Our Stories, Resilience, and Unconscious Bias: The Change We Need Dayspring Mattole, Reed College Claudia Ramirez Islas, Reed College Sunday, March 4, 2018 Convention Center, 115 B
Introductions Name, pronoun, where you work Briefly, tell us about the objects that you chose and what they reflect about you
Learning Objectives 1. Deepen our understanding of unconscious bias and its effects in the workplace 2. Reflect on our own biases and experiences as targets of biased behavior 3. Learn best practices and gain tools to be resilient in the workplace 4. Recognize the power of mentorship and community in understanding one another and navigating unconscious bias
Community Agreements Listen actively Seek FIRST to Understand Create inclusive space Practice mindfulness Step outside comfort zone Right to Pass Limit Side Conversations Commitment to action Others?
Activity
Mentoring is most effective if the mentor and mentee have shared identities
All restrooms should be gender inclusive / gender neutral
Having racial affinity groups promotes inclusion
It is possible for us to unlearn our unconscious biases
Examples of moments when we have been unconsciously biased towards others
UNCONSCIOUS BIAS AROUND GENDER AND SEXUALITY I think I have been multiple times biased toward men with specific attitudes, clothing styles and ways of speaking and assumed they were gay, in my head. I don't think I have ever ended up making a direct statement or explicit judgment to these people but definitely had thought it in my head. - Student
UNCONSCIOUS BIAS BASED ON PRIOR NEGATIVE EXPERIENCES Delaying an email to reply to a student, knowing that [their] replies [could] be unconstructive, long, impolite and [having] the potential to successfully push my buttons. - Staff
UNCONSCIOUS BIAS BASED ON POLITICAL AFFILIATION I also have multiple stories with Trump supporters...i definitely have an unconscious bias towards them as in I don't mind engaging in a conversation with them but would definitely not be interested in becoming friends with them: I basically assume they are racist, maybe sexist, homophobic, Islamophobic - Student
UNCONSCIOUS BIAS BASED ON RACE More than once, I've worked with a student of color and made an assumption about the level of education of their families, often thinking that they must be first generation. How does this happen? My own direct experience is that I'm a student of color with two parents who attended college, one of whom graduated. Yet I somehow keep making mistakes and causing harm, with the very students who are responsible for me wanting to do this work in the first place. - Staff
Biases are the stories we make up about people before we know who they actually are. - Vernā Myers, Diversity advocate
Neuroscience & Unconscious Bias Too much information! Brain creates shortcuts Brain activates pain when facing threats, decreases functioning High stress = worse judgement
Social Psychology & Unconscious Bias Hiring practices (interviews, resume screening) Stereotype Threat (Claude Steele) Selective friending
Higher Education & Unconscious Bias Gender pay gap in higher education Black men underpaid as staff physicians but paid overpaid when as head coaches of basketball teams Unconscious bias as a barrier for students seeking faculty mentors Faculty tenure recommendation letters
Individual Bias vs. Institutionalized Biases
STRETCH BREAK
Activity
More Survey Narratives: Examples when others have been unconsciously bias toward you
UNCONSCIOUS BIAS BASED ON SIZEISM People have questioned my physical/athletic ability due to my size. - Staff
UNCONSCIOUS BIASED BASED ON RACE AND GENDER As a freshman in college and a woman of color, I met with an advisor about choosing my major. The advisor was a mid-career white psychology faculty professor. I told her I wanted to be a psychologist and she told me it was really, really hard to get into graduate school and perhaps I should consider social work. She had not reviewed my transcript, grades, history. This was the first thing she said to me without knowing anything about me. - Staff
UNCONSCIOUS BIAS BASED ON INTERSECTIONALITIES (RACE, CLASS, GENDER) I had a meeting with my new supervisor (who is a white woman) where she [informed me that] the organization [would not] renew my contract and my last day was in about a month...then, she [said] she wanted to help me find a job and started asking me questions about my skills and other job experiences. [While I was explaining my experiences as an undergrad, including a promotion, and experiences as a stay at home mom for 16+ years], she immediately interrupted me and said "Oh I know, you can be a nanny or babysitter!" Then she continues with saying, "I have this Mexican lady that takes care of my kids for like $15 an hour...you can always do that!"... What made it worse, is that that organization was a scholarship program that served talented, low income, community college students by giving them supports and resources to graduate, which I was an Alumna from...after a week of trying to make sense of why she would say something like that, I went to talk to her. I explained why that was an inappropriate and horrible thing to say to me and she apologized. I told her that she needs to use her privilege to help and lift people and that she should be conscious of it because of the population she is working with." - Student
Discussion: What are your blind spots? When are you more prone to have these blind spots?
Group Findings
BLIND SPOTS BASED ON CULTURAL HERITAGE As a Latina, I grew up in a very gendered family and cultural environment. I can sometimes experience myself slipping into thoughts/judgment about gendered expression that mimics what I heard growing up and what I might still hear relatives and friends in my home community say. Sometimes those thoughts are internalized and about my own self-presentation, and other times it might be externalized to my children or others. - Staff
BLIND SPOTS BASED ON LOCATION I think I would make unconscious biased judgment in situations where I am in a secluded, rural, or a dark neighborhood... - Student
How to Overcome Our Biases? Walk Boldly Toward Them. - Verna Myers
Discussion How have you become more aware of your own unconscious bias?
Survey Themes Intentional self education Community accountability Seeking professional development opportunities Building authentic relationships Engaging in cross-cultural experiences
Mentorship and Resilience
What does my headscarf mean to you? - Yassmin Abdel-Magied
Now What? Moving Toward Action
Recommendations: What Works? Concrete, objective indicators & outcomes reduce standard stereotypes (Fiske & Taylor, 1991; Heilman, 2001; Bernat & Manis, 1994) Decreasing ambiguity about individual contributions to joint outcome reduces bias in performance evaluation (Heilman & Haynes, 2005) When hiring, use structured interviews and objective evaluation criteria (Martell & Guzzo, 1991; Heilman, 2001)
Recommendations: What Works? Commit to specific credentials before reviewing applications (Uhlmann & Cohen, 2005) Allow sufficient time for decision-making; bias stronger when under time pressure (Martell,1991; Blair & Banaji,1996) Provide training workshops and professional development (Blair & Banji, 1996) Accountability for decision makers (Foschi, 1996;2000; Foschi et al., 1994)
Personal Commitments What is one area/goal that you would like to focus on for personal growth? Discuss in pairs
THANK YOU! Dayspring Mattole Assistant Dean of Students for Inclusive Community at Reed College 503/777-7518 mattoled@reed.edu @dayspringm Claudia Ramirez Islas Assistant Director of Office for Student Engagement at Reed College 503/777-7526 ramirezc@reed.edu
Thank you for joining us today! Please remember to complete your online evaluation following the conference. See you in Los Angeles in 2019!