Unconscious Biases

A group of researchers in America sent two fictional job applications to 127 professors for a position of laboratory manager. Both candidates were 22 years of age, had the same grades and the same references. The only difference was that one was called ‘John’ and the other one ‘Jennifer’. Can you guess what happened?

• ‘Jennifer’ was sure likely to be hired than ‘John’, with a starting salary of $4000 more

• ‘John’ was sure likely to be hired than ‘Jennifer’, with a starting salary of $4000 more

• Both ‘John’ and ‘Jennifer’ were as likely to be hired and with same starting salary

Answer explanation

According to a 2012 Yale University study, male applicants were more likely to be hired and with a higher salary than female applicants. This is in spite having identical characters.

Economists have found that the best-looking people make, on average, during their lifetime, a lot more money than less attractive people. Is this statement:

• True

• False

Answer explanation

The economist Daniel Hamermesh, in the book Beautu Pays: Why Attractive People Are More Successful, claims that beautiful people make, on average, during their lifetime, $250,000 more than less attractive people.

In America, only 14.5% of men are estimated to have this attribute. However, almost 60% of CEOs in Fortune 500 companies have it. What is it?

• A college degree

• A standing height of over six foot (1.80 meters)

• IQ above 130

Answer explanation

In his book, Blink, The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, Malcolm Gladwell writes, ‘In the US population, about 14.5% of all men are six feet and over. Amount CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, that number is 58%.

A British study found that job applications with a British-sounding name received a 24% positive response rate from employers. What positive response rate did candidates with the same CVs (resumes), but non-British sounding names receive?

• 24%, the same as applicants with British sounding names.

• 20%

• 15%

Answer explanation

A 2017 study by Anthony Heath and Valentina Di Stasio found that, on average, nearly one in four applicants from the majority group, i.e. with British-sounding names (24%), received a positive response* from employers. As for people with non-British sounding names, only 15% of them received a positive response despite having identical resumes and cover letters.

(*By ‘positive response’, the researchers meant any reply suggesting a genuine interest in the applicant, such as invitations to job interviews, requests to provide additional information on skills or previous experience, to complete a test, or to schedule a phone appointment with the employer.)

What percentage of hiring managers in the UK admit to a negative bias towards individuals with certain regional accents?

• 10%
• 80%

• 30%

Answer explanation

The law firm Peninsula, in 2015, run a survey in which 80% of UK managers admitted discriminating against people based on regional accents. In particular, accents from London, Liverpool, Birmingham Newcastle, and Glasgow were the most discriminated against. This is just one of several studies worldwide about accent discrimination.

Giving a job to a candidate you clicked with because you went to the same school, or are interested in the same hobbies, is not unconscious bias, especially if they are a different gender or ethnicity from you. Is this:

• True

• False

Answer explanation

This is an example of affinity bias, which means favoring someone because they share something in common with you, such as similar interests or educational background.

If you perceive a colleague who is working flexible hours as lazy, it is not unconscious bias, if later they avoid some responsibilities. Is this:

• True

• False

Answer explanation

This is an example of confirmation bias. If we have an ingrained belief about something, we later seek evidence to confirm this belief. So, for example, if you think that people who work flexible hours are lazy, you will look for any pattern in their behavior that confirms this. Conversely, if somebody who works normal hours adopts the same behavior, you might justify it, thinking it is just a one-off and finding a plausible explanation for it.

If one of your employees returns from maternity leave, it is unconscious bias to spare her the trouble of going on business trips or taking on extra responsibilities. Is this:

• True

• False

Answer explanation

This is an example of so-called benevolence bias. You might think you are doing a new mum a favor by sparing her extra stress. However, this is for her to decide so you should at least ask her what she thinks. Assuming that, because somebody just had a baby, she may not want extra responsibilities, implies unconscious assumptions on motherhood.

Instead, everybody is different, and assuming that someone wants to take it easy after having a baby might just harm her career.

Everybody has unconscious biases. Is this:

• True

• False

Answer explanation

We can all have biases. Being biased does not mean being a bad person. Our brains have to constantly make decisions and they often rely on previous experiences or preconceptions, to speed up the decision process. This is sometimes a good thing, especially when you need to make a quick life or death decision, as our ancestors would have had to do (for example, deciding if to run away from something that might be a predator). However, when these shortcuts lead to biased decisions at work and unwanted discrimination, this is a problem.

We can only have an unconscious bias toward people who are different from us. Is this:

• True

• False

Answer explanation

We can be biased against people who belong to our same group. For example, it is not uncommon to hear that some women are unconsciously biased towards other women, as they perceive them to be less professional than men. Likewise, it can happen that male executives see other males as less trustworthy or less hard-working than women.