Behaviour

Scenario Overview Respect – a word known by many people, understood by some, and rarely used in its proper capacity by others. In part, the Collins Gem English Dictionary (Fourteenth Edition 2006), defines the word “respect” as “v treat with esteem; show consideration for”. In my opinion, respect is not given the recognition and value that it deserves, and more often than not, is completely disregarded. Respect is the main theme that inadvertently arose from the following scenario which occurred at my workplace. The scenario is a discussion that took place between work colleagues, and how in our community of practice we are expected to show respect to individuals in status of power, yet fail to show respect in normal day-to-day interaction with other work colleagues. A common practice in my workplace, is for my work colleagues to congregate together at morning tea time, and participate in the daily Five Minute Quiz printed in the local newspaper. The quiz is often followed by informal open forum discussions on various topics. The topic of discussion this particular morning was initiated by one of the senior managers, concerning the younger members of our unit and their displays of maturity, or more specifically, the lack of. Participants in the discussion involved male work colleagues of different military ranks, ethnicities and ages. Although I was seated with the group, I was initially an observer in this scenario. As the discussion evolved within the group, the theme of the discussion changed and took on a sexual connotation. Assumptions and lewd remarks were being made of an individual’s sexual behaviour, and this made me feel uncomfortable. I felt that I had to make a decision as to whether I should get up and leave the group, or confront my work colleagues about their comments. I chose the latter option. I asked the group to cease their current topic of conversation as I believed it was inappropriate. I was somewhat offended and embarrassed by what was being discussed, and felt they were being disrespectful about the individual. I was told to stop being so “prudish” and “lighten up … after all I was just one of the boys”. The most senior ranked person in the group told me that I should be used to guys talking about these things and not get offended. Although I was the lowest ranked person in the group, I respectfully reminded them that only minutes before, they were discussing the immaturity of the younger members of the unit, and yet here they were not displaying the appropriate behaviour, as role models, in a public forum. Suffice to say that my reply was answered with an awkward 10 second silence, followed with individuals of the group dispersing. Why did the group disperse, you may ask' Put simply - unwritten rules had been broken. Although there was no more verbal communication, my comments had been accepted and the matter was not discussed further. The scenario analysis will explain this in more detail. Scenario Analysis The workplace scenario described in the scenario overview has raised some interesting questions, these being: What is my community of practice at work, and how does this influence my behaviour' What are considered to be the norms and values of my community practice' What role or influence does my class, culture, or gender play in this scenario' What was the best way to handle this situation' I attempt to answer these questions below. Community of Practice Everyone has a different perspective of the world, and this derives from factors such as an individual’s upbringing or culture. Victoria University of Wellington (2010) explains how “people feel a pressure” to be like everyone else within a group, and the importance placed on the need to learn the values, rules, and norms of the community. Taking into consideration the workplace scenario, the NZ Army is a very large community of practice, with smaller communities of practice contained within it. My current workplace is an example of a smaller community of practice where soldiers and officers work, train, instruct and learn together. My work colleagues and I work towards similar “goals, values and aspirations” (p. 5). This community of practice is hierarchical and encompasses people of different ages, genders, ethnicities, class, skills and life experience. There is also a regular rotation of personnel in different areas of the community, whereby new individuals very quickly become the experts in their field of knowledge, together with operational experience gained from overseas deployments during this rotation. Merge all these factors together and the result is a continuous community of evolving diversity. Diversity will be discussed later in this analysis. Behavioural Influence Informal learning occurs in communities of practice such as the military, and has an immense impact on a person’s behaviour. Values of the organisation may conflict with your own personal values. This is reflected in the mainstream attitude shown by individuals in the workplace scenario. For example, a younger male member of the community may behave and speak differently at work where they are enclosed in a male dominated environment, compared to their home environment where they may be surrounded by elder family members or children. Victoria University of Wellington (2010) explains it using Wells (2007) reading where it states that “we all participate in multiple communities”. With multiple communities, also arise multiple identities and the possibility of conflicts between the different groups. Norms and Values The norms and values of this community of practice are very formal. A ‘new’ individual commences their career in the military with a formal initiation process, whereby they are required to complete and pass a military basic training course. From the first day of their initiation, rules are identified and explained, together with consequences should these rules not be adhered to. There is an expectation to abide by these rules without question. This style of teaching in the military does not always take into consideration the newcomer’s values or expectations, therefore stress, tensions, and conflicts often arise. More often than not, a newcomer will learn the hard way through their mistakes. Petrone (2009) illustrates the importance of the role that conflict and power has in the learning process of a community of practice. Petrone (2009) discusses skateboarder “park etiquette” and how this was used to teach newcomers ideological norms - either physically or verbally. The same applies with the military. Certain etiquettes are displayed in places such as the dining halls of Officers and Soldiers. Although there are no written rules about how you should eat, or what you do with your dirty dishes, a newcomer would very quickly learn ‘the hard way’ what the appropriate etiquette is by receiving a verbal reprimand from an older member in the dining hall. Diversity There are many social factors that influence and shape a person’s identity. Thompson (2009) cites the description used by Thompson, Murphy and Stradling (1994a) where they list these factors as “social divisions”: age, disability, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, religion, class, culture, and language. These social divisions exist within the group mentioned in the workplace scenario, and this diversity had to be taken into consideration before I confronted my work colleagues. Thompson (2009) explains that people can be discriminated against in many ways and that there is a need to “respond positively to diversity … value differences and be sensitive to the dangers of discrimination”. Sensitivity to diversity is essential so as not to run the risk of alienating people, ‘invalidating’ people, missing key issues, or becoming part of the problem. Some of these “social divisions” were raised in the workplace scenario and will now be discussed. Gender Thompson (2009) explains that if an “uncritical approach to gender” is taken, there is the possibility that it will lead to issues such as reinforced and legitimised male dominance, stereotypical gender expectations not challenged, women’s problems constructed in men’s terms, or women’s needs overlooked. The most prevalent feature in workplace scenario is the concept of ‘it’s a man’s world’. Although many concepts have evolved and changed in today’s society, there is still a deep undercurrent of sexism that flows throughout communities of practice, most noticeable within the military. In the workplace scenario I was viewed as “one of the boys”, my femininity ceased to exist, and I had been included in the conversation in a masculine role - another soldier. From personal experience this can be a delicate concept to balance, and sometimes the transition from the work environment, to the home environment can be a little blurred. This loss of gender identity can be misunderstood and sometimes taken to the extreme. Although females are not discriminated against completely, there are expectations in the military environment that could be interpreted as unreasonable, such as expecting a female to meet the same physical requirements as her male counterpart. This is not always practical and sometimes physically impossible. In the workplace scenario I was expected to behave like “one of the boys” and participate in the discussion. At no point did the other participants think that I would be offended by the topic of conversation. Loss of my femininity was not the only gender issue raised in the workplace scenario. It also raised the matter of men behaving like men, and using gendered terms. Petrone (2009) discusses how American men have a deep rooted fear of other men. They do not want to be seen as weak, feminine, and not manly, and often use gendered terms. This also exists within the military and the use of gendered terms is common. Petrone’s (2009) reading goes on to explain that “gendered terms restore or safeguard many dominant hetero-social norms of masculinity, such as competitiveness, risk-taking behaviour, and athletic aptitude”. Petrone’s (2009) research found that terms such as “gay” or “faggot” served both a positive and negative purpose, but were not questioning a person’s sexuality. An example of this in the military is when a work colleague was harassed for wearing a pair of aviator sunglasses. A senior manager said he looked like George Michael and insinuated that my work colleague was gay. In reality, the senior manager was jealous of my work colleague as he was young, single, and good looking, whereas the senior manager was the same age, but married, overweight and not so attractive. For the senior manager, this was the only way he could express his jealousy without admitting he was jealous. It was an indirect form of social control. Class Power plays an important role in communities of practice, and can be used to marginalise or promote others. Within the military different ranks have different levels of power attached to that rank status. Within my workplace community of practice, there is an internal etiquette where an individual does not reprimand another person in front of subordinates. By adhering to this protocol, the individual that is being reprimanded retains their dignity and respect in front of subordinates, as well showing respect for the person’s rank and status. Nobody is perfect. This is relevant when taking the workplace scenario into consideration. The participants in the discussion were mixed ranks, including peers of the individual who was the topic of conversation. The reprimand etiquette could have been applied in this scenario, whereby the senior manager could have discussed this issue with other senior managers, and not in front of lower ranked subordinates. Race and Culture Thompson (2009) discusses multicultural societies and how nations are not homogenous. These aspects can also be applied to the military which is made up of different cultures, religions, languages and ethnic groups. When bearing in mind the workplace scenario, the discussion group was a composition of different ethnic groups and cultures. Without turning this essay into a racial debate, I believe that it is important to point out that I was the only Maori person in the group. The reason why I feel this is important is due to the fact that conversations, like the one held in the workplace scenario, would not occur amongst a group of Maori people in a similar forum. From a Western perspective, discussions of a sexual nature are quite common, whereas in the Maori culture such discussions are more reserved and not publicised. A Maori will be more reserved on what they say depending on whose company they are in. It is in this context that I felt offended, however I also felt obligated to consider other reasons as to why I was felt the workplace scenario was inappropriate. I did not want the discussion to turn into a racial debate so attempted to take a more unbiased approach with my work colleagues. In this regard, I concur with Quince’s (2007) opinions on Maori tikanga, and the concepts of utu, tapu, noa, and hara. Although Quince’s (2007) reading was focused on the criminal justice system in New Zealand, it highlighted areas such as the “concept of balance” and how it plays an important role in tikanga. In my workplace I regard my work colleagues as another whanau, and strongly believe in strengthening and maintaining relationships, as the diversity is extensive in our community of practice. Without realising it, I had applied tikanga in my approach to the workplace scenario where my aim was to restore balance and to some degree, mana. Quince (2007) explains that the Maori society is one of a collective nature and that “all are affected by offending”. To some extent I felt that this was the case in respect of the workplace scenario. The mana of all individuals involved had been compromised – the mana of my senior manager for instigating the discussion; the mana of the individual being discussed; the mana of other participants who were also of higher rank; and my mana as a woman and the shame I felt on behalf of the individual being discussed. Affirming Diversity It is important to acknowledge the differences, instead of creating disunion amongst the group. Thompson (2009) shows that “dignity and social worth are threatened by the dominance of mainstream ideas and attitudes”. I believe that in the context of the workplace scenario, dignity and social worth or respect was threatened. It is very important to develop our own awareness of the diverse society that we live in today. Thompson (2009) emphasises that part of this awareness process involves learning other perspectives, life experiences, placing focus on dignity, and taking into consideration your own power. Conclusion In summary, taking into consideration the workplace scenario, learning involves the construction of identities. Conflicts and tensions are key aspects of learning and teaching within communities of practice. Gender, class, race and culture, need to be recognised and incorporated within the theory base that informs people’s work. We need to understand the aspects of diversity and affirm diversity in order to practice good people skills. As mentioned in Thompson’s (2009) reading – we must take the responsibility to develop our own awareness, develop and maintain empathy when working with people, understand and respond appropriately to diversity, and be sensitive to the role of diversity in shaping situations we encounter.