By Janet Carter
Sierra Club outings trainer, Toiyabe Chapter Secretary, Toiyabe Chapter’s Equity, Inclusion, and Justice team member.
In the Outings world of the Sierra Club, we discuss the concept of implicit bias specifically in relation to how it affects Outings Leaders’ attitudes towards outing participants. Many of our Sierra Club outings require specific skills and abilities, and it is important to impartially evaluate every participant to ensure that they are qualified and properly prepared for the event. But in reality, implicit bias affects all that we do in life, be it in our work, play or even how we react and interact with others in our organization.
Implicit bias is defined as the process of associating stereotypes or attitudes towards categories of people without conscious awareness. It can be particularly dangerous because the bias can be part of our affect and/or behavior without our full awareness of its existence. In fact, implicit bias can create unconscious beliefs or reactions that are actually contrary to our stated beliefs and values. It can affect every day but important decisions such as who we might select for a particular role within the club, who we choose to lead or represent us, or even our choice of life partners. (Have you ever “swiped left” without really knowing why or bothering to learn more about the individual involved? Could it be an implicit bias related to that person’s appearance or even merely their facial expression?)
It is important to realize that implicit bias is a universal phenomenon that can and does happen to us all. We need to be able to recognize when it is happening and what we can do about it. Research has shown that implicit biases are actually more common in people that consider themselves to be objective. Implicit biases are instilled in us through our family, friends, and early life experiences. Of course, they can also come from media messaging (both traditional and social media). In the Sierra Club Outings training, we speak of bias as an iceberg of sorts. Our explicit (known) biases are the part of the iceberg we see and openly recognize in ourselves (“I only like to date tall men”). But our implicit biases may well be bigger and even more dangerous, as they are hidden under water (in the back of our consciousness and usually outside of our everyday awareness). It is up to all of us to consider how those biases might be affecting what we see, say and do every day.
There are hundreds of examples of implicit biases that we encounter daily, some of them are simply a matter of language. How do you feel when you hear someone described as “assertive” or “tenacious”? Would you feel differently if you heard them described as “aggressive”? Are you more likely to use one term or the other based on their sex or even their height and weight? Going back to the outings theme, if you hear someone described as a “hiker”, what does that mean to you? Will that description mean different things to different people? What if an individual is described (or describes themselves) as a “non-hiker”? What does that mean to you? Does their dress or equipment affect which label you might use? Can someone show up for a hike in a skirt and sandals and still be a “hiker”? What if they carry a purse instead of a backpack?
Implicit bias is often the product of our childhood environment and education, and recognizing that can go a long way towards helping us face those biases. The first time his dad and I met my now daughter-in-law, we went to a restaurant together shortly after our plane landed in Tokyo. When we picked up our chopsticks and started to eat, my son nudged her and said “see”? It turned out that she had not believed him when he told her that she didn’t have to worry about how we would make do without traditional silverware. She is Japanese, and had been told since she was a young girl that Americans cannot use chopsticks properly and must be given silverware. My now daughter-in-law is a very caring and accepting person, but she had been given that bias from family and friends at a very young age, and it was now ingrained within her. (Never mind that she had known my son for several years and knew that he was an American who was actually very adept at using chopsticks.) In that moment she was forced to realize and confront her own biases.
Implicit bias will affect our assumptions and often cause them to be incorrect. When I was a teenager, I lived in Mexico City for a year with my family. My parents decided to send my sisters and I to a religious school there. When I tell you that, do you assume that the school was Catholic? It is a reasonable assumption given that almost 80 percent of Mexicans are Catholic. It is also incorrect: the school happened to be a Jewish school. My parents selected it because they had close friends whose children went to the same school. In addition, despite the fact that I have my father’s last name, I share my mother’s religion (Judaism). More than one person has expressed surprise at my religion, largely because my name “doesn’t sound Jewish.” If I had my maternal grandmother’s name of Levine, would you be less likely to be surprised by my religion or by the school my parents chose? And despite what you might assume, Mexico City actually has a fairly large Jewish population and houses six or seven large synagogues and a number of private Jewish schools.
We can’t eliminate implicit bias, but the first step towards keeping it from affecting our work and relationships is to recognize its existence. It’s a good idea to check ourselves from time to time, especially if we are in unfamiliar surroundings. The Sierra Club is dedicated to having all people feel comfortable and welcome in our environment. We can assist that mission by keeping our eyes and ears open and being willing to accept things that may seem different to us. We should always ask questions of ourselves first. We also should avoid asking unnecessary questions just to satisfy our own curiosity. In other words, if we find ourselves tempted to ask “Are you comfortable hiking in a skirt?” we should first ask ourselves if the question is really necessary. Perhaps what we mean to ask is if the person is fit enough for the outing and has done similar activities in the past (skirt or no skirt). We should ask the questions that need to be asked (“this hike is five miles long and a little steep in places; are you ready for it?”). We should avoid assumptions even if they are based on known facts; no one fact applies to everybody. Finally, we must carefully consider the words that we use. A good rule is to take a moment to think about how you might feel if the same words were used about you, and then take a moment to consider how your feelings might change under different circumstances. We will be far more effective as an organization and as individuals if we can recognize some of our hidden biases and do our best to check them at the door. None of us are perfect, and implicit bias is one imperfection that we should recognize in ourselves just as we might admit to having a temper or being easily frustrated. Implicit biases can mar the best of intentions, but we can overcome them if we make a conscious effort to address our feelings before they do so. Listen, learn, and accept rather than assume.