From the course: Communicating about Culturally Sensitive Issues

Working with our biases and beliefs

From the course: Communicating about Culturally Sensitive Issues

Working with our biases and beliefs

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- Would driving in terrible weather conditions change the way that you drive? Of course it would. How often do we stop to consider the conditions within our own mind before having a conversation? Not often enough. We all have biases, but these don't necessarily make us bad, they make us human. We most often hear the term bias when referring to prejudice against people arising from things like race, gender, sexual orientation, or disability. But more broadly, a bias is just a preference towards something or a prejudice against something. We all exhibit bias in some form in all aspects of our life. In order to conserve energy, our brain organizes the incredible amount of information it receives into categories. This is great when classifying low-level things like toothpaste and cereal, but it can be highly problematic when it comes to categorizing people. For example, if you hold stereotypes or prejudices about a particular culture, you may make incorrect assumptions about the other person, which can lead to misunderstandings or offense. This is why it is so important to be aware of one's own biases, and to make a conscious effort to set them aside during culturally sensitive conversations. These kinds of biases are a barrier to true connection and understanding. Because we can't change our implicit biases, the first step to overcoming our biases is to recognize them. To do so, you have to be willing to slow down and question your assumptions. A quick reality check can help. When you're making a decision or coming to a conclusion, just ask yourself these two simple questions. Number one, "What assumption am I making?" And number two, "How do I know this to be true?" These two questions will help you to think through the situation more objectively, and as a result, will increase the likelihood that you're basing your decision on reason and data rather than feelings and bias. Take a moment now to think about an example from your life. Have you ever formed an opinion about a person based on their perceived cultural background? Ask yourself, what was your assumption? How did you know it was true? Do you see how easy it is for you to be influenced by bias? We need to develop the habit of slowing down and examining our thought processes to prevent bias from creeping in. Let's assume that bias is impacting how you think and act, because it probably is, and then work to minimize that impact with a bias check.

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