"An implicit bias or implicit stereotype is the pre-reflective attribution of particular qualities by an individual to a member of some social out group."
Implicit bias refers to the unconscious attitudes and beliefs that affect our behavior and decision-making. This topic addresses the impact of implicit bias on social work practice, and strategies for recognizing and mitigating bias in order to provide more equitable services to clients.
Definition of Implicit Bias: Understanding the meaning and nature of implicit bias, which is the unconscious attitudes or stereotypes that influence our perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors.
Historical Roots of Implicit Bias: An overview of how cultural, social, and ideological influences shape our implicit attitudes and biases.
Social Identities: A discussion of the different social identities (e.g., race, gender, sexual orientation, etc.) and how they affect our implicit biases and attitudes.
Intersectionality: An examination of the intersections of different social identities and how they influence our attitudes and biases.
Stereotyping: Understanding the impact of stereotypes on our implicit biases and attitudes.
Implicit Attitude Tests: An introduction to the various types of implicit attitude tests (e.g., implicit association test) and their utility in identifying implicit biases.
Microaggressions: An exploration of the concept of microaggressions and how they contribute to implicit bias.
Culture and Diversity: An overview of cultural competence and diversity in social work and how they relate to implicit biases and attitudes.
Power and Privilege: An examination of power and privilege dynamics and how they play a role in the development and perpetuation of implicit biases.
Implications for Practice: The practical implications of implicit bias in social work practice and strategies for working with clients and communities affected by implicit bias.
Age bias: When people assume that age determines someone's ability to perform a task.
Gender bias: When an individual has a preconceived notion of how different genders should behave, which can result in unintentional discrimination.
Racial bias: A prejudice against someone based on their race or ethnicity.
Disability bias: A bias against someone who has a disability, resulting in unintentional discrimination.
Sexual orientation bias: A prejudice against someone based on their sexual orientation.
Stereotyping: When an individual or group is treated unfairly based on preconceived notions about them.
Confirmation bias: An individual's tendency to search for, interpret, and remember information that confirms their pre-existing beliefs or values.
Implicit association: A person's subconscious biases that influence their perception of individuals, based on characteristics such as race, age, or gender.
Availability bias: A person's inclination to judge the likelihood of an event based on the ease or difficulty of recalling similar events.
Beauty bias: A preference for an attractive person, that negatively influences how they are perceived and treated compared to less attractive people.
"Implicit stereotypes are thought to be shaped by experience and based on learned associations between particular qualities and social categories, including race and/or gender."
"Individuals' perceptions and behaviors can be influenced by the implicit stereotypes they hold."
"Individuals' perceptions and behaviors can be influenced by the implicit stereotypes they hold, even if they are sometimes unaware they hold such stereotypes."
"Explicit stereotypes, by contrast, are consciously endorsed, intentional, and sometimes controllable thoughts and beliefs."
"Implicit biases, however, are thought to be the product of associations learned through past experiences."
"Implicit biases can be activated by the environment."
"Implicit biases... operate prior to a person's intentional, conscious endorsement."
"Implicit bias can persist even when an individual rejects the bias explicitly."
"Implicit stereotype was first defined by psychologists Mahzarin Banaji and Anthony Greenwald in 1995."
"Implicit bias is an aspect of implicit social cognition."
"Implicit social cognition: the phenomenon that perceptions, attitudes, and stereotypes can operate prior to conscious intention or endorsement."
"The existence of implicit bias is supported by a variety of scientific articles in psychological literature."
"Implicit biases are thought to be shaped... based on learned associations between particular qualities and social categories, including race and/or gender."
"Implicit biases can be activated by the environment and operate prior to a person's intentional, conscious endorsement."
"Explicit stereotypes... are sometimes controllable thoughts and beliefs."
"Implicit biases, however, are thought to be the product of associations learned through past experiences."
"Implicit stereotypes are thought to be shaped by experience... Individuals' perceptions and behaviors can be influenced by the implicit stereotypes they hold."
"An implicit bias or implicit stereotype is the pre-reflective attribution of particular qualities by an individual to a member of some social out group."
"Implicit bias can persist even when an individual rejects the bias explicitly."