Implicit Bias

He literally opened his talk with a quote that he joked was from "a dead old white guy." The subtle laugh was pejorative and was a superb example of his own implicit academic bias. It said between the lines: "Hey, I know we shouldn't listen to these guys as they were all racists and we need to get them and their own ideas out of the way while we augur in our new progressive future." In progressive academia, ageism, racism, and patriotism are all open for mockery.

Great opening.

Then he provides the hoary resume study whereby identical resumes were sent out with "white names" and "black names" and the white names got called back fifty percent more often.

His conclusion? Implicit bias.

For a guy with a PhD, it's astonishing that he can't consider another option: There is only one remaining group in America that isn't in a "protected class:" The white male under forty. If you've ever been a hiring manager, you know that you've hired in good faith ANY race, class, gender, religion, or disability. On the other hand, you know if that a person within a protected class don't work out, HR makes it NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE to get rid of them.

So, Good Professor, you and your ilk have created all of these "protected classes" and in fact, by doing so, you have made companies less likely to take a risk on someone that they cannot fire if things don't work out.

THAT is the #1 reason that companies don't have more diversity. Remove the concept of "protected classes."

 

It's their way of saying they're fixing it but not actually fixing it. It's their way out. White liberals are the most racist people on earth. Don't ever forget that.

 

That was rough. I did notice that intro as well. I was actually surprised by it. How sad to look at the world through that lens. It’s actually on the edge or paranoia, just all dressed up.

 

This is why humans are a primitive and violent species. So many are so easily manipulated and prone to thinking such ridiculously stupid things. I truly believe that we have peaked and are on our way down. Previous generations had to secure food sources, fight wars, and make important scientific discoveries to ward off the bubonic plague, cholera and malaria (each of which at one point in history could have ended mankind). Now we are fighting about how many genders there are and what racial biases are affecting hiring, while living in the most prosperous nation on earth. The next big asteroid will be well deserved. We could use a do-over

 

I agree with the Asteroid, which is so sad. I keep telling my wife I'd like to leave the U.S. and maybe find a place were racism isn't ever other word

 

Pfizer Breakthrough Fellowship Program

 

What the hell are you talking about? Was there a webex or something?

 

Yep. 3 invites to boot.

 

Didn't listen. Implicit Bias is long-debunked pseudoscience based on critical race lie.

 

So, Good Professor, you and your ilk have created all of these "protected classes" and in fact, by doing so, you have made companies less likely to take a risk on someone that they cannot fire if things don't work out.

THAT is the #1 reason that companies don't have more diversity. Remove the concept of "protected classes."

This is a very good point. To designate a subgroup as a “protected class” by default implies that there are also “unprotected classes”. This is a form of negative bias (or racism), and to the OP point actually can work against the “protected class”... an unintended but real consequence.

 

My personal experience points to working for managers who were not the top candidate in capabilities and experience, but allowed HR to check boxes with protected class. And it was a horrible experience.

 

Implicit stupidity. Implicit blindness, implicit ignorance.

There’s a lot going on with this thread that isn’t good.

Implicit bias is real. The challenge is that it’s human. I don’t see it as an evil, racist thing. It’s more a trick of the mind.

A candidate for a job that comes from your alma mater, is a member of the same fraternity, hangs out in the same circles and speaks and dresses like you, has a much better shot at being your friend as well as your employee than someone completely different from you.

It’s real, it’s human and it’s not always evil. It’s more tribal. Familiarity makes us feel safe.

It’s a trick of the mind because the feeling is not the truth but we succumb to it repeatedly. It’s how sociopaths and psychopaths like Bernie Madoff got away with his deception for decades. The con was that your money was safe with him because he’s just like you. One of the boys.

 

Well said and very true. How about taking MLK at his word....content of one's character versus skin color?He would be grieved to see how America is regressing regarding race relations. We were making such progress until recent events designed to divide us.

 

Nope. It's not. It's been thoroughly and completely discredited. It's junk science like polygraphs and homeopathy.

 

The real problem is economic. But one wants to fix the problem because that would actually fix the problem.

 

These people just don’t get it. If you aren’t in the club (corporate/govt elite) then you lose. Plain and simple. They will always protect themselves from their disastrous decisions that we will have to live with.

 

"Everybody is a victim, and everybody had someone else to blame for it"
- the central dogma of "progressivism" is a constant victim mentality. What a way to live your life. Someone talked them into thinking that.

 

It is all about BLM, Antifa & LGBTwxyz
Even Women are taking back seat!
White Males are bottom of latter.
Anybody in a hiring position will tell you that HR and VPs are pretty much demanding a black be one of the Final 2 candidates to forward. Even if skills are not aligned or no experience, they still want to push forward.
End of the day regardless of race or gender, if the person is not qualified then the division/organization declines. Plain & Simple.
Some skillsets you can not train, develop or enhance. You have the skill/exp or you dont.
That's what I am seeing w the demise of corp Amer now is NOT hiring the most qualified based on an internal quota.

 

I could see some truth in this if the opposite hadn’t occurred for so many years.

Overly qualified minorities being denied promotions is vastly more prevalent than under qualified getting the promotion. Also, minorities are denied developmental opportunities in greater numbers, are far less likely to have committed mentors and close to zero sponsors.

I can’t think of many minorities who were in over their heads but I remember significant numbers with multiple degrees, multiple awards and were hard working that couldn’t get to a 2nd round interview. These folks would leave Pfizer and shoot up the career ladder at a company that didn’t care whose house you are dinner with last night or you played golf with over the weekend.

If what you say is true, it may be that senior leaders see that they can no longer trust middle managers to put aside their biases. An assessment that may be evidenced by the number of folks at the management level that look, sound and dress alike like clones of one another.

 

Yup managers shoving diversity sessions down our throat. A friend of mine on a team in the east said They hired several reps in the past year to clearly fill a diversity quota that have zero experience. He’s sent me one of their promotion emails and the bio was laughable at the lack of skills and qualifications they are bringing to the position.