Drawing from muted group and standpoint theories, this article advances an outsider within perspective describing the ways that traditionally marginalized group members communicate in mainstream organizational settings. Specifically, the author explicates the process by which different co-cultural group members (i.e., people of color, women, gay/lesbian/bisexuals, persons with disabilities) come to adopt one or more communication orientations while interacting within dominant organizations. The strength of the model presented lies in its approach to studying diversity in organizations based on the lived experiences of those traditionally situated on the margins of organizational power structures.
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