Are you biased? I am | Kristen Pressner | TEDxBasel

Summary

The speaker, a woman leader, shares a personal revelation about unconscious bias. Despite advocating for women in leadership, she realized she treated a male and female employee's requests for a raise differently, due to internalized gender stereotypes. She discusses how unconscious biases stem from societal patterns and can lead to unintentional inequality, even among those who support equality. The speaker emphasizes the importance of self-awareness and suggests a technique called 'flip it to test it,' where one mentally reverses gender roles in common scenarios to uncover hidden biases.

Takeaways

• 🤔 The speaker acknowledges her own unconscious bias against women leaders, even though she herself is a woman leader.
• 💼 Despite working in human resources and advocating for women in leadership, the speaker recognizes a discrepancy in how she responded to male and female team members' requests for compensation review.
• 🧠 Unconscious bias stems from brain shortcuts, which filter information based on patterns we've been exposed to throughout our lives, often without us realizing it.
• ⚖️ The speaker realized she had different reactions to the same request from a man and a woman, illustrating the influence of unconscious bias.
• 📊 The expectations society holds for men and women (men as assertive and women as supportive) can unconsciously affect behavior, even when we don't intend it.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 The speaker reflects on her own family dynamic, where she is the primary financial provider, yet still holds biased views about men as providers.
• 🔄 A mental exercise of 'flipping it to test it' can reveal hidden biases by reversing gender roles or other characteristics in common situations.
• 👮‍♂️ Gendered language, such as calling a male police officer a 'policewoman,' can feel strange, highlighting societal biases in common expressions.
• 🎉 The speaker humorously illustrates biases by imagining people cheering for 'The Cleveland Caucasians' instead of 'The Cleveland Indians,' making biases more apparent.
• 🔍 The speaker encourages everyone to double-check their actions and reactions for unconscious bias, emphasizing that small mental tests can help reveal hidden prejudices.

Q & A

What bias does the speaker admit to having in the script?

The speaker admits to having a bias against women leaders, despite being a woman leader herself and working in human resources, a field where she encourages women to take leadership roles.

What event led the speaker to realize her unconscious bias?

The speaker realized her unconscious bias after she had different reactions to similar pay requests from a male and a female team member. She took the man's request more seriously than the woman's, despite their requests being essentially the same.

How does the brain contribute to unconscious bias, according to the script?

The brain contributes to unconscious bias by taking shortcuts to manage information overload. It forms patterns based on cumulative experiences, leading to automatic responses that may not align with a person's conscious values.

What are some common expectations society has of men and women, as outlined in the script?

The script outlines that society commonly expects men to be assertive, strong, and driven, while women are expected to be helpful, sensitive, and supportive. These expectations can unconsciously influence how people perceive leadership qualities in men and women.

What personal experience does the speaker share to illustrate her bias?

The speaker shares that despite being the sole financial provider for her family of six, she unconsciously views men as providers and women as caretakers. This internal contradiction made her realize her bias against women leaders.

How does the speaker suggest testing for unconscious bias?

The speaker suggests using a technique called 'flip it to test it,' where you mentally swap the gender of the person you are dealing with to see if your reaction changes. If it feels strange or different, it might reveal an unconscious bias.

What humorous examples does the speaker provide to illustrate the 'flip it to test it' technique?

The speaker humorously flips common phrases to illustrate gender bias, such as imagining a man saying, 'Being called a Policewoman doesn't bother me at all' or cheering for a baseball team called the 'Cleveland Caucasians' instead of the 'Cleveland Indians.'

Why does the speaker believe unconscious bias is dangerous?

The speaker believes unconscious bias is dangerous because it can lead people to behave in ways that are inconsistent with their values and beliefs, often without realizing it. It can also cause missed opportunities to act fairly or to see situations differently.

What is the role of neuroscience in understanding unconscious bias?

Neuroscience helps explain that unconscious bias arises from the brain's need to manage large amounts of information. It filters and categorizes information based on past experiences, leading to automatic responses that are often biased.

What challenge does the speaker pose to the audience at the end of the script?

The speaker challenges the audience to 'flip it to test it' in their own lives to see if they are unconsciously treating people differently based on bias. She encourages self-reflection to ensure their actions align with their values.