Unconscious bias is a significant obstacle for organisations striving to build diverse and high-performing teams. Despite the best intentions, these hidden biases can permeate hiring processes, resulting in less inclusive workplaces. Understanding the science behind unconscious bias and its impact on hiring is crucial for creating fair recruitment practices.
What is Unconscious Bias?
Unconscious bias (or implicit bias), refers to attitudes or stereotypes that influence our understanding, actions, and decisions without our conscious awareness. Unlike explicit bias, which is deliberate, unconscious bias operates automatically, shaped by our background, cultural environment, and personal experiences.
The Science Behind Unconscious Bias
Our brains make decisions using two systems, as popularised by Daniel Kahneman in his book Thinking, Fast and Slow:
System 1: This system is responsible for everyday, intuitive decisions. These are the automatic, almost effortless choices we make, such as how much milk to pour into our tea, what clothes to wear in the morning, or when to cross the street. System 1 operates like an autopilot, allowing us to function without being overwhelmed by the countless minor decisions we face daily.
System 2: In contrast, this system handles more significant, complex decisions, such as planning a trip or preparing a major presentation. System 2 thinking is slower, more deliberate, and mentally taxing.
These two systems help us stay productive. With countless daily decisions, System 1 manages most of them, conserving our mental energy for the more demanding tasks that require System 2. However, reliance on System 1 for decisions that require careful thought, like hiring, can lead to unconscious bias. Factors such as mood, past experiences, and how information is presented can distort our decisions, causing our intentions to misalign with our actions. Our brains make thousands of decisions each day, and they can misfire just as often. Decision fatigue—the decline in our ability to make sound choices due to mental exhaustion from the sheer volume of decisions—can affect both minor and significant decisions.
Unconscious Bias in Hiring
Unconscious bias can subtly influence various stages of the hiring process:
- CV Screening: Studies have shown that CVs with names perceived as belonging to ethnic minorities are less likely to receive callbacks, even with identical qualifications (Source: A groundbreaking new study by economists Kline, Rose, and Walters).
- Interviews: Biases can affect the questions asked, interpretation of responses, and overall impressions, leading to favouritism towards candidates with similar backgrounds (Source: Bohnet, I. (2016). How to take the bias out of interviews. Harvard Business Review).
- Performance Evaluations: Research indicates that women and minority candidates may be judged more harshly for mistakes compared to their male or majority counterparts (Source: McKinsey & Company).
- Decision-Making: Group decisions can be swayed by dominant voices with inherent biases, leading to skewed hiring outcomes (Source: Journal of Applied Psychology).
Examples of Unconscious Bias in Recruitment
Unconscious biases can significantly influence our perceptions and decisions. Here are some common types:
- Perception Bias: This occurs when we assume certain traits or behaviours are typical of a particular group based on cultural stereotypes or assumptions.
- Affinity Bias: Affinity bias refers to our inclination to feel a natural connection with people who are similar to us, often leading to favouritism toward those who share our background or interests.
- Halo Effect: The halo effect happens when we project positive qualities onto someone without really knowing them. Conversely, the horn effect occurs when an initial negative impression leads us to associate someone with negative traits continually.
- Confirmation Bias: This bias occurs when we seek out information that confirms our pre-existing beliefs and opinions about a particular group. When we expect certain outcomes and look for evidence to support these expectations, we are exhibiting confirmation bias.
- Attribution Bias: Attribution bias is our tendency to attribute others’ behaviours to their character while attributing our own actions to external circumstances, making us more forgiving of ourselves than others.
Having these biases doesn’t make you a bad person; it makes you human. Unconscious bias is, by definition, unconscious—making it challenging to recognise and eliminate. That’s why our talent acquisition software is designed to mitigate unconscious bias by default. The way our brains process decisions naturally predisposes us to these biases. By understanding and acknowledging them, we can take steps to counteract their influence and promote fairer, more objective decision-making processes.
Leveraging Psychometric Assessments
Psychometric assessments offer a data-driven approach to reduce unconscious bias in hiring decisions. These assessments provide objective insights into a candidate’s personality traits and behavioural tendencies, ensuring a more balanced evaluation process.
Psychometric assessments provide a data-driven approach to minimise unconscious bias in hiring:
- Objective Measurement: These assessments evaluate attributes and personality traits objectively, reducing subjective bias (Source: Journal of Personnel Psychology).
- Standardised Process: Using the same criteria for all candidates ensures fairness (Source: Society for Human Resource Management).
- Enhancing Hiring Strategies: Combining assessments with interviews and reference checks offers a comprehensive view of candidates (Source: Forbes).
Validated Decision-Making: Data from assessments supports informed decisions based on measurable data rather than gut feelings or biases (Source: Harvard Business Review).
Conclusion
Unconscious bias is pervasive and significantly affects hiring outcomes and organisational diversity. By understanding these biases and implementing strategies to counteract them, organisations can create fairer, more inclusive hiring processes. Psychometric assessments play a crucial role in this endeavour, providing objective insights that help mitigate unconscious bias.
At MyPeople Group, we are dedicated to helping you navigate these challenges and build diverse, high-performing teams. For more insights and resources on mitigating unconscious bias in hiring and integrating psychometric assessments, contact us. Together, we can foster an equitable hiring process that strengthens your organisation.