article published yes Mariya Lorke author 2524300000-0002-1201-427X Vivian Carstensen author 767940009-0009-5913-8817 4b2dc5c9-bee3-11eb-b75f-ecc80f94fb21 department Background: Evidence suggests that appropriately managed diversity in healthcare teams can enhance problem-solving, resilience, job satisfaction – all crucial for workforce retention. This scoping review aims to map evidence on how lived diversity experience is conceptualized and operationalized as an individual resource among care workers. Methods: An interdisciplinary approach across social anthropology, health sciences, and labor economics will be adopted. The databases to be searched include MEDLINE/PubMed, PsycINFO, Scopus and Web of Science and sources of grey literature. A two-stage screening process will be followed by systematic data extraction, with findings synthesized through descriptive numerical summaries and qualitative thematic analysis. Results: This scoping review is expected to shift the focus from organisational-level diversity research to research on how diversity contributes as an individual resource in care work contexts. It will map how diversity-as-resource is theoretically operationalized across disciplines, identifying existing measurement approaches and potentially revealing critical gaps in current assessment methods. Conclusion: By synthesizing evidence on how care workers’ lived diversity experiences are deployed as valuable competencies in care delivery, this review will provide foundational knowledge to inform workforce transformational strategies Frontiers Media SA2026 eng 2296-256510.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688 14 Lorke, Mariya, and Vivian Carstensen. “Diversity as an Individual Resource in Care Work of the Future: A Scoping Review Protocol.” <i>Frontiers in Public Health</i>, vol. 14, Frontiers Media SA, 2026, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688">10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688</a>. M. Lorke and V. Carstensen, “Diversity as an individual resource in care work of the future: a scoping review protocol,” <i>Frontiers in Public Health</i>, vol. 14, 2026. <span style="font-variant:small-caps;">Lorke, Mariya</span> ; <span style="font-variant:small-caps;">Carstensen, Vivian</span>: Diversity as an individual resource in care work of the future: a scoping review protocol. In: <i>Frontiers in Public Health</i> Bd. 14, Frontiers Media SA (2026) M. Lorke, V. Carstensen, Frontiers in Public Health 14 (2026). Lorke M, Carstensen V. Diversity as an individual resource in care work of the future: a scoping review protocol. <i>Frontiers in Public Health</i>. 2026;14. doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688">10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688</a> @article{Lorke_Carstensen_2026, title={Diversity as an individual resource in care work of the future: a scoping review protocol}, volume={14}, DOI={<a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688">10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688</a>}, journal={Frontiers in Public Health}, publisher={Frontiers Media SA}, author={Lorke, Mariya and Carstensen, Vivian}, year={2026} } Lorke, Mariya, and Vivian Carstensen. “Diversity as an Individual Resource in Care Work of the Future: A Scoping Review Protocol.” <i>Frontiers in Public Health</i> 14 (2026). <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688">https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688</a>. Lorke, M., &#38; Carstensen, V. (2026). Diversity as an individual resource in care work of the future: a scoping review protocol. <i>Frontiers in Public Health</i>, <i>14</i>. <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688">https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1892688</a> 72242026-10-20T11:10:15Z2026-10-21T12:47:20Z