Exploring Workplace Equality: Literature Review and Research Gaps

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Assignment 2
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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Literature review and purpose.........................................................................................................4
Role of literature review..................................................................................................................6
Literature review on ‘Equality in workplace’..................................................................................7
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
References......................................................................................................................................12
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Introduction
The literature review has a significant role in conducting the research and completing academic
work in a proper manner. The literature review includes the report on ideas and knowledge
which are given on a specific topic that allows the individual to analyze and provide academic
opinion on the topic. This report focuses on the concept of literature review and its importance in
academic work. In addition to this, the report also explains the contribution of the literature
review to the concept of academic work and study. In this manner, the report explains the
specific role played by literature review.
Further, the literature review on the topic ‘Equality in the workplace' is given in the report. After
providing the literature review on the topic, the report explains the specific issue defined by the
given literature review. In addition to this, the scope and appropriateness of the literature review
is also explained along with the method of the literature search.
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Literature review and purpose
Conduction a literature review means demonstrating the knowledge of an author about the
specific field of study including theories, key variables, phenomena, history and methods. The
literature review informs about the influential researchers and research groups in the field. The
literature review includes the report on ideas and knowledge which are given on a specific topic
that allows the individual to analyze and provide academic opinion on the topic. In addition to
this, the literature review demonstrates the knowledge of the author to the subject area and
determines what every source is contributing to the topic. Writing a literature review allows an
individual to gain expertise in scanning the literature on a specific topic in an efficient manner.
Simply, the literature review is a brief overview of the particular topic which is purely academic
in scope.
Purpose
The purposes of the literature review are as follows:
 Provide a foundation of knowledge and information on the specific topic,
 Identify gaps and consistencies in the research along with any open question left from the
other researches,
 Identify the need or requirement of the research and justify the additional research,
 Place own research in the context of existing literature to justify why further research or
study is required, and
 Provide the concept of own research and show the relationships between previous
theories and researches
The contribution of the literature review
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In the concept of academic work and study, the literature review has a significant contribution as
it provides the readers with an understanding of scholarly research on a specific topic. The
literature review demonstrates to the researchers that he or she is a well-informed scholar having
the knowledge and proper expertise in the filed by providing an overview of the current state of
literature. In addition to this, the literature review finds the gap in research and demonstrates how
the research is contributing to the academic conversation. In academic work and study, the
contribution of literature review at the initial level is to identify what is researched in the past
and published about the topic. This includes previous studies on the topic and material which is
published about the topic. This allows the person to avoid mistakes and get the opportunity to
identify and analyze the relevant theories to understand the topic. After conducting the literature
review, it becomes easier for the researchers to use a proper research method to conduct the
research in a proper manner.
Further, the literature review provides the opportunity in academic work to critique previously
published literature on the specific topic. This can be done by focusing on the arguments in the
theories and bringing out the gaps in those arguments. The role of the literature review is to
determine how the studies were conducted in the past and what were the outcomes of the studies.
With the help of a literature review, researchers are able to identify the literature gaps and
identify the area where the gaps exist. The literature is helpful in providing justification for
further study which the researcher is about to conduct.
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Role of literature review
In academic work, the literature review has a specific role and importance. Some of the roles of
the literature review are as follows:
Demonstrate understanding- In academic work, the individual can use a literature review to
demonstrate the understanding of subject matter and topic. The literature review identifies,
summarizes and assesses the past research which is relevant for the work.
Set-theoretical framework- Literature review has the role to set the foundations for the study.
Literature review formulates the theoretical framework including the concepts and theories on
which the academic work is based.
Develop methodology- The role of the literature review is to develop a proper methodology for
the research. By analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of existing research, the person can
make sure that the suitable method, data source and analytical technique is adopted for the
research (Hart, 2018).
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Literature review on ‘Equality in the workplace.'
Equality is the reasonable treatment of individuals without any attention to their sex, race,
handicap, religion, nationality, sexual introduction or age. In the work environment, equality
implies ensuring individuals are given equivalent chances, similar pay and are acknowledged for
their disparities. This part of the essay provides the literature review on the topic ‘Equality in the
workplace'.
Literature review
In the workplace, equality can be defined as breaking down the issues and barriers, minimizing
discrimination and providing equal opportunities to all the employees at the workplace. It is all
about providing equal opportunity and access to all the groups in employment. Basically,
equality is a quest for sameness in all aspects of social life. According to Sachs (2011), equally
talented people have an equal change of attaining them, i.e. fair equality of opportunity at the
workplace. There is no specific definition of equality; there are various limitations to the policies
which are being implanted. Equality covers a broad area, i.e. age, race, gender, religion, culture,
beliefs and rights etc.
According to Temkin (2012), managers can be confused with the meaning of equality and think
that this is the action which is carried out for the benefits of employees. But they are considering
the wrong fact. In the case of workplace equality, it is all about providing fair and equal
treatment to all the employees in terms of work allocation and pay and wages. There should not
be any discrimination at the workplace because of age, race, gender, religion, culture, beliefs and
rights etc. At the workplace, management is required to put necessary channels so that the
employees can raise their concerns related to unfair treatment and discrimination. It is important
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to ensure that management has a clear role and understanding to promote equality in the
workplace. Burke (2005) has stated that the organization should implement and follow the
equality policies to ensure that equal work opportunities are given to each and every employee.
According to Kumra & Manfredi (2012), conducting equality work at the workplace is beneficial
for the organization to enhance its brand image and make it appear among the customers in an
effective manner. Equality means that men and women should have the same rights, obligations
and opportunities in their life and equal access to the public resources. Many studies on this topic
show that various organizations are implementing the policies to promote work equality for the
employees (Kumra, and Manfredi, 2012).
Nordqvist and Röjd (2018) stated that Equality in the work environment is a multifaceted theme
with more than one straightforward definition. The meaning of equality changes by various
researchers in a lawful point of reference that is enforceable when employees face separation in
the working environment (Nordqvist & Röjd, 2018).
Specific issue
In current time, organizations have a diverse workforce in terms of race, gender, nationality and
religion. Sometimes employees have to face the discriminations due to these diversities. This
reduces their morale towards their job role. In this manner, it is required for the organizations to
provide equal opportunities to all the employees in terms of work and pay. Equality can be
described as breaking down the issues and barriers, minimizing discrimination and providing
equal opportunities to all the employees at the workplace. In the organizations, it is important to
implement equality policies at the workplace to ensure that employees are getting same rights
and opportunities regardless of any differences such as age, gender, religion, disability, and
language (Turk, 2016). Equality is also helpful in creating an effective environment by
promoting and giving equal opportunities to improve the future of the employees. This literature
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review is helpful in defining the importance of equality in the workplace along with the possible
consequences of inequality within the organization.
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Known about the topic
Equality in workplace is not a new topic for the researchers. There are various researchers who
have done the study on this topic and provided meaningful information in this area. The authors
have demonstrated the role of equality in the workplace as it plays an important role in the
process of development and growth of the organization. By the researchers, some important facts
are reported, and empirical and theoretical results are surveyed in an effective manner.
Previously, many researchers have investigated the socio-cultural and other factors to manage
equality at the workplace. In addition to this, researchers have also studied and provided
information on management practices to ensure workplace equality. Various qualitative
researches and studies are done previously to understand better how people view equality in the
workplace. The theoretical framework is also developed based on existing literature and research
related to workplace equality in terms of gender, race, religion, disability and language (Quinlan
et al., 2019).
The scope of the literature review
The literature review on ‘Equality on workplace' has a wide scope in academic work and study.
The literature review is helpful in understanding the concept of equality along with the exact
meaning. The review focuses on understanding equality and reflects the knowledge to clarify the
interpretation and meaning of equality at the workplace. The literature review analyzes the
factors affecting the policies of equality in the workplace. The literature review examines the
principle of work. In terms of the scope, the literature review compares and contrasts various
ideas and theories on equality so that relevant information can be gathered for future research. In
addition to this, the literature review also identifies the areas of consensus and dissent along with
gaps and oversights in the study of equality in the workplace (Flynn et al., 2017). In the study, a
literature review identifies the need for equality in the workplace and indicates the area of future
research in terms of the policies to manage equality. The literature review has a wide range of
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scope in terms of examining the methodological and theoretical strengths and weaknesses of the
study. The qualitative method was used searching the literature method. In this manner, various
academic sources like books and journal articles are used and summarized.
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Conclusion
Based on the overall discussion, it is clear that the literature review demonstrates about the
researchers that he or she is a well-informed scholar having the knowledge and proper expertise
in the filed by providing the overview of current state of literature. The literature review includes
the report on ideas and knowledge which are given on a specific topic that allows the individual
to analyze and provide academic opinion on the topic. In addition to this, the literature review
demonstrates the knowledge of the author to the subject area and determines what every source
is contributing to the topic. This allows the person to avoid mistakes and get the opportunity to
identify and analyze the relevant theories to understand the topic. In terms of the literature
review on ‘equality on workplace', researchers have also studied and provided information on
management practices to ensure workplace equality. Various qualitative researches and studies
are done previously to understand better how people view equality in the workplace. In terms of
the scope, the literature review compares and contrasts various ideas and theories on equality so
that relevant information can be gathered for future research.
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