In a recruitment process, unconscious bias can affect the assessment of an applicant.
Deeply held beliefs, preconceived opinions of the ideal applicant, first impressions, and views about personal characteristics that are not linked to job requirements are all factors that may inappropriately influence our decision making, sometimes without our knowledge.
It is important for assessors to be aware of, manage and minimise unconscious bias.
After completing this section, you will have:
- an understanding of the different types of unconscious biases and how they may manifest during the recruitment process
- an understanding of how to reduce unconscious bias in your decision making.
Actions
- Increase your awareness of unconscious bias:
- Understand the different types of unconscious bias.
- Review examples of the most common forms of unconscious bias.
- Undertake training to improve your knowledge. Project Implicit is a free resource that provides information about new ways of understanding attitudes, stereotypes and other hidden biases that influence perception, judgment, and action. It helps improve understanding of the attitudes or stereotypes you may hold on factors such as age, gender and race and sexual orientation.
- Review the selection process:
- Define and consider the job requirements, as these are objective guideposts to identify people who are suitable.
- Modify the process so that it only collects information essential for decision making and administration. Remove any information fields or steps that are not required.
- Use technology to automatically redact personal information from applications to remove any possible effect on shortlisting decisions.
- Use a range of assessment options that focus on assessment of merit rather than personal judgement.
- Identify potential unconscious bias and improve the quality of assessment discussions:
- Actively take note of the similarities you share with a candidate so you can differentiate between your personal judgement of cultural fit and give an objective assessment based on the merits of a job.
- Talk about unconscious bias as a group and make it safe for people to acknowledge when a judgement may be founded on a bias rather than fact.
- Recognise and address ‘groupthink’ – a process where assessors conform to the hiring manager’s views as they believe that different views are wrong or would be ignored.
- Use independent assessors in the selection and assessment processes who are from diverse groups.
- Test the reasons why an applicant could be included rather than excluded, particularly if they are from a different age bracket, gender or cultural background than the applicants who have been assessed positively.
- Make decisions by maintaining the focus on skills, knowledge, and abilities and not on unrelated personal characteristics.
- Be an active and positive contributor when you notice biased comments. Steer the discussion back to the job requirements.
Resources
- Psychologically Safe and Inclusive Workplaces
- How to use the exceptions under the Equal Opportunity Act 1984
- Managing conflicts of interest
What’s next?
Common types of unconscious bias
Show more| Affinity bias |
This is the tendency to like people who are similar to us or remind us of someone we like. It means we may gravitate towards candidates who we feel share our interests, beliefs and background. |
|---|---|
| Availability heuristic bias |
Our brains rely on different strategies to make quick decisions. One of these is using mental short cuts known as availability heuristic. When it comes to making decisions, this bias makes choices easier by drawing on emotional cues, familiar facts and vivid images we have experienced. It means we may take attributes of the person we are assessing and make assumptions about them based on our recollection and experiences of a person with similar attributes. |
| Confirmation bias |
This is seeking and/or favouring information that confirms our beliefs or what we already think to be true rather than assessing the facts objectively. In recruitment, it can lead to discrimination based on preconceived ideas about social group, race, sex, gender orientation, disability and age. |
| Endowment effect bias |
This is the tendency to assign more value to objects or resources that we own compared to those belonging to someone else. In the workplace, it could mean the skills and characteristics of current staff are valued more than considering new talent. |
| Conformity bias |
This bias or ‘group think’ occurs when members of a group make decisions and behave like those around them rather than using their own personal judgment. It means individuals may change or not voice their own opinions so they can avoid conflict and maintain the perceived group consensus. Although conformity can help prevent conflict in a group, it may also limit creativity by not discussing different perspectives. |
| Halo effect bias |
This occurs when we have an overall positive impression of someone because of one or more of their qualities or traits. It means putting too much weight or judgement on a single trait, characteristic or quality. If these perceptions are allowed to influence the assessment of a candidate, it can lead to assumptions they are suitable for the role. |
| Horns effect bias |
This is when we have an overall negative impression of someone because of one or more of their qualities or traits. Similar to the halo effect, it means putting too much weight or judgement on a single trait, quality or characteristic. This can extend to a person’s race, cultural background, sexual orientation or age. If these perceptions are allowed to influence the assessment of a candidate, it can lead to assumptions they are not suitable for the role. |
| Status quo bias |
This describes our preference to ‘stick to what we know’ rather than consider or implement change. Following the status quo can be considered a safe option and less effort but it can also stifle diversity, innovation and creativity. |
| Anchor bias | This occurs when we rely overly on one piece of information as a reference point or ‘anchor’ on which to base our decisions. This causes us to see things from a narrow perspective. |
Examples of unconscious bias
Show more| Affinity bias |
During the recruitment process, assessors identify certain things in common with a candidate resulting in an increased sense of rapport and assumption that:
|
|---|---|
| Availability heuristic bias |
When reviewing applications, the lead assessor identifies that a candidate has shared their date of birth on their resume. The candidate is under 25 years old and the assessor remembers a previous staff member of a similar age who rarely completed assigned tasks and was eventually managed for underperformance. The assessor worries that, although the candidate has submitted a strong application, they will repeat behaviours and performance similar to the previous staff member. |
| Confirmation bias |
At interview, a candidate shares that they are a parent of young school aged children. An assessor seeks to confirm their perception that this candidate will need to take a lot of leave by asking them questions framed around their family and caring responsibilities that they do not ask other candidates. |
| Endowment effect bias |
A candidate is applying for a role they are currently working in. The lead assessor has a direct working relationship with the candidate and values their contribution to the role. Another candidate has the same skills, experience and abilities but the assessor does not give these the same consideration or recognition as the current staff member. |
| Conformity bias |
An assessment panel includes a senior executive manager, long term manager and junior employee. Both managers share the same opinion about a candidate which the junior employee does not agree with. The junior employee does not discuss their differing opinion as they want to avoid conflict. |
| Halo effect bias |
A candidate has the same skills, experience and ability as another but, after an assessor notes they graduated from a highly reputable university, some or all the assessors now view the person in a more positive light and more suitable for the role. |
| Horns effect bias |
A candidate with the same skills, experience and ability as another arrives for an interview with their tattoos visible. One of the assessors has a negative perception of tattoos and believes an employee who displays them will adversely impact how the team is viewed. This judgement leads to the assessment of the candidate as less suitable for the role. |
| Status quo bias |
The same recruitment process is used when planning, attracting and assessing candidates. By using the same advertising platforms and assessment tools, an agency is restricted from reaching and attracting diverse talent. |
| Anchor bias | A candidate has had a recent gap in their employment history. The assessors focus on this information rather than the candidate’s experience, qualifications and skills for the role. |
