INCORPORATING AH/SD INTO ORGANIZATIONAL DIVERSITY

A diversidade invisível: As pessoas AH/SD e a vida profissional. Livro 1: Primeiros olhares Christine da Silva Schröeder. São Paulo, SP: Amazon Publishing, 2020. 120 p.

Researching differences, which refer to the infinity of human existence, as Deleuze (2018) rightly said, does not exempt researchers from being surprised by the very limits of their eyes. This undoubtedly happens with the reading of “The invisible diversity: the AH/SD people and professional life. Book 1: First Glances”. This book pays attention to the theme of high habilities and gifted (HA/G), considerably marginal in Administration, which falls within the broad spectrum covered by neurodiversity, thus extending the reach of organizational diversity, which is more than enough reason for this book to be very welcome.

The author fills a considerable knowledge gap by undertaking a systematic work of literature mapping and presentation of concepts, approaches and information about the HA/G population. Throughout five chapters, the book focuses on concepts and contextualization of the theme in Brazil, the presentation of studies on adult HA/G in the country in the last 20 years, the focus of studies on diversity in the country, the need to include this perspective in this spectrum and the management and highlight of HA/G diversity in professional life. The work is concluded with the testimony of a person with these characteristics and some final considerations.

The book presents evident merits, such as focusing on a theme that cannot be overlooked by the clichés erroneously associated with high skills and over-giving, among which that such people would be bearers of innate, very rare and infallible “gifts”, and that it is always “positively special” to be identified as HA/G. The broad ignorance of the subject, as well as the commonplace related to it, causes the needs of these people to be ignored by society in general and by organizations in particular, because it is believed that they do not face difficulties. But they do exist, and present a nature and an extension that only those directly affected can perceive, describe and feel, as if there were systematically high expectations in relation to whatever they do because they are “special”, which leads to frustrations and generalized tensions in several professional aspects. For this reason, this work, by Christine da Silva Schröeder, professor at the School of Administration at UFRGS, is very relevant. The myths linked to the privileges of the “gifted” are demolished one by one by the author, who takes care of being didactic on the subject, offering a work of great potential for advancing the subject.

Presenting and discussing this issue, associated with the author’s personal commitment, however, ends up revealing tensions in the work. On the one hand, the text adopts a sober tone, supposedly neutral and objective, as it advocates a narrow vision of what would be scientifically acceptable knowledge. However, this perspective does not harbor the nuances of suffering, exclusion, and loneliness of HA/G people, and they fortunately “escape” in several passionate passages that appear punctually in the book. Although we understand the author’s didactic intention, it is very positive that there is a more humanized look and that the very content of the book gradually embraces this sense from halfway up. When we see the concepts embodied in human existences, we are faced with our own difficulties in perceiving the differences that surround us, and this is a necessary sensitization to transcend the mere conceptual exposition and, besides understanding, to be able to change our positions about it.

Another tension in the book refers to the predominantly managerial focus of the approach. Although the author places the discussion in the light of People Management and, therefore, of benchmarks compatible with diversity management - which explains the moments when recommendations are made to organizations - we think the book is more powerful in another sense: that of recording the high skills and over-endowment in the field of differences, therefore beyond the pragmatically convertible into something manageable (Souza, 2014). It is precisely in the infinity of human existences that differences are inserted as characteristics that are not better or worse than others. And this is how one avoids falling into the “competition of differences”, in which each oppressed social group defends how much its condition is overlooked in relation to the others. In the end, besides being unproductive, this seems to exempt normality from being frontally questioned as a political-ideological project to be abandoned in favor of a more equitable society that treats everyone equally in the measure of their differences (Azevedo, 2013).

These tensions, however, are far from diminishing the work, quite the contrary: they reveal the challenges of producing knowledge in an innovative way and sensitive to unusual perspectives. The author deserves to be congratulated for her initiative from both intellectual and political points of view. By choosing to dedicate herself to the subject in order to put her own history on the table, she does an enormous service to the field of differences, by showing that even positive stereotypes remain stereotypes, which contributes to people being perceived and respected not for what they are, but for what they should be, according to an ideal fool of normality that oppresses us all.

REFERÊNCIAS

• Azevedo, M. L. N. (2013). Igualdade e equidade: Qual é a medida da justiça social? Avaliação: Revista da Avaliação da Educação Superior, 18(1), 129-150. doi: 10.1590/S1414-40772013000100008.
  » https://doi.org/10.1590/S1414-40772013000100008.
• Deleuze, M. (2018). Diferença e repetição Rio de Janeiro, RJ: Paz e Terra.
• Souza, E. M. (2014). Poder, diferença e subjetividade: A problematização do normal. Farol - Revista de Estudos Organizacionais e Sociedade, 1(1), 113-160. doi: 10.25113/farol.v1i1.2556
  » https://doi.org/10.25113/farol.v1i1.2556

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  16 July 2021
• Date of issue
  2021