What's the relationship between DEI and Trust?
What's the relationship between DEI and Trust?
Recently I had the chance to interview Dr. Darryl Stickel. Darryl is one of the world’s foremost experts on trust.
Darryl oozes trustworthiness to such an extent that I had to check my confirmation bias to ensure that I wasn’t ascribing it to him superficially. (He is Canadian after all and they are quite a pleasant lot of humans to engage with.) My sentiments were reinforced as the delightful conversation continued from pre- to post-podcast recording.
In our conversation, Darryl shared some of the levers that create the conditions for trust. What resonated with me in relation to DEI were three things: Context, Benevolence, and Vulnerability.
DEI is heavily context-driven. If context is unclear, Darryl summarized, uncertainty goes up. When uncertainty increases, perceived vulnerability generally increases, too.
In Darryl’s trust equation, which can be found in his online masterclass, if perceived uncertainty and vulnerability are too high the trust threshold is too high to engender trustworthiness.
What then regulates perceived uncertainty?
Dr. Louise Diamond, a peacebuilder in places of violent conflict for almost five decades and an emeritus member of the NTL Institute for Applied Behavioural Science, describes trust based on four levels:
“To lead for trust-building, we need to understand the foundations of trust. We posit four stages. These are:
1. I trust that I am safe with you; that you will not intentionally harm me.
2. I trust that you understand my concerns, needs, interests, and hopes.
3. I trust that you care about me and my concerns, needs, interests, and hopes.
4. I trust that you understand and care enough to stand in some form of solidarity with me. (For example, represent my interests when I’m not present, demonstrate commitment to my cause publicly, challenge any negative speech or oppressive action against me, my humanity, or my rights, etc.)
A relationship does not necessarily move in a linear fashion, from Stage 1 to Stage 2 and so on. Usually, the progress is two steps forward and one step back, or one step forward and two steps back. Trust is a very delicate thing.”
Dr. Diamond’s work aligns with Dr. Stickel’s in that one of her actions that allow for the four stages of trust to manifest is, “to demonstrate vulnerability through honest sharing, self-disclosure, and other forms of person risk-taking.”
Her other trust-building actions include continuous contact (face-to-face), curiosity through honest inquiry, engaging in joint cooperative action, and caring.
In chapter four of Reconstructing Inclusion, “AI-DEI Humanity Enhanced or Compromised,” I write about what AI firms must do to pass the ‘Terminator Test.’
In the chapter, I discuss Care, Openness, Safety, and Trust, the C.O.S.T. of Inclusion. While the focus in the manuscript was what developers of machine learning and artificial intelligence applications (like large language models (LLMs) can do to choose humanity consistently, the principles apply to and reflect the work of Drs. Stickel and Diamond, and many others who have extensively studied, fostered, or inspired trust with others.
Caring is about interdependence. It is about commitment to a shared goal or desired outcome. Such a goal could be material (a business outcome) or non-material (a relational outcome) (when it comes to trust, non-material outcomes are most enduring and can support business outcomes).
Openness is about vulnerability and transparency. When you are open, you are willing to be influenced by someone and they know it. The more you open up, the more vulnerable you are and others perceive you are and receive your vulnerability with care and appreciation as you have given it, the greater possibilities for reciprocity.
Safety goes hand in hand with vulnerability, mental, emotional, and physical well-being. When working with clients, we frame it in dialogue about sensing and the balancing of tension, complexity, and power. Do I feel safe ‘to be?’ And when I don’t feel at ease, are you–this team, this human community–a space where I can articulate my unease and move toward transforming it with you?
Trust aligns with Louise Diamond’s four levels and flows from caring, openness, and safety. You care and understand enough to see my interests fulfilled, and you do so when I am not present.
Related article: Many of our organizational DEI initiatives fail because we fail the Terminator test
What is the relationship between DEI and Trust?
It is fundamental. And, given the state of trust in organizational life, it’s paramount.
For DEI to be accessible to everyone, unambiguously prioritized, and aligned with the organizational mission and purpose, building trust skills and grow trust-building capabilities is like yeast in your favorite fluffy bread. Without it there, the fluffiness and the expectations that come with the fluffiness experience are, at best, diminished.
To translate the bread analogy to organizational life:
If you fail to create the conditions for trust, your DEI efforts will fall flat.
And, the “C.O.S.T.” of not doing so is immeasurable.
I hope this was helpful. . . Make it a great day! ✌🏿
In this episode of the ‘Reconstructing Inclusion’ podcast, we talk about the complexities of DEI outcomes and challenge DEI practitioners to explore a broader, more inclusive approach that engages all individuals in fostering change and reflect on their “skin in the game”. The important question remains: how can we make DEI accessible, actionable, and sustainable for everyone, irrespective of role or expertise?