UNCONSCIOUS BIAS

UNCONSCIOUS BIASSASHA SCOTT&DAMIAN JENKINSWhat is it?Natural, in-built preferences

Filters we apply to every day life to make handling of information possible at allYou ate the spotted toadstoolYou were sick. You repeated your mistake. You were sick again.You dont even see the spotted toadstool anymore.2What is going on?Brain receives app. 11,000,000 pieces of information per second

Needs to attend to only a small proportion of this information

Rest dealt with by sub-processorsAnd the sub-processors are not consciously noticedThis gives rise to two brains: fast (uncon) and slow (consc)3Brain anatomy for beginners..

Run across field ? Danger ? Reward over time, whichever outcome you get hard wiresCortex = slower brainSubcortex = faster brain4

So Im not in charge?

Even free decisions partly subconscious Soon et al 2008People asked to make decision freelyBrain scan records activityBrain active for up to 7s before conscious decision areas active!

Brain scanning of active areasShown series of lettersAt any time could press a button left or right hand free choice. Then asked which letter was on screen at time.7You can even answer questions unconsciously..

HEALTHY SUBJECT

VEGETATIVE-STATE PATIENTAnswering YES to a questionAnswering NO to a questionWhy not think consciously about everything?Too slowToo costlyWould ruin fight or flight

SO unconscious decision making necessary for survivalSplit second decisionsKey is that everyone makes decisions without thinkingBut the survival instinct is less useful in a world without sabretooth tigers9Discrepancy between unconscious & conscious thinking

% with prejudice againstPeople asked to honestly rate their biases. Then biases measured Implicit Bias TestsGreatest discrepancy exists where people think they are NOT biased anymoreShocking bias still exists against blacks, women and gays 10What determines this unconscious response?Previous experiences & teachings

Hard wiring

No previous experience means no previous hard wiringIf the brain sees two things happening together it begins to expect them together: white person = success; fat person = failureHardwiring later relied on for split second choicesWhen it sees things it has no experiences of it is challenged: anxiety/fear/anger/unease11Some TerminologyKinship Group: Those people who share externally, and self-ascribed, characteristics

These set the group apart from othersWhite versus blackMale versus femaleGay versus straightOur hard wiring is markedly influenced by the groups we are around, and come to associate withIn gender identity this is further complicated Self-ascribed kinship may not be accepted by others in kinship groupLeads to double whammy of bias

12This is despite the fact that we could each identify with many different groups

Some more terminologySchema: expectation about a persons characteristics based on their membership of a group

Schemas can conflict with what you think your conscious view point is (I get on with gay people: implicit tests argues otherwise etc.)Changes with repeated exposure to different people and experiencesKinship groups, usually through a lack of experience of other kinship groups, develop ideas about people NOT like them14Most likely to rely on schemas when..StressedDistractedUnder time pressureThere is ambiguityThere is a lack of critical massCritical massIf you have lots of black people in a group you are more likely NOT to see the colour and to start differentiating between individuals

If you do a diversity test in a mixed colour group you are likely to score higher

If you do a test of bias against women in a group consisting 50% women rather than 10% women you score as being less biasedMight think Guy is the gay black one; Fabian is the runner.The reason critical mass works is that your schema is challenged16LGBT difficultyCritical mass may not be reached

Far fewer openly gay men amongst soldiers

Far fewer gay women amongst officers

Vanishingly small number of bi and transgender personnelWhat price is paid for not addressing unconscious bias?IT MIGHT FEEL AS IF THERE IS NO COSTYou may cut yourself off from experiences that are enrichingBut otherwise you probably dont really notice any affect. 18But at the organisational levelMeans teams become very similar in their mix of people

Minority groups alienated. Accumulation of minor disadvantages leads to an overall view that I cannot get on in this job Loss of talent from groups

HOMOGENEITY IS EVOLUTIONARY SUICIDE

Organisations lose out on operational effectiveness. This is clear from all business case examplesSame crop in every field susceptible to same blight / Same eyes in every head: same blind spot for predatorMinor disadvantages: being pigeon holed; overlooked for team leader roles; not going on courses; not promotedMountains are molehills piled on top of each other19Use of schemas is prevalent whenRecruiting

Undertaking appraisals

When deciding which employee goes on a course/training/AT

Awards and promotionsEvidence that the brain sees what it wants

Lets prove that we are all biasedWhat do you read. Now look at the H and A.Two identical objects can be viewed as different ones to please the mind/fit the pattern21Handbook 1Diagram 1Stare at the crosshair in the middle

Diagram 2Which is bigger? Central circle on the left or right?

Diagram 3Which dude is larger?Dots disappear. FOCUS on your own group and you wont see others.Misperception exists not only as an optical illusion. It can do the same with emotion and planning.Not just a guy question!22Seeing what you want to see

Clearly this set up is impossibleAnd yet you see itThe unconscious brain is powerful enough to conflict with your conscious one23Its all about the angle from which you look

How does this relate to the workplace?Explicit bias is no longer accepted

Despite this minorities still under-represented

Not a team player

Just didnt fit in

This shows how pernicious is the effect of implicit biasThere is only a level playing field in terms of policyForming truly diverse environments is not as easy as having policy against OBVIOUS bullyingIf not diverse environment how would someone diff fit in? The heterosexual guy, av performer, doesnt need to fit in. He just does!25Bias affects the performance of those being type-castThree groups of Asian post-grads given maths testBefore sitting test asked to sit questionnaire1st group: Qs about Asian-ness 2nd group: Qs about Female qualities3rd group: Neutral questionnaire Scores on maths test: Gp 1 52% > Gp 3 45% > Gr 2 42%Remember we all have implicit biases.So our own output can be swayed by how we are made to feelIt is crucial to grasp this when dealing with minority groups26Promotes homogeneity

59

659 Av Male Height

6 Av Height CEOs

14.5% of men are >6

YET

58% of all Fortune 500 CEOs are >6 Limits potential

UK female managers earn an average salary of 31,895

UK male managers earn an average salary of 42,441

With exactly the same CVswomen score 3.33/5 for competency and men 4.05/5

Gives rise to irrational statistics

The average good looker earns 3-4% more over their lifetime than someone considered not a good looker...and clear discrimination

Women begin being discriminated against at a BMI of 27For men its 35Overweight men earn 2.3% less than their colleaguesFor women its 6.2%BIRMINGHAMNEWCASTLECOCKNEYWORST 5 ACCENTS IN UK (>2600 EMPLOYEES SURVEYED)LIVERPOOLGLASGOW72% employees victimised at work because of accent63% employees with an accent have hidden it at a job interview

In telephone interviews people from Edinburgh 4x more likely to get jobthan person from Glasgow with same CV31What is clear about this?Ability in the workplace is not linked to:HeightGenderSexualityColourAccentLooksAnd yet all of these factors come into play!Many people look around them and wonder why person X managed to promote to their current levelIts because32

RESEARCH FROM LEVEL PLAYING FIELD INSTITUTE The effect for LGBT people is marked.>1000 employees canvassedAsked how well they thought someone with certain characteristics might fit in with their group33

RESEARCH FROM LEVEL PLAYING FIELD INSTITUTE Then asked again. Instead of being asked to rank them they areAsked how likely it is that someone would score a 10 or a 1Gays MOST likely no score 1 (not fit in at all), and LEAST likely to score a 10 (very likely to fit in)34This creates a negative cycleAs the cycle continues disadvantage accumulates.35And when the affected person complains..You have no reference point for what LGBT people are like

Therein you associate LGBT soldiers with moaning

This makes you less likely to helpful to the next LGBT person you meet

The cycle continuesUltimatelyLGBT staff unmotivatedNegative mind setMake no effort to integrate with a team that also makes no effort to integrateWithdrawComplain or leave or fly solo

Brain drainHuman cost, team cost, financial costNo winners

Which meansWe are not representative of the society we seek to serve and protect

The Good NewsYou can unlearn unconscious biases

BUT it requires effort

MINDFULNESS