Say More About That

3Bias

Bias is also a buzzword and often carries a negative connotation. In my first book, Allies and Advocates, I explain that bias isn't really bad, and it helps us a lot. Bias, whether conscious or unconscious, is a preference, inclination, or prejudice for or against someone or something. Bias can be in favor of something or opposed to it, and there are hundreds of different bias types. Our biases are influenced by our background, cultural environment, and personal experiences. We are influenced by what we do for a living, where we went to school, where we hang out, who we are friends with, what we do for fun, and just about any of the happenings in our life. Unconscious bias just means that we aren't aware that a bias is at play. Considering that the human brain takes in 11 million bits of information every second, and we are only conscious of about 40 to 50 bits of that, there's a good chance a lot of our biases are unconscious.

Most folks really struggle with the idea that bias isn't bad because of the way we use the word in greater society. When we call someone biased, we really are usually saying they are missing some pertinent perspective or are passing unfair judgment. We tend to use the same meaning when we say data is biased or a process is biased. Sometimes, though, biases really help us – even though they are preference, inclination, or prejudice. I have a personal example.

Many years ago, a man I was in a relationship with got really sick and had to have a colonoscopy. ...