CULTURAL DIVERSITY

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CULTURAL DIVERSITY

• Police Department
• The University of Texas at Dallas
• Ofc. Steve Finney

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Cultural Diversity

• Society is a complex cluster of groups and
  individuals bound together by the rule of law.
  Law Enforcement officials are therefore
  responsible for dealing with all of the society.
  One finds many cultures subcultures families
  traditions gender arrangements health
  economic conditions loose agreements that
  inform decisions and actions of groups and
  individuals.

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Purpose

• Assess situations fairly clearly quickly
• Learn how to perceive diversity as a resource
• Improve relations with community
• Reduce adversarial relations thereby reducing
• lawsuits
• complaints
• general ill-will toward law enforcement

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Community

• What types of groups organizations or
  associations are in our UTD community Which do
  you belong to
• What types of groups are in our greater
  surrounding areas DFW
• What types of groups are in our nation
• What types of groups are in our world

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Prejudice Against...

• Religion
• Weight
• Height
• Social Status
• Income
• Others
• Fraternity
• Athletic Team
• Rival University

• Age
• Race
• Ethnicity
• Nationality
• Gender
• Sexual Orientation
• Disability

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Forms of Prejudice

• Ageism
• Racism
• Sexism Sexual Harassment
• Homophobia
• Ethnocentrism
• Nationalism
• Economic
• Physical Appearance
• Religious
• Others

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Results of Prejudice Hate

• Inequality in the Law Crack vs. Cocaine
• Ignorance About reality and commonality
• Hate Crimes James Byrd Matthew Shepard
  Arab-Americans
• Inability to work professionally and climb the
  latter of success.
• Hurt Pain Fear Low Self Esteem
• Others

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Hate Crimes Crimes committed (usually violent)
against a person(s) merely because there are or
are perceived to be a member of a particular
group. Secondary effects include terrorization
of the entire group.

• African-Americans
• Arab-Americans
• Senior Citizens
• Gays and Lesbians
• Physically Disabled people
• Other people of color
• Jews (Religious or Ethnic)
• Immigrants
• Mentally Ill
• Others

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Modern Racism

• A newer more subtle prejudice marked by an
  uncertainty in feelings and action toward
  minorities. Often expressed in a less open
  manner than was formerly common.
• Why do you think this is the case What can be
  done to help eliminate modern racism

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Definitions

• Attitude Mental Neural state of readiness
  organized through experience exerting a
  directive and dynamic influence upon the
  individuals response to all objects and
  situations with which it is related. They come
  from conditioning or mere exposure to a stimulus.
  Attitudes flow from and express our values. A
  value is a conception of what is desirable a
  guideline for a persons actions standard for
  behavior.
• Prejudice A bias often negative attitude
  formed about a group of people or individual
  because they are members of a particular group.
• Stereotype A set of rigid beliefs positive or
  negative about the characteristics or attributes
  of a group. A mental picture generally developed
  as a result of a myth.
• Discrimination Overt or subtle behavior
  directed toward people simply because they are
  presumed to be members of a particular group. In
  law enforcement it is defined as an unfavorable
  action toward people because they are members of
  a group. Thus if a person seems to be
  prejudiced against others then that person is
  more likely to discriminate. Discrimination can
  be addressed in law.

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Roots of Prejudice

• Human beings are cognitive misers that is we
  prefer the least effortful means of processing
  social information. People try to simplify
  problems by using shortcuts primarily involving
  category-based processes. In other words when
  peoples ability to process information is
  diminished they tend to fall back on available
  stereotypes.
• Who wants to be correct in their assessment or
  evaluation of a particular situation
• Who strives for accurate correct knowledge and
  understanding
• Strategies of cognitive misers and those who have
  a tendency to categorize lead human beings into
  a variety of cognitive misconceptions and errors.
  
• Serious errors include In-group bias Illusory
  Correlation Fundamental attribution error
  Confirmation bias and Out-group homogeneity bias.

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Causes I

• In-group Bias The powerful tendency that humans
  have to favor the in-group the group to which
  they belong over out-groups. Social Identity
  Theory says humans are motivated to positively
  evaluate their own groups - and value them over
  other groups- in order to maintain and enhance
  self-esteem. Language is important positive
  negative trait words. Examples
• Xenopboia - irrational fear of the unfamiliar
• Illusory Correlation A belief that two
  unrelated events are systematically related
  (covary). It is an error in judgment about the
  relationship between two variables. e.g. if you
  wear a particular shirt each time to go bowling
  and bowl very well you may come to the belief
  that there is a connection between bowling and
  the shirt. Similarly if you think members of a
  minority group are more likely than members of a
  majority to have a negative trait then you
  perceive a correlation between group membership
  and behavior.
• Studies show if both a majority and minority
  group have the same negative trait (criminal
  behavior) the negative behavior will be more
  distinctive when paired with the minority as
  compared to the majority.

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Causes II

• The fact that negative information about a
  different group grabs your attention does not
  necessarily lead to discrimination (action).
  There must be a link between the negative
  information and prejudiced behavior.
• Fundamental Attribution Error Tendency to
  overestimate internal (race) reasons and
  underestimate external (situational) ones
  (poverty).
• Confirmation Bias (Self-Fulfilling Prophecy)
  Studies show that stereotypes can influence
  social interactions in ways that lead to their
  confirmation. Stereotypes are both
  self-confirming and resistant to change. It is a
  self-confirming quality about expectations about
  others. In other words once people have a
  stereotype they evaluate information within that
  context thereby they behave in a certain way so
  that others react in a way that confirms the
  stereotype. Examples If you expect a person to
  be hostile your very expectation and manner in
  which you behave may bring on that hostility.

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Causes III

• We often find individual members of a group to
  which we do not belong indistinguishable from one
  another. Why
• Out-Group Homogeneity Bias Phenomenon of
  perceiving members of the out-group as all
  alike.
• We dont do this with our group (in-group)
  because be have a fair amount of information
  about members of our own group therefore we can
  differentiate among them.
• Research shows that OGHB leads us to think that
  members of out-groups are more similar to each
  other than members of in-groups. This leads us
  to assume that negative behavior of one out-group
  member reflects characteristics of all out-group
  members.
• Q What happens when a member of our own group
  does something just as negative What do we
  think about the in-group individual vs. the
  in-group

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Look in the Mirror

• A We blame the the individual person of our own
  in-group for the negative behavior instead of
  blaming the entire in-group. Why
• Ultimate Attribution Error We are more likely
  to give in-group members the benefit of the doubt
  than out-group members.
• Once we construct categories we tend to hold on
  to them tightly. We may do so innocently because
  it may be automatic or nonconscious but it is
  destructive because stereotypes are inaccurate
  and often damaging. Most stereotypes are
  unjustified generalizations that is they are
  not accurate. But even if some are somewhat
  accurate they still have a damaging effect on
  our perception of others. None of us would wish
  to be judged as an individual by the worst
  examples of the group(s) to which we belong.
  e.g. Police officer brutality
• Even if accurate why is it damaging Because
  individuals cannot be adequately described by
  reference to the groups to which they belong.

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Dont Fall in the Trap Talk the Talk Show
Courage Walk the Walk!

• Sensitivity and constant self monitoring.
• Nonprejudiced people realize that there is a gap
  between their stereotypes and their general
  beliefs about equality. These people have to
  continually work to change their stereotypical
  thinking.
• All people have prejudices. Differences occur
  because of personal standards about acceptable
  behavior.
• High Prejudice Individuals - are more willing to
  indulge in negative thoughts and behaviors toward
  members of different ethnic racial and other
  groups.
• Low Prejudice Individuals- hold practically the
  same stereotypes as HPI but they believe these
  stereotypes are wrong. They feel self critical
  and guilty if they express prejudiced thoughts
  and feelings and make a real effort to change
  their thinking and not let it affect their
  behavior.

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Reducing Stereotypes Prejudice

• Contact Hypothesis contact between groups will
  reduce hostility when the participants have equal
  status and a mutual goal Current example WTC
• Personalizing Out-Group Members opposite of
  dehumanizing people. Realize and understand we
  and they have a shared humanity and that we feel
  the same joys and pains. e.g. Schindlers List
• Social Norms show disapproval when you
  encounter prejudice or discrimination. Apply
  peer-pressure. Display courage to stand up for
  what is right. Be a leader!
• Golden Rule DO unto others as you would have
  them do unto you.

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Benefits of Valuing Diversity

• Enhanced community support and public trust
• Improved quality of service
• Reduced tension
• Avoid adversarial contact with the law
• Increased access to cultural communities
• Ensure compliance with letter spirit of the law
• Reduction of litigation (personal and agency)
• Improved moral effectiveness professionalism
• Positive impact of law enforcement image
• More accurate understanding of reality the
  world