. B., & Packer, A. H. (1990). Workforce 2000—Work and workers for the 21st century. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor.
37.
Katz, I., Goldston, J., & Benjamin, L. (1958). Behavior and productivity in biracial work groups. Human Relations, 11, 123-141.
38.
Kellough, J. E. (1990). Integration in the public workplace: Determinants of female and minority representation in federal agencies. Public Administration Review, 50(4), 557-566.
39.
Kellough, J. E., & Elliott, E. (1992). Demographic and organizational influences on racial/ethnic and gender integration in federal agencies. Social Science Quarterly, 73(1), 1-13.
40.
Kellough, J. E., & Naff, K. C. (2004). Managing diversity in the federal service: Respond-ingtoawake-upcall. Administration & Society, 36(1), 62-90.
41.
Kettl, D. (1993). Sharing power. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution.
42.
Kilduff, M., Angelmar, R., & Mehra, A. (2000). Top management team diversity and firm performance. Organization Science, 11(1), 21-34.
43.
Knouse, S. B., & Dansby, M. R. (1999). Percentage of work-group diversity and work-group effectiveness. Journal of Psychology, 133(5), 486-494.
44.
Levy, L. (1964). Group variance and group attractiveness. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 68, 661-664.
45.
Lewis, G. B. (1996). Gender integration of occupations in the federal civil service: Extent and effect on male-female earnings differences. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 49(3), 72-83.
46.
Lewis, G. B. (1997a). Lifting the ban on gays in the civil service: Federal policy toward gay and lesbian employees since the Cold War. Public Administration Review, 57(5), 387-395.
47.
Lewis, G. B. (1997b). Race, sex, and performance ratings in the federal service. Public Administration Review, 57(6), 479-489.
48.
Lewis, G. B., & Allee, C. (1992). The impact of disabilities on federal career success. Public Administration Review, 52(4), 389-397.
49.
Lewis, G. B., & Smithey, P. (1998). Gender, race, and training in the federal civil service. Public Administration Quarterly, 22(3), 204-228.
50.
Loden, M., & Rosener, J. B. (1991). Workforce America! Managing employee diversity as a vital resource. Homewood, IL: Business One Irwin.
51.
Lorange, P. (1980). Corporate planning: An executive viewpoint. EnglewoodCliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
52.
Mani, B. G. (2001). Women in the federal civil service: Career advancement, veterans’ preference, and education. American Review of Public Administration, 31(3), 313-339.
53.
Mathews, A. (1998). Diversity: A principle of human resource management. Public Personnel Management, 27(2), 175-186.
54.
McLeod, P., & Lobel, S. (1992, August). The effects of ethnic diversity on idea generation in small groups. Paper presented at the annual conference of the Academy of Management, Las Vegas, NV.
55.
Miller, F. A. (1998). Strategic cultural change: The door to achieving high performance and inclusion. Public Personnel Management, 27(2), 151-160.
56.
Milliken, F., & Martins, L. (1996). Searching for common threads: Understanding the multiple effects of diversity in organizational groups. Academy of Management Review, 21(2), 402-433.
57.
Morrison, A. M. (1992). The new leaders: Guidelines on leadership diversity in America. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
58.
Moskos, C. C., & Butler, J. S. (1996). All we can be: Black leadership in the U.S. Army. New York: Basic Books.
59.
Moynihan, D. P., & Glazer, N. (1970). Beyond the melting pot: Negroes, Puerto Ricans, Jews, Italians, and Irish of New York City. Boston: MIT Press.
60.
Naff, K. C. (1994). Through the glass ceiling: Prospects for the advancement of women in the federal civil service. Public Administration Review, 54(6), 507-514.
61.
Naff, K. C., & Kellough, J. E. (2003). Ensuring employment equity: Are federal programs making a difference?International Journal of Public Administration, 26(12), 1307-1336.
62.
O’Reilly, C., Williams, K., & Barsade, S. (1997). Group demography and innovation: Does diversity help? In E. Mannix & M. Neale (Eds.), Organizational change and redesign (pp. 147-175). New York: Oxford University Press.
63.
Osborne, D., & Gaebler. T. (1992). Reinventing government. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
64.
O’Toole, L. J., & Meier, K. J. (1999). Modeling the impact of public management: Implications of structural context. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 9(4), 505-526.
65.
Page, P. (1994). African-Americans in executive branch agencies. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 14(1), 24-51.
66.
Pate, S., Watson, W., & Johnson, L. (1998). The effects of competition on the decision quality of diverse and non-diverse groups. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 28, 913-923.
67.
Pelled, L. (1997). Relational demography and perceptions of group conflict and performance: A field investigation. International Journal of Conflict Resolution, 64, 17-40.
68.
Pelled, L., Eisenhart, K., & Xin, K. (1999). Exploring the black box: An analysis of work group diversity, conflict, and performance. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(1), 1-27.
69.
Perkins, E. (1992). Diversity in United States diplomacy. Bureaucrat, 9(1), 31-32.
70.
Pitts, D. W. (inpress). Diversity, representation, and organizational performance: Evidence about race and ethnicity in public organizations. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory.
71.
Pitts, D. W., & Wise, L. R. (2004). Diversity in professional schools: A case study of schools of law and public affairs. Journal of Public Affairs Education, 10(2), 125-142.
72.
Rainey, H. (1993). Toward a theory of goal ambiguity in public organizations. In J. L. Perry (Ed.), Research in public administration (Vol. 2, pp. 17-45). Greenwich, CT: JAI.
73.
Rainey, H., & Steinbauer, P. (1999). Galloping elephants: Developing elements of a theory of effective organizations. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 9(1), 1-32.
74.
Rainey, H. G. (2003). Understanding and managing public organizations (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
75.
Riccucci, N. M. (1986). Female and minority employment in city government: The role of unions. Policy Studies Journal, 15(1), 3-15.
76.
Riccucci, N. M. (1997). Cultural diversity programs to prepare for Work Force 2000: What’s gone wrong?Public Personnel Management, 26(1), 35-41.
77.
Riccucci, N. M. (2002). Managing diversity in public sector workforces. Boulder, CO: Westview.
78.
Richard, O. C. (2000). Racial diversity, business strategy, and firm performance: A resource-based view. Academy of Management Journal, 34(2), 164-177.
79.
Rogelberg, S. G., & Rumery, S. M. (1996). Gender diversity, team decision quality, time on task, and interpersonal cohesion. Small Group Research, 27(1), 79-90.
80.
Saltzstein, A. L., Tang, Y., & Saltzstein, G. H. (2001). Work-family balance and job satisfaction: The impact of family-friendly policies on attitudes of federal government employees. Public Administration Review, 61(4), 452-467.
81.
Saltzstein, G. H. (1986). Female mayors and women in municipal jobs. American Journal of Political Science, 30(1), 140-164.
82.
Selden, S. C., & Selden, F. (2001). Rethinking diversity in public organizations for the 21st century: Moving toward a multicultural model. Administration & Society, 33(3), 303-329.
83.
Simon, H. (1973). On the concept of an organizational goal. In F. E. Kast & J. E. Rosenzweig (Eds.), Contingency views of organization and management (pp. 440-461). Chicago: Science Research Associates.
84.
Sisneros, A. (1993). Hispanics in the public service in the late 20th century. Public Administration Review, 53(1), 1-7.
85.
Soni, V. (2000). A 21st century reception for diversity in the public sector: A case study, Public Administration Review, 60(5), 395-408.
86.
Sowell, T. (1978). American ethnic groups. Washington, DC: Urban Institute.
87.
Thomas, D. A., & Ely, R. J. (1996). Making differences matter: A new paradigm for managing diversity. Harvard Business Review, 74(1), 79-91.
88.
Thomas, D. C. (1999). Cultural diversity and work group effectiveness. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 2(2), 242-263.
89.
Thomas, R. R. (1990). From affirmative action to affirming diversity. Harvard Business Review, 68(2), 107-117.
90.
Thomas, R. R. (1991). Beyond race and gender: Unleashing the power of your total workforce by managing diversity. New York: AMACOM.
91.
Timmerman, T. (2000). Racial diversity, age diversity, interdependence, and team performance. Small Group Research, 31(5), 592-606.
92.
Tsui, A., Egan, T., & O’Reilly, C. (1992). Being different: Relational demography and organizational attachment. Administrative Science Quarterly, 37(4), 549-579.
93.
U. S. Office of Personnel Management. (2000). Building and maintaining a diverse, high-quality workforce: A guide for federal agencies. Retrieved August 4, 2004, from www.opm.gov/Diversity/diversity-1.htm
94.
Von Bergen, C. W., Soper, B., & Foster, T. (2002). Unintended negative effects of diversity management. Public Personnel Management, 31(2), 239-251.
95.
Watson, W., Johnson, L., & Merritt, D. (1998). Team orientation, self orientation, and diversity in task groups: Their connection to team performance over time. Group & Organization Management, 23(2), 161-188.
96.
Watson, W., Kumar, K., & Michaelson, L. (1993). Cultural diversity’s impact on interaction process and performance: Comparing homogeneous and diverse task groups. Academy of Management Journal, 36(3), 590-602.
97.
Wharton, A. (1989). Gender segregation in the private-sector, public-sector, and self-employed occupations, 1950-1981. Social Science Quarterly, 70(4), 923-940.
98.
Wiersema, M. F., & Bantel, K. A. (1992). Top management team demography and corporate strategic change. Academy of Management Journal, 36, 590-602.
99.
Willoughby, K., & O’Reilly, C. (1998). Demography and diversity in organizations: A review of forty years of research. In B. M. Staw & L. L. Cummings (Eds.), Research in organizational behavior (Vol. 20, pp. 77-140). Greenwich, CT: JAI.
100.
Wilson, T. (1997). Diversity at work: The business case for equity. Ontario, Canada: John Wiley&Sons.
101.
Wise, L. R., & Tschirhart, M. (2000). Examining empirical evidence on diversity effects: How useful is diversity research for public sector managers?Public Administration Review, 60(5), 386-395.
102.
Wise, L. R., & Tschirhart, M. (2002, March). The relationship between diversity and work performance: Lessons for the public service about the consequences of heterogeneity. Paper presented at the 63rd National Conference of the American Society for Public Administration, Phoenix, AZ.
103.
Wise, L. R., Tschirhart, M., Hosinski, D. K., & Bandy, L. (1997). Diversity research: A meta-analysis. Stockholm: Institute for Future Studies.
