To date, in the field of organizational psychology there has been no critical examination of who is engaging in diversity and inclusion work and what effect this work has on one’s career-related outcomes. The present investigation examined the perceptions, value, and career impacts of engaging in extra-role work with a particular focus on how diversity work is perceived as similar to and different from affiliation and challenge oriented OCBOs. The three studies herein were designed to address four main aims: (1) develop and test a new theoretical framework to explain why diversity work may be devalued by majority group members, (2) compare how individuals from marginalized racial and ethnic groups and individuals from societally privileged racial groups are perceived when they are engaging in diversity work, (3) examine employee perceptions of how diversity work should be compensated and whether the degree of compensation varies depending on race of the person engaging in the work and (4) examine whether there are differential career-related outcomes related to doing diversity work compared to engaging in other OCBs and learn whether these differential outcomes are exacerbated for members of marginalized racial and ethnic groups in the workplace. It was revealed that diversity work is viewed similarly to affiliation oriented OCBOs. In addition, how White employees conceptualize their own racial identity was found to impact perceptions of diversity work and the allocation outcomes. Implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed.
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