The Ethics Of Implicit Bias

“Stop trying to be good people.” It is only human to be biased. However, the problem begins when we allow our bigotry to manifest into an obstacle that hinders us from genuinely getting to know people. Long time diversity lawyer, Verna Myers, in her 2014 Ted Talk, “How to overcome our biases? Walk boldly toward them” discusses the implicit biases we may obtain when it comes to race, specifically black men. Myers purpose is quite like the cliché phrase “Face your fears.” Her goal is to impress upon us that we all have biases (conscious or unconscious). We just have to be aware of them and face them head on, so that problems such as racism, can be resolved. Throughout the Ted Talk, Verna Myers utilizes an admonishing yet entertaining tone in

As behavior is manifested daily in classrooms, teachers are frequently asked to make quick judgements while under tremendous stress. Teachers who feel prepared and confident will have already prepared their myriad of responses for the complexities of student behavior, especially from students who show the greatest diversity, and rely on objective reasoning when making behavioral decisions. (Bryan, Day-Vines, Griffin, & Moore-Thomas, 2012). Conversely, teachers who are overwhelmed and have feelings of inadequacy will fuel their decision making and behavioral judgements form a source of anxiety, fear, and control, and quickly turn to subjective reasoning when making behavioral decisions (Bryan et al., 2012). In addition, subjective reasoning can draw on and fuel implicit biases and manifest itself inappropriately to minor behavior (Forsyth, Biggar, Forsyth, & Howat, 2015).

This is shown in a variety of ways, however in specific by segregation making whites seem superior and people making hiring decisions based on the names of practically equal candidates. As the effect of Jim Crow laws has helped to separate blacks and whites in the South and mentally all of America, many people found no choice but to acquaint themselves with those of their own race, which remains an issue today. This concept is explained in the following quote: “Experts say America is still struggling to reverse the legacy of institutional racism that has left many communities segregated today, creating the pool from which we form relationships and social circles,” (CNN). Although it may seem incorrect, the reason why racial stereotypes exist and make white people more dominant is in part because of the change segregation made that had to be undone. A specific example of this kind of implicit bias is shown in the next example, which regards a case study where business owners were given two résumés, one for a theoretical white man, Brendan, and the other a theoretical black man, Jamal. Further detail is said in this quote: “Because the résumés were statistically identical, any differences in outcomes could be attributed only to the factor we manipulated: the names,” (New York Times). As stated in the quote, the résumés were pretty much the same, which is where implicit bias comes in. The business owners most times chose “Brendan” over “Jamal” for the reason that their names are usually associated with white and black men respectfully. Business owners want people in their company that they can trust, and more often than not it is interpreted that white men are more trustworthy than black, regardless of character. A connection between the visit of Reynolds and Kiely and the concept of bias in the context of the police force

Shared knowledge doesn’t amplify instinctive judgments as reason checks these judgments. Shared knowledge is public knowledge acquired over time and communicated from various sources. In 2009, a group of researchers under the British government sent about 3000 job applications under false identities, using a mixture of names associated with minority groups and White sounding names, to uncover racial discrimination among employers against potential employees. The results showed that applicants who appeared to be White would only have to send nine applications to receive one positive response while minority applicants would have to send sixteen applications for the same response (Goodley, 2014). A shared piece of knowledge among these employers is the stereotype that minorities don’t (or aren’t) good at speaking English compared to native English speakers. The stereotype is formed when people associate minorities with bad English due to personal experiences. Through the combination of emotion, perception, and reason, their instinctive judgment is to not hire them. However, if these employers used reason more effectively, they wouldn’t base their judgment on the race of the applicant, but the applicant’s skills. This means that the best candidate will get the job and the overall company will be better off. In fact, Professor Robin Ely of Harvard Business School argues that the racial diversity of workers does benefit the company (Lagace, 2004). Thus, instinctive judgments aren’t amplified by shared knowledge because they are checked by

Implicit bias is an individual’s internal beliefs regarding others and influences how people conduct themselves in various settings and situations and may result in injustices such as stereotyping or racial profiling. The National Center for States Courts defines implicit bias as “judgement or behavior that results from subtle cognitive processes.” This behavior is difficult to identify, because people typically respond and behave in ways that seem appropriate and protect their own interests. Furthermore, these beliefs are more often subconscious than overt. Some groups are working to deter implicit bias and promote diversity.

As a social worker, I would not have any biases concerning Gilbert as a person. However, once including the family and Gilbert’s other systems I will have to limit some personal perspectives. It will be challenging for me to not assume or consider mama is an unfit parent. I do not always view obesity, especially when the individual is overeating, positively. I value healthy parental relationship between children and parents, which might cause me to want to show some type of hostility towards mama’s inability to support her children. As a social worker, I will have to remember that situation is not that simple and take into account underlying reasons for mama’s disability. On the hand, the lack of support from the community and their negative response to Arnie might cause some discomfort. I would assume that most of the community members are not educated about Arnie’s disability and maybe, I could advocacy for more support and resource to be implemented rather than just displaying distress about the situation.

With all things there has to be a first step. To start we have to define discrimination. According to Pager and Shepherd, discrimination is the ‘unequal treatment of people or groups’ based on race. Motivation of discrimination includes prejudice (attitudes), stereotypes (beliefs) or racism (ideologies) but the core characteristic is its

Social psychologists have studied the cause and effect of biases, specifically by white police officers towards minorities. Implicit bias, specifically racial bias, describes a psychological process in which a person’s unconscious racial belief (stereotypes) and attitudes (prejudices) affect his or her behaviors, perceptions, and judgments in ways that they are largely unaware of and typically, unable to control (Graham).

Knowing, understanding, and being aware of personal biases is the first step in the development of plans or strategies overcoming biases. As nurses we must recognize and be more sensitive to the care provided to patients and understand that differences do exist in and between the differing races, cultures, and ethnic groups (Giger, 2013, p. 3). The Implicit Association Test (IAT) is used to identify and provide an awareness to biases that are consciously or unconsciously present in an individuals actions and beliefs (Project Implicit, 2011). After completing the Race IAT, Gender-Career IAT and Religion IAT, I will discuss the prejudices, biases, and stereotypical thinking present in my life and share what steps can be taken to reduce or eliminate

The third strategy, to put simply, just eliminates the cause for bias in the first place in the situation. Since the employers’ bias only triggers when reading a job application, then getting rid of the bias triggering elements and the employers’ bias should disappear as well. For the interview process, the second strategy, which is to teach the employers strategies for suppressing their implicit bias, is needed since the interview is performed in person, and humans cannot eliminate their race just yet. An example of the third strategy being implemented is to have all the job application forms get rid of race, gender, and the applicants’ names while leaving only the phone number and job experience to be judged by the employer. Now the employer should have less chance of triggering an implicit bias when choosing a potential

No matter who you are or what part of the world you are from implicit bias are a constant issue in society. These tendencies typically stem from structural injustice, implicit bias, and personal discretion. Structural injustice is when a category of people are associated with an insufficient status when comparing to other groups of people engaging in the same actions. Implicit bias are stances and stereotypes that affect our comprehension, actions and decisions held by our unconscious manner. These bias are involuntarily and are done without individuals awareness or intentional control. Everyone is exposed to these biases at a young age through the media, parents, and teachers. Each individual holds possession of implicit bias whether they

In this paper I will discuss what happens when we allow biases and prejudice to affect our actions toward others. I will then conclude my paper with what we can do to prevent or eliminate discrimination.

on grounds of their gender, disability, race, religion or belief, nationality, ethnicity or national origins,

It is Ethical to modify your name to prevent unconscious and conscious bias, if the

4.How much objective according to your thoughts, most of the recruiters are in the selection and recruitment process? Please rate your selection from 1 to 10, with 1 indicating ‘Not at all’, and 10 indicating ‘Totally’.