UNCONSCIOUS DISCRIMINATION Kathie Starkweather Sociologist Northern Plains Regional Office April 2002.

UNCONSCIOUS DISCRIMINATION

Kathie StarkweatherSociologistNorthern Plains Regional OfficeApril 2002

Blatant Discrimination

Conscious treatment to exclude Segregation Denying women

the right to vote CRAT Report

Blatant Discrimination

Policies in place Consequences established in the

agencyLess likely to happenDANGER -- people thinkthat because blatant discrimination has consequences,it has disappeared

Workforce Planning

Potential to lose over 2,800 employees thru attrition by 2005

Goals -- parityResearch suggests potential for age

discrimination

Understanding Unconscious Discrimination

How is inequality produced?Why is it present in the workplace?

COGNITIVE PROCESS

Normal brain processThe way our brain processes

informationBecause of the way cognitive

processes work -- unconscious discrimination occurs regardless if people intend it or not

Cognitive Process

Short-cuts/cognitive misers -- economize information

Social Categorization

In-Group PreferenceStereotypingAttribution Bias

SOCIAL CATEGORIZATION

Two “master status” categories: race gender

In-Group Preference

Whom we’ve been culturally taught to consider as in-group

Socialization Continued exposure to media

In-Group Preference

…results in distorted perceptions and bias…leads to unconscious discrimination

In-Group Preference

To make categorization easier, we unconsciously exaggerate differences BETWEEN groups and minimize differences WITHIN groups -- Example: “I know an X (out-group member) said it, but I can’t remember which X.”

In-Group Preferencing

People try to avoid outgroup members and favor ingroup members in evaluations and rewards

UNEQUAL TREATMENT is

the result of IN-GROUP PREFERENCING

STEREOTYPING

Research -- EVERYONE relies on stereotyping

“Tells” us how people are and how they are supposed to be

Pursue and remember “information” that supports -- EXPECTATIONS

STEREOTYPING

Recent studies showed that stereotypes influenced perceptions, yet the very people who participated in the studies perceived themselves as completely unbiased…as seeing things “as they really are.”

ATTRIBUTION BIAS

Prejudice based on the attributes, characteristics, or qualities we associate with people

Actions conform = ability

Actions inconsistent = task difficulty, luck, effort

ATTRIBUTION BIAS

In-group - expected to succeed; out-group expected to fail

Interpretation, not behavior that becomes cognitive fact

How to Prevent Non-Conscious Discrimination

Heterogeneous Groups

Inter-Group Contact

Formalized Evaluation System

AccountabilityEEO AccountabilityHelp people

become aware of their hidden biases

Heterogeneous Groups

Work Groups and Decision-Making Groups

Maximize impact through interdependence, job rotation and other activities that involve whole group

Inter-Group Contact

Create opportunities for in- and out-group members in environment of equal status

Logic of “contact hypothesis” -- notice counter-stereotypic information and see people as individuals

Needs to be permanent change in workplace

Formalized Evaluation Systems

Stereotyping distorts interpretation of behavior

Vaguely written, generic information

Need detailed specifications and precise information

Accountability

Decision-makers held accountable for criteria

Goals, timetables, monitoring

EEO Accountability

Feedback from employees about perceptions of barriers and opportunities to career advancement

Systematic monitoring of trends in perceptions

Identify subtle forms of bias not available from analysis of objective workforce data

Teach/Train People

Help people become aware of their own biases

By becoming aware, we can learn.

To test yourself...

Take the Implicit Association Tests for racism, sexism, and ageism at www.yale.edu\implicit\

References and Resources Barbara Reskin. 2000. “The Proximate Causes of Employment

Discrimination.” Contemporary Sociology Barbara Reskin. 1999. “The Determinants and Consequences of

Workplace Sex and Race Composition.” Annual Review of Sociology, 1999.

William T. Bielby. 2000. “Minimizing Workplace Gender and Racial Bias.” Contemporary Sociology

“The Observer.” University of Notre Dame, November 2001. Jacqueline Johnson. Sharon Rush, Joe Feagin. 1995. “Reducing

Inequalities: Doing Anti-Racism.” Symposium www.yale.edu\implicit\ Cecilia Ridgeway. 1999. “Limiting Inequality through Interaction:

The End(s) of Gender.” Symposium Margaret Mooney Marini and Pi-Ling Fan. 1997. “The Gender Gap in

Earnings at Career Entry.” American Sociological Review, 1997. Jean Kilbourne. “Killing Us Softly III.”

Regional Contact Environmental Justice Outreach Small/Limited Resource Producers Socially Disadvantaged Producers Tribal Issues

Jerome Reece - 301 [email protected]