A starting place for understanding and examining the role of diversity within the organizations in which you participate is to understand and examine your own development, as well as the influences that have contributed to shaping who you are and how you see the world. Begin by describing your own background, culture, and perceptions. How do you identify yourself? Is this different from how you feel? What have been the primary influences shaping your perceptions of yourself and the world around you? What role did/does your culture play? If you are currently in a “new” culture, how is it different from what you have used to in the past? Have your assumptions, interpretations, and feelings changed over time? Describe at least one scenario or event from your life in which you identified with an “in-group” and contrast that to the corresponding “out-group(s).”