Me and others: be the transformation you wish to see in the world

What you will read here:

• The importance of diversity and inclusion
• Deconstructing prejudice: the unconscious biases
• Reading tips and learning sources

Reflecting on and discussing topics related to diversity and inclusion have become increasingly important for society and, as a consequence, for companies. It has generated such positive movements and actions that they have been transforming people's lives for the better. And not just for the lives of those who are part of minority groups, but for everyone’s. By broadening the way we look at it, we are, little by little, creating more heterogeneous, harmonious, creative and more humane social environments. 

But, as Kelcy Matsuda Braga said in her sentence above, this is a responsibility for all of us. It is not enough to "empathise" (using a frequent term in discussions about diversity) with issues relevant to minority groups (such as LGBTQ +, People with Disabilities, women or black people, for example), you must be an agent of the change you wish to see in the world. The active involvement of each person is what will, in fact, transform the world into a place of balance, with more equity, with equal rights and opportunities for all, always respecting people’s differences. 

It is up to us, though, to pay attention to issues related to the importance of representation. Representation is the expression of the interests and identity of a group in the shape of a representative. In other words, they are people whose roles in society help to build the subjectivity of a group that identifies with them. 

A young black woman, for example, seeing black women in leadership positions and with positions of social prominence - unthinkable a few decades ago - feels represented and knows that she can also occupy that place. 

Representation, then, is the condition to feel portrayed in our full rights, to be respected and valued. It is about knowing that we have the right and are able to take any part we want in society and in companies. It is up to us, therefore, to work to make this possible. 

Diversity as an enhancer of human capacities

It is easy to understand that a more equal society is a more just and better society. But diversity is still a powerful lever for evolution from an individual point of view as well. The more perspective of the world we understand and absorb, the more different information we have, the richer our references are and the more creative and creative we become. This way, practicing empathy, being open to the diverse, having a real interest in other people's ways of thinking - in addition to making us better human beings -, enhances our intellectual and professional capacities.

If we put this potential in a more collective perspective, from the point of view of companies, establishing a culture that takes care of issues of inclusion and diversity generates more creative and innovative professionals and teams.

Besides making the environment better (no doubt here), people feel safer and happier. This generates a sense of belonging, motivation and engagement. Always keeping in mind that diversity generates creativity and innovation.

Deconstructing prejudice 

You can believe that you have no prejudices and even have ties to social rights movements and/or belong to a minoritized group. But we do have pre-programmed concepts that lead us to automatic judgments about people we don't even know without realising that, just because of their appearance or behavior. These are called unconscious bias. 

Unconscious bias is the pre-formulated concept that we have about some being, object or reality. In other words, they are unconscious tendencies to the interpretation of an experience according to a previous mental programming. This mental programming is explained by neuroscience as part of the innate survival mechanism. 

According to neuroscience, the human being was designed to seek the maximum knowledge about the world in their childhood and youth, and then to base their reactions according to such acquired knowledge. Then, we establish ourselves in a kind of comfort zone, saving energy. 
In his bestselling Thinking, Fast and Slow, the Nobel Prize winner in Economics, Daniel Kahneman, tells us about this innate trend. According to Kahneman, our mind basically works in two ways: 

System 1, or S1, is our fast, automatic mode that is based on already lived experiences, pre-formulated concepts and is “addicted” to routines. This mode is largely unconscious and consumes little energy. For this reason, an adult person spends most of their time in S1. 
System 2, or S2, which is analytical, investigative, slow and conscious reasoning, is the format in which we learn about the world. But it takes a lot of brain and cognitive energy. 

We spent early childhood basically in S2 mode, in cognitive development, learning and spending a large part of our energy on this task. As we grow up, we freeze impressions, establish certainties and walk towards beliefs of dominance and control over the environment, the world, people and our lives. This is the S1, in which we tend to act automatically and evaluate the parameters of behavior, always having as reference what we already know, closing ourselves to the new, to the risky, to learning so that we spend less and less energy .

This way, from these "frozen" concepts that try to make the world feel "comfortable", our unconscious biases are formed. To give a simple example, when talking about "family", most people automatically imagine a structure formed by mother, father and children. Then, when a new situation arises, as diverse structures, formed by two fathers, two mothers or a single mother and father, people automatically tend to be estranged. However, it is easy to see that this is a biased reasoning, a weightless judgment of value, formed in S2 according to the life experiences of each one and frozen in our S1. 

It is worth mentioning that there is not necessarily a problem with automatic associations, since their speed in supporting decision making has allowed us to evolve as human beings and species. However, the problem is to function automatically in social affairs. Often, we bring pre-established opinions and do not open ourselves to the new, which impairs our correct readings of the world, and of people. 

Let us look at some types of unconscious bias that shape us to a greater or lesser extent: 

1 - Affinity- This bias is related to identification with the other. A tendency to get closer and better accept those who look like us. 
2 - Confirmation - When people refuse to see what is new. They do not accept divergence and do not give importance or value information that contradicts their personal beliefs, even if they are based on facts and data. They just look for information that confirms what they believe and cling to them, thus, remaining in this biased comfort zone.
3 - Perception- This bias is based on social stereotypes. Strongly supported by social and cultural constructions, and it is not supported by facts. 
4 - Halo effect - When you have a good impression of someone automatically, sometimes based on some good deed that you have witnessed. Here, people associate only positive things with that person and have difficulties to see their negative points. 
5 - Horn effect - The exact opposite of the halo. All that is negative is associated with someone. Here, we generally do not give ourselves the opportunity to get to know other sides of a person. 
6 - Group effect - It is the automatic tendency to follow the group without thinking for ourselves, so that we do not question the opinion of the majority. 

If we just use the bias filter and work automatically towards people, we can act with prejudice. Therefore, we need to be careful with our immediate readings of our surroundings. It is worthwhile to always look at the new with an attitude of observation, without judgment, and really learn about this new reality. 
 

Deprogram your unconscious bias 

It is essential to identify the unconscious biases that we have and end up generating preconceived ideas about people and disarm them. How? The same way we absorb these biases, programming our brain for the automatic response (System 1), we can deprogram them with reflections (System 2). 

Let us now see 4 tips to deprogram our unconscious bias: 

1 - knowing and knowing yourself - The first step is to make a self-observation and a self-reflection. Try to identify when we take actions or make automatic judgments driven by sensations and not by careful analysis and think about the triggers, the why behind these attitudes. 

2 - Willingness to learn and openness for listening and speaking - Listening to what is different and divergent from your point of view with attention, real interest and without judgment is the second step. Help build these spaces for dialogue in your family, social environment and in your company. 

3 - Searching for data, facts and evidence to support one’s point - In addition to listening to people, try to observe their surroundings and notice the situations of prejudice happening and study about topics related to diversity and inclusion. To help you, at the end of this article, we will leave some reading tips and interesting sources of information.

4 - Making this a constant conversation - Both in society and in our family, as well as in our work environment, keep constant exchanges about these topics. Unconscious biases and prejudices are not deconstructed overnight, they require empathetic and careful dialogue. After all, many are unaware of the reasons for their feelings. It is a continuous and systematic learning. 

Become an agent of change

Learn more about the importance of dedicating yourself to building and promoting more diverse and inclusive environments in your life and in your company, use learned paths, observe yourself and reflect for deprogram your unconscious biases and help others to do the same. 

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