CMCP and Kaiser Permanente
CLE Marathon, January 17, 2013
Implicit Bias & In-Group Privilege –
Understanding and Counteracting Their Impact on
Diversity & Inclusion
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© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.
Unconscious Bias
Examining Our
Unconscious Thoughts
Or
Is Your Freudian Slip Showing?
Deborrah Jackson, RN, MPH
January 17, 2013
Definitions
 Unconscious
Lacking awareness
 Bias
A preference or inclination
that inhibits impartiality
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© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.
Diversity Wheel
MY WORK ENVIRONMENT
Function Level/Classification
WHO I CHOOSE
TO BE
Geographic Location
Income
Marital
Status/
Partnerships
Management
Status
WHO I AM
Age
Gender
Identity
Race
Work
Experiences
Sexual
Orientation
Attire
Physical
Ability
Educational
Background
Work
Location
Seniority
Adapted from Marilyn Loden and Judy Rosner,
WorkforceAmerica! And from Diverse Teams at Work,
Gardenswartz and Rowe (Irwin, 1995), p. 33.
© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.
Recreational
Habits/
Hobbies
Religion/
Spiritual
Practices
Work Skills/
Abilities
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Civic/
Community
Activities
PERSONALITY
Ethnicity
Union
Affiliation
Work
Content
Division/
Department/
Unit/Group
Perception
 We tend to categorize people
using limited pieces of
information and then act on
this information, even though
most of our inferences have
not been confirmed.
 This process is called making
perceptual inferences since
we are required to diagnose
our situation and make rapid
inferences about it from
scanty clues.
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© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.
Perception
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© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.
Perception
Average height of men in the US is 5 feet 9 inches
 15% = 6’
 58% = CEO’s 6’
 4% = 6’2”
 30% = CEOs 6’2”
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© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.
LEADER
About Hidden Bias
 Scientific research has demonstrated
that biases thought to be absent or
extinguished remains as “mental
residue” in most of us. Studies show
people can be consciously committed
to egalitarianism, and deliberately
work to behave without prejudice, yet
still possess hidden negative
prejudices or stereotypes.
 So even though we believe we see
and treat people as equals, hidden
biases may still influence our
perceptions and actions.
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Source: Tolerance.Org
© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.
Eliminating Bias
Once we become
aware we have biases
and “own” them,
we have the power
to change our mind.
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© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.
Affirmative Introspection
 Awareness of yourself
 Understanding your values,
passions, preferences and
world views
 Acknowledging the biases
and assumptions you have
that influence your attitudes
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Source: Gardenswartz and Rowe EIDI
© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.
Thank you
“How far you go in life depends on
your being tender with the young,
compassionate with the aged,
sympathetic with the striving, and
tolerant of the weak and the strong.
Because some day in your life you
will have been all of these.”
–George Washington Carver
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© 2013 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. For internal use only.