I have interpreted the key aspect of this essay question as evaluating the extent to which knowledge can be obtained, despite possible problems of bias and selection. First of all I would like to give my own personal definition of bias and selection to make clear my interpretation of what these two words mean. Bias is a tendency to give an opinion that disregards any other possible alternatives. Selection is the process by which one decides what information should be included and what should not. Already by reading these two definitions one can see that they can pose a possible threat in obstructing our acquisition of knowledge. However, we must not discard a source that contains aspects of bias or selection as useless, as is this not a …show more content…
Therefore, can this reflection not also be seen as a way of attaining knowledge? I believe so. To further support this idea I can draw in my personal experience of using a process of OPVL (Origin, Purpose, Values and Limitations) in history class. This is used to assess a source’s usefulness based on its origin and purpose. Through this I have learnt that even a source that may be biased or have elements of selection in it is useful to us as it allows us to understand why it has been written in this way, consequently increasing our knowledge on the subject. This analysis allowed me to really understand from personal experience that a source is not useless even if affected by bias or selection as there is still knowledge that can be gained from it, such as interpretations and attitudes of different people on an event, something that otherwise cannot be learnt simply through factual information given by an unbiased source. Having said that, it can also be argued that bias and selection can present obstacles in attaining complete knowledge. A lot of our information about history we learn from historians. We must understand that when writing history, historians inevitably have to make a selection of what material to use from all the evidence available on the subject, because it would be virtually impossible to mention every single detail about what happened in a particular event. A historian, by making a decision based
Reflection is telling us the operation of mind such as includes perception, thinking, doubting, believing, reasoning, knowing, willing.
What is reflection? Reflection is defined by Wilkinson (1996) as an active process whereby the professional gains an understanding of how historical, social, cultural, cognitive and personal experiences have contributed to professional knowledge and practice.
If bias continues to effect how valid certain past documents are, the documents which help to base
One example of bias is all the theorists and skeptics about why Amelia Earhart’s plane disappeared in 1937.
Implicit biases are “‘habits of mind,’ learned over time through repeated personal experiences and cultural socialization, which can be activated unintentionally, often outside of one’s own awareness, and are difficult to control” (Burgess, Beach & Saha, 2017, p. 372). Implicit bias is seen in the medical field partly because of the time pressure of medical visits, and the reliance on stereotypes in situations of high stress. It is difficult to study implicit bias because of social desirability. No doctor wants to admit that they are biased and, as a result, they are going to do their best to demonstrate the socially desirable response of being non-biased. However, research shows that bias and prejudice from health care providers toward patients exists, and leads to poorer care related to the assessment of cardiovascular risk and whether or not a patient is referred for additional treatment (Stepanikova, I., 2012). Even health care providers from one of the best health care organizations in the world, Mayo Clinic, struggle with
Not all is known and the facts passed down may not reveal the whole truth. History is biased and can easily be manipulated by those with more power, and it is a modern historian’s job to weed through the commonly accepted information, and try to find the truth. If the truth is not found, then they present alternative theories to broaden the world’s knowledge on the possible course of events in the
After 3 weeks of keeping a journal of my bias’s I have found I can now reflect on the process. I must say I am somewhat surprised with the outcome. I have found new bias’s I never knew I had or never took the time to think that I had. I also reflected on biases that I knew I had. When it comes down to it, everyone has biases about something. So saying that you do not have a bias or denying would just be a lie.
Reflection is thought by linking recent experience with early experience to promote more complex and interrelated mental models or patterns. The thinking involves looking for commonalities, differences, and interrelations beyond their superficial elements. The goal is to develop higher order thinking skills.
ffer and Rubenfeld (2000) define reflection as “ contemplation upon a subject, especially one’s assumptions and thinking for the purposes of deeper understanding and self-evaluation.”
9.According to your own thoughts, what is the importance of understanding and countering the unconscious bias in the selection and recruitment processes.
Reflection is a tool that is used within many disciplines including teaching and within the legal profession
The Royal College of Nursing defines reflection as the process of thinking deeply with the purpose of understanding (RCN 2013). Reflection is a way people recollect, think and evaluate their knowledge which is a vital part of learning. (Boud et al cited in Royal College of Nursing). Reflection allows us to be conscious of any form of discrimination. It enables learning from mistakes and prevents future occurrence (RCN 2013). In addition, Jasper et al (2013) looks at reflection as a way professionals learn through various experiences in their role. They also went further to say, for development to happen in our roles as professionals, there is the need for continuous process of building our knowledge.
However, Carr rebuts this, as he states that ‘the belief in a hard core of historical facts existing objectively and independently of the interpretation of the historian is a preposterous fallacy, but one which it is very hard to eradicate.’ This statement explains the misconception that history is made up entirely of facts without the interference of opinion and biases. Carr’s argument is that for facts to become historical facts they must be interpreted and analyzed by the historian. This requires the process of selecting facts, evaluating and interpreting them, which inevitable will contain certain elements of personal prejudices. It is based on this reasoning which he therefore claims that facts can only become historical once they have been selected by a historian and this is what makes them significant. He therefore questions the extent to which a historian could be objective as experience could affect what we perceive as being important, meaning that historians are determining what the facts of the past are according to the own biases and agendas, whether they are consciously or unconsciously aware. Hence emphasising Carr’s point that history is an interpretation. He uses several examples to explain this for example it was the historian that decided Caesar crossing the Rubicon was a significant event whilst ignoring the many others that crossed it before and after him. Thus,
Reflection helps one to improve especially when they can draw lessons from the positive and negative experiences of the past. It is an active process that enables individuals to understand how historical, social, cultural, as well as personal experiences contribute to how we study or learn. In any aspect of life, reflection can be applied to help individuals focus their efforts in getting the most out of different situations, and, therefore, improving self-performance and becoming lifelong learners.
Knowledge is considered accurate when there is sufficient evidence that it is the truth. Over time, methods of verifying the accuracy of knowledge change. As learners, we often equate accuracy with the value of knowledge, however, the value of accuracy is dependent on the area of knowledge under consideration. Today, accuracy in the natural sciences is vital as any error can be catastrophic. In 1986, a flawed reactor and human error caused the Chernobyl disaster that exposed millions to radiation and had significant long term impacts. However in history, complete “accuracy” is almost unattainable. As historians cannot first-hand experience past events, they can only try to make connections with available sources to suggest what happened