Introduction [to Diversity and Inclusion in Italy. Societal and Organizational Perspectives]

This introductory chapter briefly outlines the rationale behind the volume ‘Diversity and Inclusion in Italy: Societal and Organisational Perspectives’. We begin by identifying some of the main problems arising from the lack of contextual attention in the diversity and inclusion (D&I) debate in organisational and management studies, namely the difficulty in evaluating D&I practices and policies, the low social impact of D&I research, and the concealment of the current US-centric nature of D&I theories and practices. We then present the contextual approach that characterises the contributions in this volume, considering both the advantages and disadvantages of framing our context in terms of nation-state. The introduction concludes with a brief presentation of all the sections and contributions in the volume.