Understanding the Unconscious

Unconscious bias is a part of every area of our lives. Unconsciously, we tend to like

people who look like us, think like us and come from backgrounds similar to ours. These

are our natural people preferences and they are hard-wired into our brains on a

neurological level. Social psychologists describe this as social categorisation, which

means that we routinely and automatically sort people into groups.

Unconscious bias has been identified as a significant challenge in the workplace. Put

simply, unconscious biases can be defined as ‘our implicit people preferences, formed by

our socialisation, our experiences, and by our exposure to others’ views about other

groups of people’.

Take this example for instance:

Joshua Bell, a world-renowned classical musician, took to a metro station in

L’Enfant Plaza, Washington, in rush hour to play some of the finest classic pieces

written on one of the world’s most expensive violins.

Disguised as a street performer, he was acknowledged by only a tiny handful of

people, with the majority walking straight past the performance of a lifetime. Bell

made a total of $32.17 in the performance which lasted 43 minutes and was heard

by over a thousand people. Three days before, he had filled the house at Boston’s

Symphony Hall, where seats sold for $100 each.

Was this outcome the result of unconscious biases the public tend to hold against

street performers? Or perhaps the passersby simply didn’t like his music. Either

way, the question stands that, how many times a similar situation has occurred in

interview situations, and how many talented people have been rejected from jobs

due to preconceptions and unconscious biases of their interviewers.

It is important to note that unconscious bias is not discrimination. Discrimination is

a conscious, unfair treatment of a person or group based on prejudice.

Unconscious bias, on the other hand, is due to the fact that much of our social

behaviour is driven by learned stereotypes that operate automatically—and

therefore unconsciously—when we interact with other people. The term stereotype

often has a negative connotation, but in fact a stereotype is simply a mechanism

for our minds to sort out and categorize the different types of people we meet into

groups in order to help us determine how to interact with them.

An understanding of unconscious bias is an invitation to a new level of

engagement about diversity issues. It requires awareness, introspection,

authenticity, humility, and compassion. And most of all, it requires communication

and a willingness to act.

Our Approach to Awareness

There are two approaches to implementing an awareness session that helps

employees make better decisions based on what they know, rather than what they

feel.

Based on the number of participants and the objectives of the intervention the

client can choose to do a workshop through:

Class room learning session (Batch size of 20 participants)

Theatre based learning session (Batch size of 75-100 participants)

The sessions are designed to challenge mind-sets and help employees

understand their role in building an inclusive workplace. The workshops will invite

participation, encourage accountability and create a space to explore perceptions

and attitudes influenced by the unconscious bias.

We do an extensive pre-study to understand the organisational areas where

biases play out and collect live stories and scenarios where the impact is most

prominent. This is done through One –on one conversations with Stakeholders/

HR, Focus group discussions with employees across levels, Surveys and

E-questionnaires

The data collected in this step is used to design the flow of the workshop.

Execution through Theatre: 4 hours session

Behavioural facilitators use drama as a springboard to discussions, reflective

thinking techniques to overcome own barriers. The session’s challenges

unconscious bias and the non-inclusive behaviours in a way that provokes thought

and stimulates honest debate. The workshop will hold a mirror to your organisation

and bring to life the business and moral drivers for inclusion

Execution through Classroom learning: 8 hours session

A mix of Conversations, Case studies, Role Plays, Videos and other Simulated

Activities to bring out the following as outcome of the session:

Addressing the business driver for reducing bias

Understanding unconscious bias, its nature and the consequences

Explore own bias via experiential sessions to spot micro-behaviours in self and

others

Actions plans to seed collective behavioural change

Differentiators Classroom- based Learning Theatre- based Learning

Advantages:

Deeper understanding of the mechanics

behind the unconscious bias

Focuses on raising awareness

Deeper interaction with facilitators on

strategies, tools and techniques due to

smaller numbers

Advantages

Real time observation of how the

unconscious bias plays out and the

impact thereafter

Focussing on sensitizing

Deep reflections on where do biases come

from

More engaging as it appeals to multiple

intelligences

Non- threating space allows for a more

open-minded approach and deeper

conversations, specially due to safety in

numbers

Limitations:

A possibility of entering the personal space

of the participants too quickly; may be

seen as ‘threatening’ which may prevent

deeper introspection and reflection

The understanding of how collective

behaviours can cascade into larger issue

is minimized

Limitations:

The format is designed to creating

awareness and general ideas on

strategies at a collective level

A basic understanding of strategies and

techniques