Implicit bias training doesn’t work

From Google to Papa John’s to Buffalo Wings and Starbucks, more companies are introducing implicit bias training. These HR-sponsored courses are intended to foster diversity and inclusion by making employees more aware of unconsciously believed negative stereotypes. The idea is that if we can combat our underlying biases, we’ll decrease discriminatory behaviours at work and level the playing field for women and underrepresented minorities.
And yet despite the growing adoption of unconscious bias training, there is no convincing scientific evidence that it works. In fact, much of the academic evidence on implicit bias interventions highlights their weakness as a method for boosting diversity and inclusion. Instructions to suppress stereotypes often have the opposite effect, and prejudice reduction programs are much more effective when people are already open-minded, altruistic, and concerned about their prejudices to begin with.
This is because the main problem with stereotypes is not that people are unaware of them, but that they agree with them. In other words, most people have conscious biases. For instance, in virtually any culture men are more likely to believe that women are too kind and caring to be leaders. From a very early age, our relationships with others are shaped by common cultural stereotypes about social class and status. Perhaps most obviously, every nation has pervasive cultural stereotypes about other nations, usually its neighbours, which play a critical role in shaping and cementing their cultural identity.
It’s tempting to think that simply making people more aware of their biases — and pointing out the unfairness of those biases — will automatically level the playing field. But the reality is more complicated.
Scientific evidence suggests that the relationship between attitudes and behaviours is much weaker than one might expect. People often believe in the benefits of corporate diversity yet fail to act on those good intentions.
In fact, in most work-related settings the majority of people at least occasionally behave in ways that run counter to their attitudes — whether that means accommodating a micromanaging boss or agreeing to take on a dull project.
Organisations should focus less on extinguishing their employees’ unconscious thoughts, and more on nurturing ethical, benevolent, and inclusive behaviours. This means focusing less on employees’ attitudes, and more on organisational policies and systems, as these play the key role creating the conditions that entice employees (and leaders) to behave in more or less inclusive ways. Instead of worrying what people think of something or someone deep down, we should focus on ways to eliminate the toxic or prejudiced behaviours we can see. That alone will drive a great deal of progress.
—Bloomberg