Diversity, representation, and performance: Evidence about race and ethnicity in public organizations

Abstract

In the past twenty years, the growing percentages of racial and ethnic minorities in the United States have led scholars to pay increased attention to the issue of diversity. However, very little research using the public organization as the unit of analysis has sought to understand the true impact of workforce diversity on work-related outcomes. This study seeks to understand the impact of one type of diversity - race and ethnicity - on organizational outcomes in public education. Using data from Texas public school districts, the article finds that diversity among managers is unrelated to the three performance outcomes tested, while diversity among teachers is negatively related to one and positively related to two performance outcomes. Representation among managers, on the other hand, is positively related to all three performance outcomes, while representation of teachers is negatively related to one of the outcomes.