The need to understand and honour differences in people is critical. We must be able to live harmoniously with difference. Globalization has created an urgency as more of us must work across cultural boundaries and as immigration is producing increasingly diverse workforces and classrooms. While sameness might feel more comfortable and be easier to manage, more and more teams, organizations, and societies are finding that diversity can produce strength and innovation.
By diversity, we are referring to more than cultural, religious, ethnic or racial issues. Even within these groups we find that people differ according to their age, gender, beliefs, experience, education, and professional affiliation. In fact, we ALL differ, yet there are patterns. Several thinkers have observed these patterns and developed them into profiles to describe and to make sense of the diversity of human behaviours, tendencies, personality characteristics, learning styles, motivation styles, working styles and preferences.
Categorization systems run the risk of stereotyping and putting people "into a box." It is important to appreciate that, as individuals, we can vary in our style according to the context, the type of task, our familiarity with the task, our state of health, our emotional, physical, and mental state of the moment, or if we are hungry, exhausted, etc. However, by understanding the distinctions which lead to the categories we can heighten our awareness and be more sensitive in our listening, observation and interaction.
Different profiles assess different things such as input process, cognitive filters, processing styles, response styles, etc. None explain the full learning process but all are helpful and illuminating. Though we can't be all things to all people, we will be more effective teachers, learners, managers, and parents, the more variety and choice we can provide for different types.
Here are descriptions and links for many of the systems for categorization that are actively used by managers and teachers.
Updated May 5, 2000