Most people like to believe they are fair and objective. They believe they don’t have automatic positive or negative feelings toward a certain type of person. And when a person recognizes such feelings, he often prefers to feel that he knows how to control them. But in reality, all people are programmed subconsciously to categorize others and make biased judgments and jump to conclusions.
Prejudice is a tendency or prejudice for or against a person or group, especially in a way that is considered unfair. Addiction is often accompanied by ignorance, suspicion or hatred. It is aimed at outgroups – those who are different from us or with whom we do not identify. Along with negative stereotypes (where one makes generalizations about the “typical” characteristics of certain groups), bias or prejudice can be the basis for discrimination. Discrimination is behavior that treats people unequally because of their membership in a group.
What are prejudices?
A person’s subconscious mind can process huge amounts of information much faster than the conscious mind. Part of the way it does this is through shortcuts. Without knowing, she or he uses his or her personal background, cultural background, and previous experiences to make near-instant decisions. This can lead to problems, especially in matters where rational, unbiased thinking must be used.
The subconscious mind can be wrong, it can make hasty decisions about people, categorizing them according to gender, race, age, sexuality and other characteristics. Within milliseconds, a person judges whether someone is like him and belongs to his group. These are the people to whom this person is more favorable.
Unconscious bias can influence a person’s decisions without even realizing it. The impact of unconscious bias on decision-making can be mitigated by increasing awareness of it and proactively addressing one’s own biases.
Why do people have prejudices?
The human tendency to bias is a natural result of evolution and has developed over many thousands of years. This natural tendency is further reinforced through a process of continuous socialization. A survival mechanism that is also the ability to quickly distinguish friend from foe helped our early ancestors survive, and the human mind continues to naturally filter the abundance of information to help people decide how to treat others around them.
How to control them?
Research shows that if a person pays attention to their decisions, they can better control them. Bias control is less effective when one is cognitively or emotionally preoccupied. This happens when he is stressed, under time pressure or in a hurry, under emotional strain (angry or upset), physically tired, or when he relies on his impulses and habits. When faced with such situations, one must be aware of the increased risk of bias in decision-making.
