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The Routledge Companion to Organizational Diversity Research Methods
Organizational diversity has become a topic of interest for practitioners and academics alike. This book explores how diversity in organizations is, and can be researched, providing readers with insights into the potential research designs for studies in contemporary organizations.
This includes paying attention to methods but also to the role of the researcher and research bodies in the field, to their potential as activists as well as to the theoretical question of standpoints in researching organizational diversity. Chapters also consider the diversity of research participants, inclusive research, and intersectionality. All contributors are experts in diversity research, and in their contributions, they reflect upon the appropriate methods for the specific type of diversity research they conduct, noting strengths and weaknesses and illustrating their arguments with practical examples from their work.
This handbook will be of great value to academics, students, researchers, practitioners, and professionals with an interest in broadening their understanding of how to research organizational diversity in contemporary organizations or seeking to develop their awareness of diversity when researching management and organization, more generally.
eBook
Research in Information Systems: An Empirical Study of Diversity in the Discipline and Its Journals
Throughout its history, the information systems (IS) discipline has engaged in extensive self-examination, particularly with regard to its apparent diversity. Our overall objective in this study is to better understand the diversity in IS research, and the extent to which diversity is universal across journals that publish IS research. We developed a classification system that comprises five key characteristics of diversity (reference discipline, level of analysis, topic, research approach, and research method) based on a review of prior literature. We then examined articles over a five-year period, from 1995 to 1999, in five journals acknowledged as the top journals of the field, at least in NorthAmerica.Analyses reveal considerable diversity in each of the key characteristics. Perhaps not surprisingly, the research approach used is more focused with most studies being conducted using hypothetico-deductive approaches, whereas reference discipline is perhaps the most diverse of the characteristics examined. An interesting finding is that IS itself emerged as a key reference discipline in the late 1990s. The Journal of Management Information Systems and Information Systems Research publish articles displaying the greatest diversity, and MIS Quarterly and Decision Sciences publish articles that focus on subsets of the field. Our research provides a foundation for addressing the direction that diversity in the IS discipline takes over time. In the shorter term, researchers can use our classification system as a guide to writing abstracts and selecting key words, and the findings of our journal analyses to determine the best outlet for their type of research.
Journal Article
Are Narrative CVs contributing towards shifting research culture? Workshop Report from the 2023 Recognition and Rewards Festival
Abstract Background Over the past decade, calls for research assessment reform have grown, led by initiatives such as the Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) and the Leiden Manifesto, and, more recently, the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA). A key element being discussed as part of research assessment reform is a shift towards more qualitative assessments, focussed on the content of research and the broad skills and competencies of researchers, and the array of contributions they make to knowledge creation and innovation. Narrative CV formats have emerged as a good practice example for enabling qualitative assessments of research projects and researchers, and are becoming more widely piloted and implemented. Methods As part of the 2023 Dutch Recognition and Rewards Festival, the authors hosted a workshop to gather perspectives on Narrative CVs, including whether and how they may contribute to shifts in research culture that are needed to support research assessment reform. Results Participants, representing research organisations and the research community, discussed both beneficial and critical aspects of narrative-style CV implementations from their experiences. The effects observed since narrative CVs have been implemented were discussed, with perspectives provided on career prospects and the empowerment of the research community to direct change. Finally, the discussion turned to expectations for the future, with workshop participants calling for focus on the roles that narrative-style CVs can play in improving research careers, recognition of collaborative work, and equality, diversity, and inclusion. A short informal survey exploring levels of implementation of narrative CVs across different research organisations was run prior to the workshop, the results of which are also presented as part of this report. Discussion The authors intend to expand this discussion to other scientific and policy conferences, and this report serves as a basis for a wider and deeper dialogue in the community.
Journal Article
The strong influence of collection bias on biodiversity knowledge shortfalls of Brazilian terrestrial biodiversity
Aim: The knowledge of biodiversity facets such as species composition, distribution and ecological niche is fundamental for the construction of biogeographic hypotheses and conservation strategies. However, the knowledge on these facets is affected by major shortfalls, which are even more pronounced in the tropics. This study aims to evaluate the effect of sampling bias and variation in collection effort on Linnean, Wallacean and Hutchinsonian shortfalls and diversity measures as species richness, endemism and beta-diversity. Location: Brazil. Methods: We have built a database with over 1.5 million records of arthropods, vertebrates and angiosperms of Brazil, based on specimens deposited in scientific collections and on the taxonomic literature. We used null models to test the collection bias regarding the proximity to access routes. We also tested the influence of sampling effort on diversity measures by regression models. To investigate the Wallacean shortfall, we modelled the geographic distribution of over 4000 species and compared their observed distribution with models. To quantify the Hutchinsonian shortfall, we used environmental Euclidean distance of the records to identify regions with poorly sampled environmental conditions. To estimate the Linnean shortfall, we measured the similarity of species composition between regions close to and far from access routes. Results: We demonstrated that despite the differences in sampling effort, the strong collection bias affects all taxonomic groups equally, generating a pattern of spatially biased sampling effort. This collection pattern contributes greatly to the biodiversity knowledge shortfalls, which directly affects the knowledge on the distribution patterns of diversity. Main conclusions: The knowledge on species richness, species composition and endemism in the Brazilian biodiversity is strongly biased spatially. Despite differences in sampling effort for each taxonomic group, roadside bias affected them equally. Species composition similarity decreased with the distance from access routes, suggesting collection surveys at sites far from roads could increase the probability of sampling new geographic records or new species.
Journal Article
Endophytic fungi from Peruvian highland and lowland habitats form distinctive and host plant-specific assemblages
Biodiversity and biogeography of leaf-inhabiting endophytic fungi have not been resolved yet. This is because host specificity, life cycles and species concepts, in this heterogeneous ecological guild of plant-associated microfungi, are far from being understood. Even though it is known that culture-based collection techniques are often biased, this has been the method of choice for studying fungal endophytes. Isolation of fungal endophytes only through culture-based methods could potentially mask slow growing species as well as species with low prevalence, preventing the capture of the communities’ real diversity and composition. This bias can be partially resolved by the use of cultivation-independent approaches such as direct sequencing of plant tissue by next generation techniques. Irrespective of the chosen sampling method, an efficient analysis of community ecology is urgently needed in order to evaluate the driving forces acting on fungal endophytic communities. In the present study, endophytic ascomyceteous fungi from three different plant genera (
Vasconcellea microcarpa
,
Tillandsia
spp., and
Hevea
brasiliensis
) distributed in Peru, were isolated through culture-based sampling techniques and sequenced for their ITS rDNA region. These data sets were used to assess host preferences and biogeographic patterns of endophytic assemblages. This study showed that the effect of the host’s genetic background (identity) has a significant effect on the composition of the fungal endophytic community. In other words, the composition of the fungal endophytic community was significantly related to their host’s taxonomic identity. However, this was not true for all endophytic groups, since we found some endophytic groups (e.g. Xylariales and Pleosporales) occurring in more than one host genus. Findings from this study promote the formulation of hypotheses related to the effect of altitudinal changes on the endophytic communities along the Eastern Andean slopes. These hypotheses and perspectives for fungal biodiversity research and conservation in Peru are addressed and discussed.
Journal Article
High fire frequency and the impact of the 2019–2020 megafires on Australian plant diversity
Aim To quantify the impact of the 2019–2020 megafires on Australian plant diversity by assessing burnt area across 26,062 species ranges and the effects of fire history on recovery potential. Further, to exemplify a strategic approach to prioritizing plant species affected by fire for recovery actions and conservation planning at a national scale. Location Australia. Methods We combine data on geographic range, fire extent, response traits and fire history to assess the proportion of species ranges burnt in both the 2019–2020 fires and the past. Results Across Australia, suitable habitat for 69% of all plant species was burnt (17,197 species) by the 2019–2020 fires and herbarium specimens confirm the presence of 9,092 of these species across the fire extent since 1950. Burnt ranges include those of 587 plants listed as threatened under national legislation (44% of Australia's threatened plants). A total of 3,998 of the 17,197 fire‐affected species are known to resprout after fire, but at least 2,928 must complete their entire life cycle—from germinant to reproducing adult—prior to subsequent fires, as they are killed by fire. Data on previous fires show that, for 257 species, the historical intervals between fire events across their range are likely too short to allow regeneration. For a further 411 species, future fires during recovery will increase extinction risk as current populations are dominated by immature individuals. Main conclusion Many Australian plant species have strategies to persist under certain fire regimes, and will recover given time, suitable conditions and low exposure to threats. However, short fire intervals both before and after the 2019–2020 fire season pose a serious risk to the recovery of at least 595 species. Persistent knowledge gaps about species fire response and post‐fire population persistence threaten the effective long‐term management of Australian vegetation in an increasingly pyric world.
Journal Article
Nestedness and turnover unveil inverse spatial patterns of compositional and functional β-diversity at varying depth in marine benthos
Aim The two additive components of β‐diversity, namely turnover and nestedness, reflect the two basic mechanisms underlying the overall change in species identities across the landscape, the replacement of species or their loss, respectively. Analogously, functional turnover and nestedness express the replacement or loss of functional traits associated with variations in community composition. However, the extent to which patterns of compositional and functional nestedness and turnover may overlap, or diverge, is still uncertain in marine environments. Here, patterns of turnover and nestedness were quantified in marine benthic assemblages in order to assess their relative contribution to spatial patterns of compositional and functional ‐diversity. Location Mediterranean Sea, NE Ionian Sea, Ionian Archipelago. Methods In this study, we investigated patterns of dissimilarity in species and functional trait composition in subtidal macrobenthic assemblages from Mediterranean islands in order to quantify compositional and functional β‐diversity among islands, determine the relative contributions of turnover and nestedness, and compare β‐diversity patterns occurring in shallow and deeper reefs. Results We found a complex relationship between functional and compositional β‐diversity at varying depth. At 5 m, species and functional trait dissimilarity largely overlapped, with turnover being the dominant component in both cases. At 15 m, compositional β‐diversity was mostly due to turnover, with a negligible contribution of nestedness, whereas the opposite occurred for functional β‐diversity. Partitioning β‐diversity components revealed this discrepancy and the presence of functional hotspots, which would remain unnoticed analysing the overall compositional and functional β‐diversity. Main conclusions Our findings may have profound implications for the optimization of conservation planning, stressing the need for assessing habitat‐dependent idiosyncrasies in components of functional and compositional β‐diversity for a more comprehensive picture of possible protection scenarios that, besides structure, may also allow preserving the functioning of marine communities.
Journal Article
Historic and prehistoric human‐driven extinctions have reshaped global mammal diversity patterns
AIM: To assess the extent to which humans have reshaped Earth's biodiversity, by estimating natural ranges of all late Quaternary mammalian species, and to compare diversity patterns based on these with diversity patterns based on current distributions. LOCATION: Globally. METHODS: We estimated species, functional and phylogenetic diversity patterns based on natural ranges of all mammalian species (n = 5747 species) as they could have been today in the complete absence of human influence through time. Following this, we compared macroecological analyses of current and natural diversity patterns to assess whether human‐induced range changes bias evolutionary and ecological analyses based on current diversity patterns. RESULTS: We find that current diversity patterns have been drastically modified by humans, mostly due to global extinctions and regional to local extirpations. Current and natural diversities exhibit marked deviations virtually everywhere outside sub‐Saharan Africa. These differences are strongest for terrestrial megafauna, but also important for all mammals combined. The human‐induced changes led to biases in estimates of environmental diversity drivers, especially for terrestrial megafauna, but also for all mammals combined. MAIN CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that fundamental diversity patterns have been reshaped by human‐driven extinctions and extirpations, highlighting humans as a major force in the Earth system. We thereby emphasize that estimating natural distributions and diversities is important to improve our understanding of the evolutionary and ecological drivers of diversity as well as for providing a benchmark for conservation.
Journal Article