Our "hidden biases" against "difference" are exposed!

Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People exposes our invisible biases against those considered “different.” The irony is, many of us would totally disagree because we’re just too egalitarian, or so we think. Yet, our self-perceptions feed into the society in which we live, changing its people and creating unnecessary stress.

In Blindspot, our “self-perceptions are challenged by leading psychologists Mahzarin R. Banaji and Anthony G. Greenwald as they explore the hidden biases we all carry from a lifetime of exposure to cultural attitudes about age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, social class, sexuality, disability status, and nationality” (http://www.goodreads.com). I haven’t read the book, fearing it might alter my perception and influence this writing, but I plan to read it because it validates my perceptions based on what I have observed: We harbor negative attitudes and expectations based on race, religion, gender, culture and more.

I should begin with my early bias against black people. I grew up with beautiful, brown people in a racially integrated neighborhood. My first love happened when I was in second grade. Robert was a beautiful brown-eyed boy of seven, with brown skin. I didn’t count the boy I fell in love with when I was only six because he was my neighbor, a red-head, freckle-faced boy named Rusty who had the whitest skin and who was also my brother’s best friend. I didn’t know there was a problem, but each week the  neighborhood seemed browner and browner, and I started to think something was wrong with these people who chased my friends away.

Since childhood, I have had many friends from different cultures and backgrounds. Each one brings something different to my perception of reality. On the job, I met people from more than a hundred cultural and ethnic backgrounds. I appreciate them equally. While I loved talking and sharing ideas with a diverse group of people, and although my workplace capitalized on it’s award-winning programs aimed at diversity, behind the scenes was a different matter, and anyone offering a difference of opinion was discredited or ignored.

I recently visited Europe which has it’s history, culture, and perspective, but I returned home more appreciative of my country because of it’s diversity, but I know the equality and diversity is not as it’s hyped up to be. That’s a fact of life in America. Choice made within groups such as schools, churches, the workplace are based on hidden biases. We have all heard the familiar phrase, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.”

On the job, hidden biases are difficult to detect until teamwork is required. According to NPR’s public radio discussion about the book, Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People, people unconsciously gravitate to what is familiar. I know from personal and group-related experience that people also escape from what is familiar, which is why certain racial and ethnic groups avoid people of their kind even as others seek out people they feel a kinship to. Groups are formed and maintained based on an unwritten, unstated, and unacknowledged agreement that favors a dominant cultural or racial perspective. Those challenging or questioning the dominant perspective are often marginalized, ostracized or ignored.

But hidden biases are not only found in the workplace. They are found in advertisements, social networking, celebratory events, and interpersonal relationships. On a daily basis, we consume information according to our biases, and although sometimes we haven’t a clue, all too often we participate in promoting activities and supporting behavior based on preconceived notions and biases. If we happen to sense our own biases, we easily rectify the situation by adding diversity to our circle of friends or attending an event that makes us appear more diverse. This is done by making sure to have “friends and associates” who are considered “different” or by taking in a movie or performance that appeals to a diverse audience. Despite the appearance of things, in reality, such friends or events are often flaunted or exploited as needed.

Yes, hidden biases exist among good people all over the world, but I am most familiar with what happens in America. In addition to the biases we show against other cultures, races and religions, we show biases in the way we treat those of different genders within the same culture. We even show biases in educational settings when the instructor or facilitator is considered “different.” The unwritten agreement among American citizens is two-fold. On the one hand, we like to applaud cultural diversity, racial integration, and equal rights. On the other hand, we maintain prejudicial beliefs and applaud physical attributes of the dominant culture (though secretly repackaging desirable attributes of certain minority cultures.) For example, I once heard a woman say: “This stuff leaves you too dark. I just want to look tanned; I don’t want to be black.”

Those unable to balance these two aspects of our society—appearance and reality--can expect to undergo stress. Unconscious hidden biases create inequality and stress in minority cultures, but those challenging this aspect of our society are discouraged or labeled “trouble-makers.” They often are eventually pushed out of certain social circles and excluded from teams formed in the workplace. Inability or unwillingness to accept hidden biases has dire consequences for the workplace because it leads to teams that are less creative and less dynamic because it leads to feelings of inadequacy or isolation, whether imposed by team members or by the individual.

Hidden biases are not just for conversation. They are a source of negativity and stress on the job and in society as a whole. Hidden biases affect the well-being of people and this affects the well-being of the team environment. Teamwork means more creativity, but only if the team is truly accepting of difference and diversity. Hidden biases are taking a toll on our economy due to negative outcomes like underperformance, absenteeism, physical illness, and  health costs associated with emotional disorders such as PTSD and depression. The book by Mahzarin R. Banaji and Anthony G. Greenwald could be the start of important discussions regarding the way good people continue to hide biases and ignore negative effects.