Challenge Paper: Implicit Association Test

Challenge Paper: Implicit Association Test
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Challenge Paper: Implicit Association Test
Reaction to IAT results: I took my first IAT test and responded to each question asked. I started by taking the skin-tone (‘Light Skin – Dark Skin’ IAT); a test that calls for the capability of recognizing faces that are dark-skinned and those that are light-skinned. The results showed that I have slight preference for light-skinned faces. I was somewhat shocked considering that personally in my everyday interaction with people, I do not have preference of one race over another. Moreover, I believe that everyone is equal notwithstanding their skin color and that people should not be treated in a certain way because of their race. I was therefore quite shocked when the results revealed that I prefer white people over black ones. Prior to taking this test, I believed that I did not have any racial preferences but this test actually shows that I slightly prefer whites over blacks; I find the results very interesting and enlightening. The results suggest that I have an unconscious propensity of valuing Caucasians more than people of dark skin although I consciously deny such viewpoints and strong believe that I do not have racial bias. Perhaps I responded more quickly when I was linking the white faces with positive words and black faces with negative words since such links are cognitively easier for me – they fit with my implicit, unconscious attitudes.
How the information will affect me as a leader/manager: the information will affect me as a leader or a manager in that I now understand unconscious bias and it will be imperative for me as a leader or manager to ensure that I never treat any persons unfairly through unconscious bias. Owing to the significance of fair treatment in every type of ethical decision at the workplace including layoffs, hiring, compensation and performance appraisal, knowing the possible impact of such unconscious preconceived notion is critical. Knowing this should help in recognizing the importance of implementing organizational procedures which provide less opportunity for such unconscious prejudices to influence people’s decisions (Trevino & Nelson, 2014). Therefore, as a manager or a leader in an organization, recognizing the potential impact of unconscious bias in the organization would help me to put in place appropriate procedures and processes that will actually minimize the opportunity for such kinds of unconscious bias and prejudice to influence my decisions such as decisions regarding compensation, promotions, firing, or hiring.
What organizations should do to combat inequality: knowing what I now know about implicit biases, to combat inequality, organizations should establish ethical culture. It is noteworthy that staff members in any business organization are not merely people. Workers are a key element of something bigger – they are vital members of a company’s organizational culture which affects the way they think and act. Trevino and Nelson (2014) stated that ethical culture is an important organizational influence on people’s action, judgment, as well as ethical awareness, together with the personal d...