Inclusion and Belonging: A Case Study of Ethnic Minority Women's Experiences in Danish Workplaces

Abstract

Background: Considerable investment in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts has been made by organisations, yet ethnic minorities and women continue to face bias, discrimination, and racism. Ethnic minority women bear the burden of intersectional identity, increasing their experience of bias and discrimination as members of two marginalised groups.
Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to investigate how ethnic minority women with MENAP roots experience inclusion and belongingness in the Danish workplace and what factors contribute to or hinder their sense of belonging.
Methods: This case study employs a qualitative approach to explore how ethnic minority women experience inclusion and belongingness in the Danish workplace. This study’s qualitative approach was conducted by conducting semi-structured interviews with nine ethnic minority women. Thematic analysis was used as an inductive method for the data analysis.
Findings and Discussion: Using Hofstede’s culture dimensions theory, Hall’s context culture theory, social identity theory as well as framework of inclusion, this study found that the experience of the 11 factors: high-power distance, masculine culture, low-context communication, lack of social group, the need to conform to hide their diverse self, the extra effort to prove themselves to achieve their goals, socialisation for career, the value of family obligations, uncertainty avoidance, lack of representation of ethnic minority women, and the need for assimilation to achieve top position hinder ethnic minority women’s sense of inclusion and belongingness in the Danish workplace. Furthermore, the experience of the two factors: a diverse workplace and the representation of ethnic minority women in the top management, contribute to their sense of inclusion and belongingness in the Danish workplace.