Implicit Bias Guide Show
Most of us believe that we are fair and equitable, free of prejudice and biases, and evaluate others based on objective facts. However, to our surprise all of us, even the most egalitarian, have implicit biases--also referred to as unconscious biases or implicit social cognition. They are triggered automatically, in about a tenth of a second, without our conscious awareness or intention, and cause us to have attitudes about and
preferences for people based on characteristics such as age, gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, and religion. These implicit biases often do not reflect or align with our conscious, declared, explicit core values and beliefs and can cause individuals to act in ways that produce disparate and inequitable outcomes for different demographic groups. Notably, they influence our judgment, decisions and actions, both positively and negatively, and can predict our behavior,
and ultimately may lead to discriminatory behaviors. Implicit biases about persons with disabilities are pervasive. A 2018-2019 study released by the American Bar Association, in collaboration with the Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University, found that lawyers who identify either as having disabilities or as LGBTQ+ report experiencing both subtle and overt forms of discrimination at their workplaces, with common reports of subtle but unintentional biases. Of
3.590 respondents, 38.5 percent (1,076) reported perceptions or experiences of subtle but unintentional biases, compared to 21.7 percent (607) for subtle and intentional biases. A 2007 study found that "[p]reference for people without disability compared to people with disabilities was among the strongest implicit and explicit effects across the social group domains" (e.g., gender, race, religion, sexuality, weight,
political orientation, etc.), with only age showing more implicit
bias. Significantly, 76 percent of respondents showed an implicit preference for people without disabilities, compared to nine percent for people with
disabilities. Even test takers with disabilities showed a preference for people without
disabilities. Another study using data from 300,000 participants ages 18 to 90 over a 13-year period (2004-2017) found that implicit bias from respondents increased over time and with age, meaning that they had less-favorable feelings toward people with
disabilities. However, when participants were asked explicitly how much they preferred people with individuals, they shared more positive responses with time and age. Further, women felt less implicit bias, and people who had contact with disabled individuals had lower prejudice. When you interact more with a stigmatized group, you may develop positive associations with them, challenging your biases and, thus, resulting in attitudinal changes. The American Bar Association's Commission on Disability Rights has created this resource to increase awareness of implicit biases, both in general and in particular with regard to persons with disabilities, and to offer techniques to help mitigate these biases. We begin with an overview of implicit bias, in particular what is implicit bias, where do such biases originate, how can we measure them, why are they harmful, and how can we mitigate them. This is followed by a series of questions and scenarios that will allow you to examine your implicit biases about persons with disabilities. OverviewWhat Is Implicit Bias?Implicit or unconscious bias is defined as "the process of associating stereotypes or attitudes toward categories of people without our conscious awareness." All of us have a natural human tendency to sort people into groups based on characteristics such as age, gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, and religion. These unconscious responses allow our brain to process vast amounts of information about one another automatically and at lightning speed. We process approximately 200,000 times more information each second unconsciously than consciously. In other words, a majority of how we process information occurs outside of our conscious awareness or control. Having to process everything about each individual we meet would be both overwhelming and likely incapacitating. Sorting is a type of cognitive shorthand that saves cognitive resources.. We tend to look for or favor information that confirms our associations and ignore or screen out information that contradict them. This is called confirmation bias. We tend to see an individual as a representation of a particular group rather than as an individual. Further, we tend to favor, prefer, and associate positive characteristics with members of the group to which we belong--people who are most like us and share similar interests, experiences, and backgrounds. This is known as affinity, in-group favoritism or in-group bias. All of us belong to cultural groups defined by traits such as race, ethnicity, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, family, or social or professional status. In-group bias is so strong that, even when randomly assigned to a group, people report a preference for that group. Accordingly, we tend to associate negative characteristics with or disfavor members of groups to which we do not belong. This is referred to as out-group bias. We also tend to think that examples of things that come readily to are more representative than is actually the case. mind to be factual or accurate. This is called availability bias. For instance, if you have been raised in a family that highlights differences between men and women, you will have numerous examples of those differences, but few examples of commonalities. All of these tendencies are the foundation of stereotyping, prejudice and, ultimately, may result in discriminatory decisions or actions, even if those decisions or actions might not be what we consciously intend or acknowledge. Where Do Implicit Biases Originate? Implicit biases are shaped by our personal and life experiences, the attitudes of family, friends and others, living and working environments, culture, the media, movies, and books. Implicit biases develop over the course of a lifetime, beginning at an early age. How Can We Measure Implicit Biases? It used to be that if we wanted to know a person's biases, we asked. However, we now know that self-reports of biases are unreliable due, in part, to the fact that we are often unaware of our biases, believe we are not biased, or may modify our responses to align with what is regarded as socially acceptable. The Implicit Association Test (IAT) is one of the most well-known, popular, and widely used tools for measuring one's implicit biases, and has been responsible for introducing the concept of implicit bias to the public. There are numerous IATs (over 90) that assess implicit biases across a wide range of characteristics, including race, disability, sexuality, age, gender-career, religion, and weight. Introduced in 1998 and maintained by Project Implicit--a consortium comprised of researchers from Harvard University, the University of Virginia, and the University of Washington --the IAT is a web-based test that measures the strength of associations between concepts (e.g., "Disabled Persons", "Abled Persons") and evaluations (e.g., "Bad", "Good"). Test takers are asked to quickly sort words and images/symbols into categories (e.g., Good, Bad, Disabled Persons, Abled Persons) by pressing the "e" key if the word or image/symbol belongs to the category on the left, and the "i" key if the word or image/symbol belongs to the category on the right. An individual's IAT score is based on how long it takes (speed) the individual, on average, to sort words and images/symbols when the categories are combined, such as Good or Disabled Persons and Bad or Abled Persons and vice versa. The IAT recognizes that most of us identify words and images or symbols more quickly when they originate from what we perceive as closely related rather than unrelated categories. For example, if you are faster to categorize words when "Disabled Persons and Good" share a response relative to when "Disabled Persons and Bad" share a response key, you would have an implicit preference for "Disabled Persons." How Are Implicit Biases Harmful?Implicit biases influence our perceptions, judgments, decisions, and actions and can predict behavior. Implicit biases can lead to microaggressions. These subtle, but offensive comments or actions, which are often unintentional and reflect implicit biases, unconsciously reinforce a stereotype when directed at persons based on their membership in a marginalized group. Unlike explicit discrimination, microaggressions typically are committed by people who are well-meaning. For example, a waiter may ask the person accompanying a blind person or wheelchair user what he or she would like to order, sending the message that a person with a disability is unable to make decisions independently. These "small" slights are cumulative and significant over time. Social scientists point to mounting evidence that implicit biases can lead to discriminatory actions in a wide range of human interactions, from education to employment, health care, housing, and criminal justice. When we look at some of the disproportionalities (i.e., the differences between a group's representation in the population at large and its over- or under-representation in specific areas) that have plagued us for so long, despite society's best intentions, it is hard to explain them. For example, we know that students with disabilities achieve in school at a lower rate than others and are far more often and more severely disciplined in school. Most of us believe that teachers and school administrators act in good faith and have good intentions. If we were to ask them whether they intentionally and explicitly intend to treat students with disabilities with lower expectations and discipline them more severely than students without disabilities, most if not all would say that was not their intent and believe that they are making decisions based on objective facts. Yet, it is difficult to understand the disproportionate results. One possible explanation is that these decision-makers are indeed acting in good faith but are responding with implicit biases. How Can We Mitigate Unconscious Biases? Acknowledging the difficulties of controlling biases that are unconscious and automatic, the good news is that implicit biases are malleable and their effect on behavior can be managed and mitigated. Although nearly all of us have implicit biases, we can take steps to minimize how often they are activated and how much they affect our perceptions, decisions, and actions. The first step is to acknowledge that all of us have implicit biases despite our egalitarian intentions and learn about the cognitive science and the influence of implicit biases on our judgment, decisions, and actions toward demographic groups, resulting in unequal outcomes. Taking the Implicit Association Test or other tests that measure implicit responses helps raise awareness. Once aware, motivation to change and to manage implicit biases is critical. critical. Researchers have developed various de-biasing interventions to counter the negative effects of implicit biases by building new mental
associations. To reinforce these new associations,
these interventions must be consistently and continuously reapplied. These interventions include:
Implicit Disability Biases: Questions to Ask YourselfReflect on each of the questions below. Consider whether and to what extent your response may be influenced by stereotypes and biases about people with disabilities and/or informed by objective facts and evidence and actual experiences with them.
Specific Disabilities
Scenarios For DiscussionScenario 1Nicole, who has cerebral palsy and uses canes to walk, is interviewing for an associate position in the litigation department at a “big law” firm. The partner asks Nicole whether she: is comfortable speaking in court; needs an assistant to accompany her when she meets with clients and goes to court; believes she can effectively represent clients in court; is aware of the long hours involved, billing requirements, and the necessity to travel; is able to learn and remember the myriad rules and procedures for civil and criminal litigation and the rules of evidence; and has considered working in other departments that do not involve going to court. Nicole responds that her passion is litigation, pointing out that she served on a moot court/mock trial team that won several competitions, held a judicial clerkship, and has courtroom experience through a pro bono project and a legal aid clinic. The partner informs Nicole that if she was hired he would initially meet with prospective clients to prepare them to meet her.
Scenario 2Robert, who has major depression, works at a medium law firm. At times he has depressive episodes that recur periodically. When these occur, he requests as accommodations a modified schedule to begin work late rather than early morning; breaks for calming and stress relief exercise; breaking down big projects into manageable tasks; and written feedback of his work. Robert’s supervising attorney assembles a team to work on an important project for the firm. She decides, based on the long hours this will require, the numerous tight deadlines that need to be met, and the team meetings involved, not to assign Robert.
Scenario 3Judge Thompson is presiding over a custody battle involving three-year-old Sean, who has asthma. The boy’s mother is blind, and his father does not have any disabilities. She decides that it would be in the best interests of Sean for his father to have primary custody. The judge expresses concern for Sean’s safety because his mother is blind. Sean is an active and rambunctious toddler who likes to play at the park and is learning to ride a scooter. The judge also notes that Sean attends preschool five days and week, and his mother cannot drive him there. In addition, the judge points out that Sean is susceptible to ear infections, and needs to monitored closely.
Glossary
What does the IAT measure quizlet?The Implicit Association Test (IAT) measures the strength of associations between concepts (e.g., black people, gay people) and evaluations (e.g., good, bad) or stereotypes (e.g., athletic, clumsy). The main idea is that making a response is easier when closely related items share the same response key.
Is an evaluation or emotion toward people merely based on their group?Prejudice is an evaluation or emotion toward people merely based on their group membership.
Which of the following is a criticism of the Implicit Association Test?A common criticism of the IAT is that it may be difficult to associate positive attributes with less familiar concepts.
What is the difference between prejudice and stereotypes quizlet?Terms in this set (25) What is the difference between stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination? stereotypes are based on beliefs, prejudice is based on emotions and discrimination is based on behavior.
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