Copyright © 2013 Presented by: K. Scott Griffith President, Outcome Engenuity A Just Culture Community Webinar Beware the Biases
Copyright © 2013 Learning Objectives Participants Should Be Able To: Explain the human biases that can exist and guard against the resulting detrimental effects on an organization Describe how personal biases affect behavioral choices and individual performance
Copyright © 2013 I.A Few Biases – Potential Impact on the Organization II.A Few Biases – Potential Impact on Individuals III.So Now What? Beware the Biases
Copyright © 2013 A Few Biases – Part One Let’s look at the impact on the organization due to: –Outcome Bias –Professional Bias –Hindsight Bias –Investigator’s Bias –Bandwagon Effect –Information Bias –Focusing Effect –Normalcy Bias
Copyright © 2013 Where We Are Today An experienced surgeon sees a new piece of equipment at a conference. Back at the hospital, a sales representative persuades him to use the equipment for a procedure. He has never used the equipment before and accidentally punctures the patient’s bowel. The surgeon repairs the bowel and the patient recovers fully. The OR has a policy that says new equipment will be officially approved and training will be conducted prior to its use.
Copyright © 2013 The Outcome Bias C
Copyright © 2013 The Outcome Bias C
Copyright © 2013 Where We Are Today The hospital has recently revised and upgraded its infection control protocols. Sinks, soap and paper towels, as well as foam dispensers, are now available near every patient area and there are no barriers to compliance that the staff can name. The staff is well educated on the risk of spreading infection and the danger of hospital infections to their patients’ health. One month after the interventions are complete, the nurse manager observes practices in the ICU and finds that compliance has greatly improved except for one nurse who routinely does not wash his hands between patients. When questioned, the nurse states he does not have time to wash his hands between every patient contact and chooses not to do so.
Copyright © 2013 Where We Are Today The hospital has recently revised and upgraded its infection control protocols. Sinks, soap and paper towels, as well as foam dispensers, are now available near every patient area and there are no barriers to compliance that the staff can name. The staff is well educated on the risk of spreading infection and the danger of hospital infections to their patients’ health. One month after the interventions are complete, the nurse manager observes practices in the ICU and finds that compliance has greatly improved except for one physician who routinely does not wash his hands between patients. When questioned, the physician states he does not have time to wash his hands between every patient contact and chooses not to do so.
Copyright © 2013 The Professional Bias C
Copyright © 2013 Sometimes called the "I-knew-it-all- along" effect, the tendency to see past events as being predictable at the time those events happened Referred to as "Hindsight is 20/20" The Hindsight Bias
Copyright © 2013 The Investigator’s Bias Sometimes called the "I’ve seen this before" effect, the tendency to see past events as similar or identical to the event being investigated Can result in erroneous investigation conclusions The Investigator’s Bias
Copyright © 2013 The Bandwagon Effect The tendency to do (or believe) things because many other people do (or believe) the same. Related to groupthink and herd behavior The Bandwagon Effect
Copyright © 2013 The Information Bias The tendency to seek information even when it cannot affect action Data-driven when no relevant data exist or the data are not helpful The Information Bias
Copyright © 2013 The Focusing Effect The tendency to place too much importance on one aspect of an event Causes error in accurately predicting the utility of a future outcome The Focusing Effect
Copyright © 2013 The Normalcy Bias The inability to recognize when risk exists or is increasing Can be the refusal to plan for, or react to, a disaster which has never happened before The Normalcy Bias
Copyright © 2013 I.A Few Biases – Potential Impact on the Organization II.A Few Biases – Potential Impact on Individuals III.So Now What? Beware the Biases
Copyright © 2013 Let’s look at the impact on individuals due to: –Fundamental Attribution Error or Bias –Defensive Attribution Hypothesis –Manager’s Bias - Regarding Rules –Employee’s Bias – Regarding Rules –Confirmation Bias –Inattention Blindness –Self-Serving Bias –Normalization of Deviancy –The Abilene Paradox A Few Biases – Part Two
Copyright © 2013 Fundamental Attribution Error or Bias The tendency to overestimate the effect of disposition or personality and underestimate the effect of the situation in explaining social behavior Most visible when people explain the behavior of others The Fundamental Attribution Error or Bias
Copyright © 2013 Double Dip Scenario You find yourself at a party. You’re hungry, so you search for food. You find a bowl of chips and salsa. You grab a chip and dip it into the salsa. Before you know it, you dip the same chip in the salsa a second time. You’ve just double dipped, but no one was watching…How do you rate your behavior? Which statement below best describes your assessment of this behavior? A.Way to go. B.No harm, no foul, no problem. C.I’m neutral – no opinion D.Whoa, I’m not sure you should’ve done that. E.That disgusts me. You make me sick.
Copyright © 2013 Double Dip Scenario You find yourself at a party. Your friend is hungry, so you and your friend search for food. You find a bowl of chips and salsa. Your friend grabs a chip and dips it into the salsa. He then dips the same chip in the salsa a second time. Your friend has just double dipped. How do you rate your friend’s behavior? Which statement below best describes your assessment of this behavior? A.Way to go. B.No harm, no foul, no problem. C.I’m neutral – no opinion D.Whoa, I’m not sure you should’ve done that. E.That disgusts me. You make me sick.
Copyright © 2013 Double Dip Scenario Response to Question #1 – "Double Dip“- (Self) Group A – Students – (Self) Males = 14 Value Weighted Value Females = 12 Value Weighted Value A. Way to go = B. No harm, no foul, no problem = C. I'm neutral - no opinion = D. Whoa, I'm not sure = E. That disgusts me = Avg. Weighted Value = Avg. Weighted Score = 0.083
Copyright © 2013 Double Dip Scenario Group B – Students - (Others) Males = 22Value Weighted Value Females = 7Value Weighted Value Avg. Weighted Score = Avg. Weighted Score = Response to Question #1 – "Double Dip“ – (Others) A. Way to go = +2 B. No harm, no foul, no problem = + 1 C. I'm neutral - no opinion = 0 D. Whoa, I'm not sure = -1 E. That disgusts me = -2
Copyright © 2013 Defensive Attribution Hypothesis Defensive attributions are made when individuals witness or learn of a mishap happening to another person More responsibility will be attributed to the harm-doer as the outcome becomes more severe, and as personal or situational similarity decreases The Defensive Attribution Hypothesis
Copyright © 2013 Two Types of Rule Bias The tendency to over-value an employee’s motivation to follow rules and procedures “Why don’t employees just follow the rules?” The Manager’s Rule Bias The tendency to under-value or not appreciate the risk involved in not following rules or procedures “My manager doesn’t understand what it’s like on the front line anymore. No one follows all the rules.” The Employee’s Rule Bias
Copyright © 2013 Two Types of Perception Bias The tendency to search for or interpret information or memories in a way that confirms one's preconceptions Confirmation Bias Also known as perceptual blindness, the failure to notice an unexpected stimulus that is in one's field of vision when other attention- demanding tasks are being performed Inattention Blindness
Copyright © 2013 More Biases Perceiving oneself responsible for desirable outcomes but not responsible for undesirable ones Self-Serving Bias A long-term phenomenon in which individuals or teams repeatedly accept a lower standard of performance until that lower standard becomes normal Normalization of Deviance
Copyright © 2013 The Abilene Paradox The Abilene Paradox is a paradox in which a group of people collectively decide on a course of action that is counter to the preferences of any of the individuals in the group. It involves a common breakdown of group communication in which each member mistakenly believes that their own preferences are counter to the group's and, therefore, does not raise objections. A common phrase relating to the Abilene Paradox is a desire to not "rock the boat." The Abilene Paradox
Copyright © 2013 I.A Few Biases – Potential Impact on the Organization II.A Few Biases – Potential Impact on Individuals III.So Now What? Beware the Biases
Copyright © 2013 It’s About Understanding This…
Copyright © 2013 …and Doing This Well…
Copyright © 2013 …In Order to Do This Well…
Copyright © 2013 …to Produce Better Outcomes
Copyright © 2013 © 2012 Questions or Comments?
Copyright © 2013 Optional Exercise List two types of biases which could contribute to an organization’s lack of recognition of existing or increasing risk: 1.____________ 2.____________ List two types of biases which may have a strong impact on at-risk behavioral choices: 1.____________ 2.____________ Send your answers to:
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