Combating unconscious bias

Combating unconscious bias

Searching for information about the impacts of unconscious biases on people at work, I came across an article titled ‘Physical Attractiveness Bias in Employee Termination’ by Melissa Commisso and Lisa Finkelstein from the Department of Psychology at Northern Illinois University.

Rather than looking at whether attractive people “get the good stuff” like the good job, higher performance ratings, or promotion this study asked whether being physically attractive also protects people from “the bad stuff’ – like being fired.  

 

After viewing a file containing a poor performance review and a badge with a photograph of an extremely attractive, moderately attractive, or unattractive employee, participants were asked: 

  • if they would terminate the employee  

  • to rate how much they liked the employee, and 

  • to make a judgment of attribution of her poor performance 

 

The study found that participants were more frequently willing to terminate the employment of the unattractive woman than the moderate or extremely attractive women. The participants also indicated that they liked the unattractive woman less than the others. However, when asked to rate causes of poor performance no differences were found.  

 

The results are astounding and no doubt concerning to those who place value on fairness and equal opportunity in the workplace. 

 

While more information about this particular study is needed in order to draw firm conclusions, it clearly shows the extent to which important decisions can be influenced by unconscious biases.  Just as clear is the gravity of potential impacts on the lives of other people because of biases we may not even realise we hold.   

 

Essential steps we can all take to combat the influence of bias on the decisions we make include: 

 

  1. Recognising we all have the potential to be biased  

  1. Building awareness of our own biases as the first step to mitigating their influence 

  1. Taking responsibility for the influence of our own biases 

  1. Reviewing every aspect of the employment life cycle for hidden bias – screening resumes, interviews, onboarding, performance appraisal, identifying high performers, promotion and termination.  

  1. Leveraging the insights of people on the team about what issues of hidden bias and unfairness might exist.  

  1. Providing training that includes examples of hidden bias and forms of unfairness