How to Use This Information to Help Your Team: The short activity at the bottom of this article is designed to help your team identify what they have in common with, not only with those who share their background, but with others as well. That identification of commonality is a key step to defeating bias.
Those of you who have focused on diversity and inclusion efforts for some time are no doubt aware of the phrase “affinity bias.” An affinity bias is the tendency to be drawn to and prefer those whom we perceive to be most like themselves.
Just to be clear: There’s nothing wrong with feeling comfortable around people like yourself. Nor is there a problem with being proud of one’s culture, one’s country, or one’s religion. That’s all fine. The problem arises when that pride – that affinity – results in the exclusion or denigration of others.
So, the question becomes: How can we have affinity for (interest in, drawn to) our own group without denigrating others?
The answer lies in shifting our affinity from our individual group (male, female, black, white, Christian, Muslim) to the category under which we all fall: Human beings. The trick to that shift is to become aware of the things all human beings share and, therefore, to ask this question: What do we all – regardless of group — have in common?
Red Flag! I am not for one minute suggesting we become alike in every way nor that we abandon our beliefs and attitudes in favor of some great amorphous “alikeness.” I am, instead, suggesting we wake up to the reality that human beings are, at the same times, different in some ways and alike in others.
That’s where this short activity becomes useful. As you facilitate it, don’t hesitate to get in touch [link] if you have any questions about how to make it more effective.
Activity: Exploring What All Human Beings Have in Common
The Purpose: To demonstrate to the learner that human beings have far more in common that we routinely realize. This awareness, in turn, helps reduce bias and increase connection between people of diverse backgrounds.
Process: Ask your team or group of learners what values they believe all human beings – regardless of culture or group – have in common.
The Answer: A desire for….
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- Social Support
- Physical Comfort and Survival
- Security
- Dignity for Self and Others
Comments:
Explain that the differences we see between groups grows, not from varying values, but from the fact that those values are manifested in different ways. For example, some groups achieve their social support through an extended family, others though a smaller nuclear unit, others through same-sex partnerships, etc. These different manifestations are why we fail to recognize that, behind the difference, is a shared value that connects us and, in turn, helps reduce the biases between us.
Give that activity a try and let me know if you have any questions or feedback.
The material in this post reflects the ideas expressed in Dr. Thiederman’s book 3 Keys to Defeating Unconscious Bias and in the training videos Defeating Unconscious Bias: 5 Strategies and Gateways to Inclusion: Turning Tense Moments into Productive Conversations.
Sondra Thiederman can be contacted for virtual facilitation, and panel participation by clicking here or calling 619-583-4478. For additional information, go to this link to learn more about what Dr. Thiederman has to offer.
© copyright 2024 Sondra Thiederman, Ph.D.
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