Bias Blind Spot
Written by: Lauren
Did you know that we each have a blind spot in life? It’s true! Referred to as the “bias blind spot”, this term was coined by three colleagues at Princeton University in a paper titled, “The Bias Blind Spot: Perceptions of Bias in Self Versus Others.” Here’s how it works. Generally speaking, we each tend to believe that we are less biased than the people around us. We’re less critical of ourselves in that area but this means that we are less likely to actually spot our own biases. And when we can’t see our bias, we can’t change it. These undealt biases can become so deeply rooted in a person’s life that they become extremely difficult to change (Rea, 2015).
It may be a relief to you to also know that we all have bias in different areas. The goal that’s important for us to set for ourselves is to fight against the effect of the bias blind spot and learn to see, recognize, and deal with our biases when they do make themselves visible. We’ve linked to a helpful article below that gives several ways we can practice combatting this in our own lives but we’ll summarize those for you here (Rabikrisson, 2021):
Practice Being in Someone Else’s Shoes. Tunnel vision is a huge part of what contributes to the bias blind spot. When we forget that our reality is not the only reality or our experience is not the only experience, we start to tune out those around us. This is harmful not only to ourselves but to others as well.
Identify and Question Implicit Assumptions. Get in the habit of paying attention to what you read so you can identify the implicit assumptions communicated there. Then, question them! Don’t just blindly swallow whatever information someone gives you. This is a great habit to develop critical thinking skills. Not all information we are presented with is good for us or true.
Learn to Look at the World with Curiosity. This one’s huge! If we can learn to look at the world through the lens of curiosity, then we are putting ourselves in the position of the learner or a student. By doing this, we basically acknowledge that we don’t know it all and are willing to learn, and that goes a long way toward dismantling a bias in ourselves that we probably can’t even see.
Tear Down Identified Stereotypes. It doesn’t matter what the stereotype is. Maybe you realize that you’ve thought of students of Asian descent as being smarter than others or maybe you’ve thought of everyone over the age of 70 as if they don’t have anything valuable to contribute. Whatever it is, take the time to take apart stereotypes you see in yourself when you see them.
Get Closer. This one isn’t from the articles we linked but it’s super important! If you discover you’ve been living with a bias against the elderly, try to intentionally spend time with individuals who meet that description and keep your mind open, or ask a librarian to suggest books that can introduce you to fictional characters who are examples of that type of person.
References:
Rea, S. (2015). Researchers find everyone has a bias blind spot. CMU. Retrieved from https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2015/june/bias-blind-spot.html.
Rabikrisson, An. (2021). Practice has new habits to eliminate blind spot bias. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2021/05/27/practice-new-habits-to-eliminate-blind-spot-bias/?sh=b5cc06c7b447.
Challenges/Points:
The Bias Blind Spot is the often faulty belief that we are less biased than the people around us.
Lack of awareness of the bias blind spot usually leads to more bias, not less.
It’s important to challenge our own biases when they crop up so we can change them and move forward in life without them.
Questions:
Have you ever observed someone practicing or reacting out of bias?
What are some biases that might exist in your home or nuclear family currently?
Is there diversity among your close friends and family or does everyone generally believe the same things and act the same way?
To talk more about this or something else on your mind text the number 494949 to chat with our team or visit RemedyLIVE.com/chat anytime, day or night.
Did someone send you this post, and you want to subscribe to our free self care guide? Text CARE to 494949 to receive daily posts.
