What do I mean by inclusive attitude or inclusivity?
‘The tendency to include, whether it be people, view points or material products in groups, discussions, product lines etc’
Why is the concept of inclusivity so important in human relations?
‘Inclusivity or an inclusive attitude is important in human relations because it implies that we welcome people in rather than shutting them out. The desire to include as many people as possible in discussions.
Inclusivity implies being open to many view points rather than limited to just a few.’
How does inclusivity apply to you in real life?
‘It means asking the opinion of many people, considering the feelings of many people and being open to many different cultural, gender, lifestyle and racial viewpoints.’
The opposite to inclusivity of course, is exclusivity and while exclusivity might be a good idea when applied to designer clothes or accessories. It can be toxic when applied to human institutions.
The concept of exclusivity or an exclusive attitude lies at the core of corruption, wars and many other problems in the world to day. This is because exclusivity implies the exclusion of people according to some criterion which is the root discrimination and prejudice.
Exclusivity engenders an atmosphere of us and them, pitting one group against another. It highlights the differences between people and leads to tension and violence between groups.
Inclusivity or an inclusive attitude however engenders an atmosphere of cooperation and teamwork across all groups in society. It highlights the things that we have in common and allows us to relate to each other across the whole spectrum of human beliefs and activities, rather than forcing us to define ourselves through our opinions on a limited number of issues.
Everybody is different and inclusivity allows us as people to take advantage of our different talents, abilities, view points and ways of thinking making us stronger for it. Exclusivity on the other hand, divides us along these lines and makes us weaker.
Incidentally, the word inclusivity does not exist in the dictionary unlike its counterpart exclusivity. This to my mind serves to illustrate a tendency towards exclusion in society. My objective is that it should be a word and we can make it so by being inclusive and saying that we strive for inclusivity.
So I say ‘be inclusive!’ try to include more people in your life. Make yourself open to new viewpoints. Try to be respectful of others peoples opinions and beliefs and complement people when they make a good point even if it is not in agreement with yours.
By being more accepting and thoughtful towards others, you will make yourself and the people around you happier. We cannot change the world overnight but we can make our own lives better.
