Pete@ shirepro.co.uk @fatwhitebloke Thinking Fast & Slow: unconscious bias @ombudsman Dr Pete Jones Shire Professional Chartered Psychologists Pete@ shirepro.co.uk @fatwhitebloke

Dual Processing ( Kahneman) A bat and a ball costs £1.10 The bat costs £1 more than the ball How much does the ball cost? Introduction of fast and slow thinking

key facts about unconscious (implicit) bias Our brains use two information processing systems that operate simultaneously (Kahneman, 2011) : Conscious: effortful, slow, rule driven and limited in resources Unconscious: automatic, fast, intuitively driven and with large resources We categorise people and add value to those categories (Tajfel & Turner, 1979) Biases become fixed within the neural networks of the brain and are accessed automatically (Bodenhausen and McCrae, 1998) Key facts around UB

Key facts about unconscious (implicit) bias Implicit biases develop and are maintained from our upbringing, our experiences and from the media we absorb Being biased is part of who we are; we all ALL biased and have a bias blind spot (Pronin, 2002), but beware Duguid & Thomas –Hunt (2015) Biases are easily triggered under cognitive or emotional load Key facts UB

Recruiting impact Job descriptions and advertisements Sifting Interviews Informal coaching, mentoring and sponsorship Research around the impact of UB on decision making with a focus on people processes … Commonness leads to Comfort which leads to Trust

The Good the Bad and the Ugly 6.3cm = £2,940 Male 6.3cm = £1,130 Female 1 SD = £210 Male 1 SD = £1,890 Female What’s in a name? Broadening out in to UB around height, bodyweight, beards, age, physical attractiveness, names and and material status

Top Tips as an individual and as a leader Example Review paperwork and processes Invest time in the decision, challenge the ned for information to be given to adjudicators, remove names from cases, use balanced staffing/panels Watch for triggers Recognise when you are rushed, stressed, anxious, tired or hungry when making decisions Extend your networks Work with a wider group of people, find out something new about people you work with, take up network and stakeholder invitations Avoid reinforcing biases Avoid and challenge the ‘banter’, change your newspaper, delete pejorative feeds on social media, be and encourage overt allies Use exemplars and role models Actively remember high performers and their positive contributions, recall people you admire Get tested Age, Ethnicity, Disability, Gender etc.

Top Tips as an individual and as a leader Example Hold people accountable Ask yourself and others to outline the basis for a decision, re-run a decision changing key demographics, Measure it Know the key metrics (e.g. recruiting, adjudication outcomes) and be proactive in following up on them, be inquisitive about the data Talk about it and walk the talk Talk about UB and attend key staff network events, be one of the overt allies, tell personal stories Be proactive Look for and expect UB to be present in systems, make UB part of new system design Develop ownership Encourage others to take up ownership of key fairness and engagement projects

“There are no bad people, just bad thinking habits “There are no bad people, just bad thinking habits. Unconscious bias is a thinking habit we have learned and which we can unlearn. The only shame in having a bias is in not wanting to better manage it for the sake of our colleagues and customers.” Pete@shirepro.co.uk 01909 733810 @fatwhitebloke

Pete@ shirepro.co.uk @fatwhitebloke Thinking Fast & Slow: unconscious bias Dr Pete Jones Shire Professional Chartered Psychologists Pete@ shirepro.co.uk @fatwhitebloke