What is unconscious bias? Learn about factors and how to improve them through specific examples, and the difference from bias

Unconsciously holding preconceived ideas and prejudices,"Unconscious bias"called.

People form various unconscious biases based on social conventions and past experiences. Having unconscious biases is not a bad thing in itself. Preconceptions and prejudices are natural human traits.

However, if you behave in a way that imposes unconscious bias on others, it can be considered power harassment or sexual harassment in the workplace, and can sometimes develop into a human rights issue. In addition, when it comes to corporate advertising production, if you do not proceed with a project while paying close attention to unconscious bias, you risk incurring a backlash from society without realizing it.

In this article, we will explain the unconscious biases that you should be aware of in business situations and the unconscious biases that companies should be careful of when communicating, including actual advertising examples.

What is unconscious bias?

"Type A people are serious and meticulous"
"Type B people are unique and curious"
"Type O is easygoing and stable"
"AB type is a genius with two sides"

Many people have probably heard of these blood type diagnoses. In a 2016 survey, about 40% of people answered that they "believe" in the above blood type diagnoses (*1).

However, there is no scientific evidence to prove this blood type diagnosis, and it is an unconscious bias born out of social conventions that has permeated the lives of many Japanese people.

Unconscious bias is a bias in opinion that operates unconsciously, and can be reflected in words and actions without the person even realizing it. Even if one person thinks something is "obvious and not something to worry about," another person may have a different opinion.

If you do not recognize and address your own unconscious biases, it can lead to communication problems and sometimes even the breakdown of your team or organization.

(*1) Nomura Research Institute INSIGHT SIGNAL https://www.is.nri.co.jp/report/short-research/2016/000171.html

Difference from bias

Bias isA general term for people's preconceptions, prejudices, and biased opinions.

Among the various biases that exist, such as normalcy bias, self-serving bias, and survivorship bias, there is unconscious bias.

"What is bias? Its meaning and types [including points to note when analyzing data]"This book explains what bias is and what biases business people who want to use data as a weapon should be particularly aware of.

It is not uncommon for bias to lead to incorrect analytical results, so business people involved in data analysis should definitely refer to this article.

Unconscious bias in everyday life

Unconscious bias is a bias in thinking that appears in all aspects of life. It is said that there are hundreds of types, and in business situations, the following types of unconscious bias can occur.

• Employees with poor sales performance are late because of their sloppy personality.
• I forgive subordinates I like even if they make some mistakes
• Organizing drinking parties and running chores at company events are the jobs of new employees.
• I don't want female employees to take on managerial positions because they will eventually leave the company.
• Employees who leave work while their boss is working overtime seem unmotivated
• People with low IT literacy also believe that they have low business skills
• Often makes comments like "For a man, you're a bit of a man" or "For a woman, you're a bit of a man"
• Always rejecting someone's opinion just because your personality doesn't match
• The moment they find out that the other person is younger than them, they change their attitude.
• I think male employees who take childcare leave just want to rest comfortably.

If we act without recognizing our unconscious bias, we may unconsciously hurt others or cause them mental stress.It is important to "first recognize" unconscious bias.

Take this opportunity to think about what unconscious biases you may be holding and reflect on your everyday words and actions.

Seven unconscious biases to be aware of in daily life

There are seven unconscious biases that business people should be aware of.

These are not all the unconscious biases, but being aware of them on a daily basis will help ensure normal communication within your team and increase psychological safety in your organization.

1. Confirmation Bias

When judging whether a hypothesis you have made or a hypothesis given by someone else is correct,An unconscious bias to ignore information that disproves a hypothesis.

Because we only collect information that is convenient for the "hypothesis we want to believe," it becomes difficult to discern the essence of things.

Even though there is no scientific basis for blood type diagnosis, the belief that "type A people are serious and meticulous" is likely a result of confirmation bias.

2. Normalcy Bias

Even in times of crisis,An unconscious bias that makes us ignore or underestimate information that is inconvenient to us.

In business situations, for example, when faced with a cyber attack, companies may be slow to respond because they tend to assume that "it's okay because no actual damage has been caused."

This is evidence of normalcy bias at work, and is one of the unconscious biases you should be particularly aware of, as it has a high potential to make the situation worse.

3. Group conformity bias

By continuing to belong to a group, we naturally increase our tendency to conform to those around us and pressure minorities, which is an unconscious bias..

There is a view that the damage caused by large-scale natural disasters and fires in the past was exacerbated by group conformity bias. Conforming to the group creates a sense of security, so people tend to believe that their actions are correct, even if they are wrong.

While group conformity bias has the advantage of facilitating group decision-making, it also poses the risk of encouraging bullying.

4. The Einstein Effect

Sticking to familiar ways of thinking and losing sight of multiple perspectivesThis is called the "Einstein effect."

If you are unable to adapt to changes in the business environment, thinking "our company has been successful doing things this way up until now," the Einstein effect may be at work.

This is an unconscious bias that we need to be aware of in all business situations, as it can cause us to lose sight of the customer's perspective.

5. Benevolent Discrimination

Showing unnecessary consideration and concern to people you think are in a weaker position than youThis is called "benevolent discrimination." Even actions that may seem like innocent kindness at first glance can lead to discrimination, so caution is required.

In particular, benevolent sexism, the idea that women are weaker than men, unconsciously arises even in the business world.

6. Imposter syndrome

Underestimating your own abilities and achievementsThis is called "impostor syndrome."

Imposter syndrome is formed from the environment one grew up in and the experiences one has had, and is also known as a "state of low self-esteem."

People who develop imposter syndrome are at risk of closing off their own potential, but they also have a sense of humility and gratitude towards those around them.

Therefore, by acknowledging and overcoming this fear, there is the potential to significantly improve your work performance and the way you are viewed by others.

7. Stereotypes

Stereotypes, images, assumptions, concepts, and patterns of thinking that permeate many peopleis called a "stereotype."

The blood type diagnosis mentioned above is also a type of stereotype, but it differs from unconscious bias.

For more information"What is a stereotype? A clear explanation of the difference between stereotypes and biases, as well as their advantages and disadvantages', so please refer to it along with this article.

Examples of advertising that falls victim to unconscious bias

If you create advertisements without recognizing unconscious bias, you may become the target of social criticism. Here are three examples of major companies that fell prey to unconscious bias in their advertisements.

TV commercial for a major food manufacturer

A television commercial aired by a major food manufacturer in 2014 shows a mother busy with childcare, housework, and work from early morning until late at night.

The production team had intended to show support for the amazing Japanese mothers, but in the end, it attracted social criticism as a TV commercial that fell into the unconscious bias that childcare and housework are mothers' jobs.

At the beginning of the TV commercial, the mother is feeding her children breakfast and hanging out the laundry, while the father is seen using a computer with a disinterested look on his face.

The contrast between the mother and father may have been intended to emphasize that Japanese mothers are amazing, but if they had shown the father being even a little bit supportive, the criticism may have been avoided.

Web movie of a major cosmetics manufacturer

In 2017, a major cosmetics manufacturer released a web movie depicting the "conflict of a family-oriented father." However, shortly after its release, the movie received a lot of criticism on social media, with people saying things like, "I can't sympathize with the protagonist's actions."

On the day of his son's birthday, the protagonist's father buys a cake and a present, but on the way home he sees a depressed junior employee and invites him out for drinks. The story depicts the protagonist's struggle with his ideal image of a father, which ultimately leads him to go out drinking with a junior employee on his son's birthday.

This web movie was introduced as a "movie to support hard-working dads," but to viewers, the actions were perceived as being difficult to sympathize with.

Social media survey of a major automobile manufacturer

In 2019, a tweet using a poll function was posted from the official account of a major automobile manufacturer, asking, "A question for all female drivers. Are you bad at driving a car?" The tweet was immediately met with a flood of criticism, leading to the post being deleted and an apology being issued.

If you're reading this article, you're probably already aware of what's wrong with this social media post.

The phrase "I thought so" shows the unconscious bias of the person posting on social media that "women are not good at driving." In addition, the options for the tweet, from top to bottom, are "very bad" and "slightly bad," which also suggests a biased opinion towards women.

Even if a social media survey has a positive purpose, such as "providing a safe and enjoyable car experience for people who aren't good at driving," it is not uncommon for unconscious bias to damage the company brand itself.

The three Ps to avoid creating "unconsciously biased ads"

The "unconscious biased advertising" mentioned above is not something that only affects other people.Unconscious bias is reflected in our words and actions without us even realizing it.

Unconscious bias also comes into play in advertising production, such as for TV commercials and web movies, where a wide range of opinions are likely to be obtained.

To avoid this, the UN-led Unstereotype Alliance has proposed the following:"The Three P's".

What is the Unstereotype Alliance?

The Unstereotype Alliance is a United Nations-led organization that aims to "eliminate stereotypes through the power of media and advertising." It was launched in 2017 at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in France.

For more information,"What is Unstereotype? Explanation of its meaning and the Unstereotype Alliance' is explained in this article.

The Unstereotype Alliance advocates the "Three Ps" as principles for looking at advertising.

• Presence
• Perpective
• Personality

1. Presence

"Is there a diverse range of people, including men and women?"

In today's society, where diversity is being called for, incorporating genderlessness into advertising, which eliminates social and cultural distinctions, is becoming a basic premise.

Advertisements that target only men, only women, or a particular race are likely to be perceived as "discriminatory."

2. Perspective

Is the story being told from an unbiased perspective?

In April 2022, UN Women, which leads the Unstereotype Alliance, protested a full-page advertisement in a major newspaper, claiming that it "deems women to be sexual objects for men."

Even if it's just a single advert, unless we can ensure that male and female perspectives are featured equally, we risk reinforcing stereotypes.

3. Personality

"Are they depicted as having personalities and autonomy?"

Advertisements that focus on physical appearance, such as "men are tall and strong" and "women are slim and weak," contain a lot of unconscious bias.

We must avoid portraying characters as stereotypically male or female. Before portraying them as male or female, they must be portrayed as individuals with their own personalities and individuality.

In conclusion

In May 2018, Starbucks temporarily closed over 5 stores across the United States to conduct unconscious bias training after a staff member in a store in Philadelphia was found to have engaged in racist behavior(*8,000).

Each company responds differently - some take unconscious bias seriously like Starbucks does, while others think "our company is fine."

However, in the near future, we may see a time when advertising, marketing, business, and management will face intense social criticism if they do not take unconscious bias into account.

As if in preparation for this, an increasing number of companies are conducting unconscious bias training.
▼Reference:Unconscious Bias Training| Employee training reskilling 

To prevent people from being hurt by unconscious bias and to avoid situations that could damage a company's brand, please think about the unconscious biases that individuals and organizations may hold.

（*2）An open letter to Starbucks customers from Howard Schultz | https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2018/an-open-letter-to-starbucks-customers-from-howard-schultz/