Bias training is growing in popularity and demand worldwide. Demand for the training is incredibly high in the United States since the tragic death of George Floyd at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis. However, articles like this recent one about the San Diego Unified School District place bias training in a bad light.
Just as in any training programs, there are both good and bad kinds of training. Bad bias training makes the trainee feel guilty. Not many people want to sit through a training session that accuses them of “upholding racist ideas, structures, and policies” and must commit to becoming “antiracist” in the classroom.” These types of bias training sessions are, unfortunately, not uncommon in the United States. Bias training like this is unproductive for any organisation. Even if some of the material taught in the training session is valuable, most of the trainees will tune out when the class becomes confrontational and accusatory. This leaves the organisation forking out part of their training budget for training in which their team members get nothing from.
So how can your organisation benefit from bias training? First of all, bias training, when done correctly is highly beneficial to any organisation. Bias training should not be all about race, even though that is the “issue of the day” so to speak. The study of bias is vast and much more diverse than the current focus in most bias training programmes on just implicit bias. To increase productivity and reduce errors in any facet of your organisation, awareness of both cognitive and implicit bias is imperative. Understanding how the brain works and the various types of bias (most which have nothing to do with race or gender) influence your decisions in everyday life is what decision-makers should look for when implementing a bias training programme.
Another thing that distinguishes good bias training from bad is the way the training is delivered. Instructors should not use the very things they intend to eliminate, such as stereotypes and accusations of the trainees they have never met before. The focus should stay on the material. Good training relies on science and is evidence-based. Training should not be delivered with any political agenda.
Finally, if a training program claims to rid your organisation of bias, don’t waste your money. It is impossible to rid people of bias. Furthermore, not all bias is bad. A simple training program will present the latest material backed by evidence and make no claims of curing the trainees of bias. A suitable bias training program will increase your understanding of how the mind works, raise awareness as to how cognitive and implicit bias can impact your decisions and will lead to a reduction of errors and improved decision making for your organisation.
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