Mandatory Implicit Bias Training Is a Bad Idea
It's all the rage. But in the view of some, it's seriously counterproductive.
By Lee Jussim, Ph.d
Posted Dec 02, 2017
“Implicit bias” seems to be everywhere. What is it? “Bias,” to your average layperson, seems to mean something like prejudice or discrimination. “Implicit” is usually taken to mean unconscious or outside of awareness. So “implicit bias” is, supposedly, something like prejudices of which people are not aware."
"Over the last few months, I have had several interesting exchanges with Dr. Mahzarin Banaji, one of the most prominent psychological scientists working in the area of implicit methods, beliefs, attitudes, prejudices, and biases. She, along with Dr. Tony Greenwald, created the concept of implicit bias, which has caught on like wildfire, and was even mentioned in a Hillary Clinton election speech."
"Mahzarin Banaji:
Yes, Lee, you can post it.
In all the verbiage, I hope the two points don’t get lost.
1. Psychology and sociology data suggest that mandatory training is not as good as voluntary training. Mandatory training has the potential for backlash.
2. IAT scores are best considered as medical data or votes. A person may share them, but should not be expected or asked to share them with others at this point.
All the best, mrb"
psychologytoday.mandatory-implicit-bias-training-is-bad-idea
