Unconscious biases are stereotypes, attitudes, and assumptions that take place outside of conscious awareness. They may represent viewpoints that are quite different from what people think they believe. These biases perpetuate harmful stereotypes, stifle opportunities for professional growth, impact wellbeing, and cause people to overlook the talents and abilities of others and be unable to see them as they really are.
Our brains are wired to seek shortcuts. When you have unconscious biases, you make snap judgments and jump to conclusions about other people in the workplace based on stereotypes, past experiences, and other preconceived notions — all without being aware of what you are doing.
People may have unconscious biases based on their stereotypes and preconceived ideas about other people’s social or identity groups, including race, ethnicity, gender, age, physical abilities, sexual orientation, or religion. Unconscious biases based on physical appearance are also common in the workplace, including assumptions about people based on their height, weight, hairstyles, or clothing.
Other types of unconscious biases in the workplace include:
Overcoming unconscious bias helps an organization:
Striving to overcome unconscious bias is also a valuable learning experience that helps develop leadership qualities.
A study conducted by the Center for Talent Innovation found that employees who work in large companies and perceive bias in the workplace are three times more likely to quit within a year, five times more likely to criticize their company on social media, and 2.5 times more likely to have recently withheld ideas at work.
Although people are not aware of their own unconscious biases, the effects of these biases are visible if you know where to look. Signs include:
Many workplace occurrences that are often taken for granted may really be examples of unconscious bias. These include:
Fortunately, unconscious bias can be unlearned. When you recognize that unconscious bias is affecting your organization, you need to take steps to change your organizational culture.
Unconscious biases are not the only type affecting workplaces. Biases can be conscious and explicit. Sometimes people who are consciously biased try to hide their biases from others in the organization, but not always. It depends on the organization’s culture.
Biases that operate outside of conscious awareness can have a destructive effect on every aspect of an organization. Unconscious biases can be unlearned, but it takes determination and continual effort. Training can make employees aware of their biases, and steps taken to counteract the effects of bias can create a more welcoming, fair, and productive workplace.
When it comes to your company’s benefits, make sure that they’re meeting everyone’s unique needs. Your wellbeing solution should be accessible and offer content and programming that meets people where they are with respect to interests, goals, and abilities, while covering all dimensions of wellbeing. People want to see themselves represented in the tools they use and interact with, so make sure your vendors are not demonstrating unconscious bias — they should be as committed to inclusivity in their product design and community resources as you are.