Turning the Tide in Your Favor: How to Respond to Prejudice. Prejudiced attitudes of others and colleagues

Of course, the list is absolutely incomplete, but it gives an idea that the criteria lie in the “like/dislike” plane. It is worth noting that often a biased attitude has a negative connotation, mostly justified. Agree, no one wants to step on the same rake.

In addition to the above, one can also attribute elementary caution, which at any time will not be superfluous, and outright paranoia, which is not such a frequent occurrence, to the causes of prejudice.

The formation of prejudiced attitudes in people is as subjective as the attitude itself. So, someone does not pay attention to appearance, but emphasizes it on the words and expressions used. For some, belonging to a certain social/professional group is decisive.

An important underlying formation of bias are stereotypes. Stereotypes can be laid down from childhood and can be acquired under the influence of external factors, including surrounding people, the media, or formed by an individual empirically on their own.

Is it worth getting rid of? How to deal with this in others?

Do not forget about such an ephemeral concept as "intuition". Intuition can give a signal when outwardly everything is fine or vice versa is absolutely negative. Often, intuition only provides a sense of "wrongness" that is often ignored. But there are people who listen to it and draw conclusions, including and only on its basis. In such cases best expression for these feelings would be "I have a bad/good feeling."

The questions are non-trivial. At first glance, prejudice as a self-defense mechanism actually contributes to the avoidance of a number of problems. It is also true that a positive bias helps to recognize the true qualities of the object more quickly. On the other hand, a negative bias does not make it possible to discern positive qualities, a positive one does not make it clear in a timely manner that a dirty trick can be expected from an object.

It is worth projecting your thoughts on this matter to others, as it becomes clear that bias in itself is neither good nor bad. This is an inevitable phenomenon that can be overcome, but not completely eradicated. The main way to overcome your own prejudiced attitude is to realize the presence of this very attitude and how much it interferes with making the right decisions.

Another way is the formation of analytical thinking. That is, to form a holistic perception, it is best to use various sources of information (interview friends, listen to reviews, see sources of information). Luckily, there is no shortage of it these days.

The most important thing in dealing with people is to remember about uniqueness and individuality. Even despite the presence of negative experiences, associations, rejection of appearance or other traits, it is worth learning to see the essence.

Bias- lack of impartiality, prejudice, initial inclination to a certain position, experimental readiness for one or another conclusion.
encyclopedic Dictionary in psychology and pedagogy

Prejudice (prejudiced biased opinion, which is formed in advance) is a way of psychological reaction, which manifests itself in a deliberately negative attitude towards something or someone. This is prejudice and confidence in a negative result or in the negative qualities of a person (group of people), regardless of the circumstances. Such an opinion, as a rule, is formed in advance, based on false principles, attitudes and insufficiently verified information. Prejudice is cold to the arguments of logic and indifferent to the facts. It is generated by stereotypes, and the fear of change, laziness and inertia of thinking lie at the origins. She draws strength from pride, self-confidence and her own infallibility.

To overcome bias, it is necessary to learn to think freely, based on concrete facts and logical arguments, and not pre-formed attitudes. It is very important to understand and accept the versatility of the world and to distance ourselves from pride and self-justification.

• Bias is prejudice and intolerance to facts.
• Prejudice is the unwillingness to change one's point of view.
• Prejudice is an infallible belief in one's own rightness.
• Bias is a pre-formed negative judgment.
• Bias is the unfair preference for one side over the other.
• Bias is the tendency to ignore information that does not fit within the given framework.

Disadvantages of Bias

• Prejudice creates rigid and inflexible thinking.
• Prejudice makes a person an uninteresting interlocutor.
• Bias leads to unfair decisions that can cause irreparable harm to other people.
• Prejudice drives a person into the framework of stereotypes.
• Bias encourages a reluctance to think and form an independent point of view.
• Prejudice leaves no chance for those against whom it is directed.

Manifestations of bias in everyday life

• Judgment bias. Biased refereeing has become a real scourge of modern sports. Biased refereeing kills the fighting spirit in athletes, and in fans - faith in justice.
• Thanks for the left brain bias. Each of the hemispheres of our brain has its own special functions. The right one is responsible for imagery, freshness of perception, novelty and intuition, while the left one is responsible for logic, clarity and recognition. Prejudice is the result of either personal negative experience, after which a stable cause-and-effect relationship is formed in the brain, or the experience or judgments of other people, and the left hemisphere helps us in this. It is necessary to develop "right-brain" perception, when life seems new every time, but at the same time, thinking must be based on the logical support of "left-brain" perception.
• Prejudice, intolerance, fanaticism. Bias is the first step towards such destructive things as racial or political intolerance, religious bigotry or ethnic genocide. If the consciousness of a person or a group of people is infected with prejudices and prejudices, then it becomes easily controlled, as a result of which such things as terrifying in their large-scale cruelty can arise, such as revolutions, wars, concentration camps or the inquisition.
• Perceptual bias or a sober view of reality? Our perception of reality is constantly in close dependence on two things: emotions and attitudes. It happens that the same person or the same event is perceived in completely different ways, depending on a pre-formed attitude or opinion of third parties. Therefore, it is necessary to constantly balance between bias and idealization, striving for sober thinking. [Source]

How to overcome bias

• Learn to think logically. Live, free logical thinking is an the best assistant in the fight against prejudice. Look for facts and arguments, pick up arguments. Make your own conclusions, strive for independence of opinions, assessments and judgments.
• Break free from stereotypes. Try to avoid as much as possible phrases and judgments that are built in this way: “all people ...”, “everything always happens ...”, “never here ...”, etc. Life is incredibly diverse, and it is often possible to comprehend this diversity only by bright momentary perception, free from stereotypes and bias.
• Don't believe everything you hear. Question and logically analyze the information that comes to you, check, think, reason, draw conclusions. Do not unconditionally believe the stories of acquaintances or media statements. Find the strength to fight prejudice and stereotypes.
• Realize that there are different opinions and points of view. There are many different opinions and points of view in life, and it is not a fact that you have a monopoly on the truth. Learn to listen and hear, seek and find the truth that grows out of facts and requires real evidence.

Golden mean

Bias

Impartiality, objectivity

hyperrationality

Popular expressions about bias

In this sad world, it is easier to split the atom than to overcome prejudice. - Albert Einstein - I think that any use of stereotypes is excessive. - Tommy Lee Jones - Trying to get to the truth means abandoning stereotypes and clichés. - Harold Evans - Prejudices have no rational basis, so they cannot be refuted by reasonable arguments. - Samuel Johnson - Jane Austen / Pride and Prejudice A beautiful and romantic book by the famous British writer Jane Austen tells not only about the complex but happy love story of the main characters, but also about the power to overcome prejudice and prejudice. A person can find spiritual harmony only when he rises above stereotypes and becomes confident in showing his best spiritual qualities. Alexey Ukhtomsky / Selected writings This is an academic reading, but it is the teaching of Alexei Ukhtomsky about psychological attitudes and general theory dominants can shed light on many issues and problems of modern life.

What is bias

Prejudice, according to the etymology of this word, means prejudice towards something, manifested in advance. This may relate to assessments, conclusions, opinions, the result of which is a biased attitude towards a situation, event, phenomenon, person, etc. This attitude has both subjective and objective reasons.

Objective reasons for bias

Objective reasons are dictated by certain generally accepted norms, rules, the current socio-political situation. For example, there is a rule of etiquette: it is unacceptable for an applicant to be late for a pre-employment interview. Of course, this can be explained with a good reason. Some HR managers, in addition to the interview, attach great importance to the probationary period, where the employee can fully reveal himself. In such cases, regardless of the unwanted incident, they hire the employee. But more than 50% of recruiters consider being late for an interview completely unacceptable. This is often dictated by the corporate culture of the company. Of course, in such cases, there will be a biased attitude towards the candidacy of a latecomer as a person who is not punctual.

Subjective causes of bias

The subjective reasons for a biased attitude, for example, between a leader and a subordinate, may be related to the specifics of the approach to the individual. They depend on such properties as low self-esteem, fear of competition due to young age or bright leadership qualities, greater competence, and finally, charisma, which the leader will see as a potential reason to take his chair. Often at school, a teacher may develop a biased attitude, negative, distrustful towards a student who entered the school from a dysfunctional family, or towards the children of immigrants who arrived from the former Soviet republics.

Bias and stereotypes

A biased attitude is something that can be based on stable prejudices, prevailing public opinion, and stereotypes. Not so long ago in our country there was an opinion that a woman leader is worse than a man, able to cope with the role of a boss. It was more difficult for her to establish herself in leadership positions, especially when she came to a new, already established team. Life, social and economic development change a lot. Nowadays, women often head companies, firms, open their own business. In many regions, especially in the outback, a preconceived notion about a woman leader still remains.

Consequences of Bias

A biased attitude, the meaning and consequences of which can be assessed as negative, leads to controversial situations. A conflict based on distrust can arise within a team of employees, between a leader and subordinates, between students and a teacher, parents and a teacher, a coach and athletes, etc. In turn, this affects the image and work of the enterprise. From difficult life situations associated with interpersonal relationships, no one is immune. It is impossible to foresee them in advance. We must remember that there is always a way out. If it is difficult to find it yourself, you should turn to friends, relatives, a professional psychologist.

A biased attitude is, first of all, the perception and evaluation of another person or event without striving for objectivity. Of course, each person has the right to a personal opinion, and how it should be formed (according to what criteria). But when an individual is not just in, but performs specific official duties, occupying a certain position, then there is no place for a biased attitude towards either colleagues, or the boss, or the subject of his work. Otherwise, it goes down, because one of the features of professionalism is an adequate attitude towards one's work and colleagues.

Bias: Meaning

Kuznetsov's Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language defines bias as an opinion formed in advance, without taking into account objective facts. Given the modern usage of this term, it can be said that an incomplete meaning is given in the dictionary. Now, prejudice is understood as one that has developed towards a person: it can be due to psychological incompatibility or known facts about this person. At the same time, the information that causes a biased attitude is in no way related to the subject of the work.

Prejudice as a hindrance to career development

Nowadays, one can often encounter prejudice at work. The human factor has always been of great importance in any labor activity, and, for example, such features as the psychological ability to interact, as well as the surrounding people, are different for many. This is where precedents of bias can arise. As a result, the staff of the enterprise is immersed in intrigues that take up a significant part of the time that would be better spent on the performance of official duties. There are also frequent cases when representatives of certain professions have a biased attitude towards the very subject of their activity, and this ruins the development of mastery in the bud.

Prejudice in professions

In journalism, there is such a thing as an objective presentation of material. Coverage of events and facts requires objectivity and impartiality - this is one of the basic principles of journalism, the failure to comply with which discredits the profession. Today we can observe how correspondents make a "one-sided" presentation of materials, and this undermines public confidence in the media.

If a psychologist is biased towards his patients, he will not be able to help them. This “model” of bias can be “tried on” to any profession, and then it turns out that in any case it leads to negative consequences: undermining authority, poor-quality production, etc.

Prejudice from boss

When the boss treats one of the employees with prejudice, it poisons the life of the latter. The boss has enough authority to “survive” a colleague he doesn’t like: send him to difficult tasks without support, set him up before senior management, lower salaries, impose more stringent security requirements, etc. These cases can have serious consequences, up to and including dismissal.

There are three ways to solve this problem. If the job is not very valuable, then it is better to find another one and get away from an unfriendly boss: this way you can save time and nerves, because you can’t expect a promotion in such a job. If the position needs to be retained, then you can contact your higher authorities or solve the problem yourself. Last option one of the most difficult, because in this case you yourself need to find out why the boss became embittered, and depending on this, compensate for the reason for his bias. If a subordinate does not fit the leader because of personal dislike, then it is difficult to fix anything.

Prejudice in the subordinate

If a subordinate is biased towards his leader, then it negatively affects his work. Lack of mutual understanding and unwillingness to interact with him leads to the fact that the work is not carried out with the same efficiency that it could with normal relationships. The employee must review his assessments and separate the personal from the professional. If the problem lies in the unprofessionalism of the leader (for example, the subordinate considers himself more competent and finds it unfair that he is under the leadership of a mediocre boss), then he needs to either overcome a keen sense of injustice in himself or leave this position.

Bias has been a big barrier to career advancement for many people, so it's best to avoid collaborations in which individuals are prejudiced against each other.

We hear this phrase quite often. But what does prejudice mean? In fact, it could be about anything. For example, music can cause controversy, as well as prejudice about your taste. Many people may not like what you listen to, but this will not affect their attitude towards you in any way.

A prejudice is not a completely objective opinion, built on misleading guesses. This suggestion can be extended. If you are not very nice to a person, then he will not have a very good opinion of you. But he can't explain why he doesn't like you.

Tastes

Even such a trifle as incompatibility of tastes can be the reason for a bad attitude towards you. This applies not only to music. In adolescence, what you listen to plays an important role in the team of classmates and peers. Also, clothes can impose a prejudiced opinion about you. No wonder there is a saying: "Tastes do not argue." Unfortunately, even adults “meet by their clothes” their new acquaintances, although this is absolutely not worthy of a drop of attention.

Relationship between people

V modern world It so happened that everyone is trying to stand out from the gray mass. Almost any person wants to make friends with superiors or with rich people to raise their image. But in order to fit into a new society, one should impose other people's interests and tastes on oneself in order to seem "one's own person." After all, the most important thing is common topics for discussions. But no matter how hard you try to fit into a new environment, it will not work. Prejudice will catch up with you sooner or later.

Unfortunately, even your co-workers who smile at you often don't have a very good opinion of your personality. It is true that this is called hypocrisy, but it also fits perfectly into a biased attitude. The reasons for this trouble can be very different. Even rumors about what you did not do can lower you in the eyes of others and change their opinion.

Boss biased attitude

You can talk about this topic for hours, because each of us has been affected by this problem. If this hasn't affected you yet, then everything is ahead. There are some of the most common cases when the boss treats his employee badly.

1. The most main reason- it's you. If you are not doing your job very well, then your management will not like you. This does not mean that you are a good boss and a bad boss, or vice versa. If an employee copes with all the work that was assigned to him, then, believe me, there will be no complaints and wry looks in your direction.
2. Another reason that is quite common is that you are a girl, and your boss is a woman who is older than you. If you look good, and everything is going well, then such a feeling as envy rises. Yes, your boss may be jealous that you are still quite young and attractive, because you have everything ahead of you. Because of this, a prejudiced attitude arises.
3. Exactly the same situation can overtake males. It seems rather ridiculous and ridiculous, but, unfortunately, it often happens that young people simply leave their place of work because of a bad attitude towards themselves.
4. And it is worth noting another important reason, due to which there may be conflict situations is the boss of the opposite sex. If you liked your leadership, but you are indifferent to his sympathy, this can cause a conflict.

What to do in such situations?

If a biased opinion about you has developed due to not entirely correct information, then it is best to talk with the person who was exposed to these rumors. A single conversation will not give or clarify anything, it will only inflame the situation between you. It's best to just ignore what people say about you and how some people treat you. If this is another full-time employee, then you will not get worse from his opinion. But if a person close to you has a biased attitude towards you, then you should think about it and find out what has changed.

How can management prove otherwise?

If you are sure that you are doing all your work on time, and there were no comments on this matter, then this is a personal problem. If you fall into the category of people who are envied, unfortunately, it is almost impossible to correct this situation. Even if you tell about all your problems so that everyone understands that everything is not going so smoothly for you, believe me, it will not get better. This can only be dealt with.

How to cope psychologically?

Relationships between people are quite complex. Need to have very good strength the will to ignore those around you who have a bad opinion of you. This is quite difficult, because such a relationship crushes you from the inside. You can cope with such a problem, but you need to learn how to control yourself and your emotions.

1. Don't put yourself above others. What they say about you already indicates that absolutely nothing is happening in their lives. Thus, they simply compensate for the lack of an interesting life.
2. There are people who just love to "wash the bones." There is no way to fix this, so do not focus on them. A person has no virtues with which he could "conquer the public", but you need to attract attention to yourself.
3. Remember, you are a reasonable person, so you should not be very upset because of misunderstandings and biased opinions. You will only make things worse if you try to justify yourself. Don't pay any attention to what they say about you, just do your job.