How to Overcome Bias

Bias (social prejudice), stereotyping (the false belief about an individual or a group of people), and discrimination (actions taken against a person or group due to bias) can create a tense environment and lead to mental health issues. Bias and interactions with different races can impair brain executive function as those with higher bias must put a lot of effort into managing their behavior. To fully overcome bias, you need to find ways to reduce your personal biases and work to eliminate bias at a societal level. You can overcome bias by challenging your tendencies, enhancing social connections, and addressing bias in a healthy way.

Assess Your Own Biases. To overcome your biases, the first step is to recognize what they are. In social psychology, there are tools to assess implicit feelings and beliefs about various groups of people; one of these tools is called the Implicit Association Test (IAT). This test reveals your level of implicit bias toward specific groups.

• You can take the Harvard University IAT on several topics including gender, religion, and race online.

Take Responsibility. Bias is a flaw in perspective as it prevents you from thinking beyond assumptions and creates an invisible barrier around objective thinking. For example, implicit and overt attitudes toward people of different races can strongly affect how friendly you are towards them (through words or actions).

• Acknowledge your own biases and actively replace them with a more accurate viewpoint. For instance, if you hold biases about gender, religion, culture, or race (such as believing that all blondes are foolish or that women are always moody), remind yourself that these are biases towards certain groups, and you are unfairly generalizing entire groups of individuals.

Recognize the Negative Impact of Bias. To reduce your own bias or prejudice, it’s important to identify and understand how bias affects others. Victims of severe bias or discrimination may experience serious mental health issues.

• Facing bias and discrimination can lower self-esteem, cause depression, and limit access to healthcare, housing, education, and adequate employment.
• Being the target of someone else’s bias can negatively impact self-control.
• Remember, if you harbor biases against others, they may face significant consequences.

Reduce Self-Stigma. Some individuals have bias or prejudice against themselves. Self-stigma arises when you hold negative beliefs about yourself. If you agree with this mindset (self-bias), it may lead to negative behaviors (self-discrimination). For example, a person who holds a negative view of their mental illness may believe they are “crazy.”

• Identify potential risks that lead to self-stigma and actively work on changing this thought pattern. For example, instead of thinking, “I’m crazy because I have a mental illness,” you could reframe it as, “Mental illness is entirely normal, and many people go through it. This doesn’t mean I’m crazy.”

Engage with a Diverse Range of People. Diversity is a key factor in overcoming bias. Without encountering individuals from different racial, cultural, sexual orientation, and religious backgrounds, you cannot fully accept the diversity that exists in the world. When you stop judging and begin listening and learning, you truly begin to understand someone.

• One way to experience diversity is to travel to other countries, or even different cities. Each city has its unique culture, such as food, traditions, and popular activities. For example, urban dwellers differ from rural residents simply because they live in different environments.

Engage with People You Admire. Meeting people who differ from you (in terms of race, culture, gender, sexual orientation, etc.) whom you respect or look up to can help shift any underlying negative attitudes towards individuals from different cultural backgrounds.

• Looking at images or reading about people you admire can reduce biases towards specific groups (such as race, ethnicity, culture, religion, or sexual orientation).
• Read magazines or books by people who differ from you.

Avoid Justifying Prejudices When Meeting Others. Prejudices can occur when ideas are justified through bias or discrimination. This happens because some prejudices are sometimes socially accepted. We all know both positive and negative stereotypes. Some examples include: blonde people are often thought to be less intelligent, Black people are seen as physically strong, Asians are perceived as intelligent, Mexicans are hard workers, etc. Some of these stereotypes sound positive but can turn negative due to bias. If you believe that an entire group of people is the same, you may judge them unfairly if they don’t meet your standards, leading to discrimination.

• One way to combat this bias is by not accepting individuals who make discriminatory statements. For example, if your friend says, "All Asians are terrible drivers," this is clearly a negative stereotype. You can challenge this by gently pointing out, "That’s an unfair stereotype. You need to consider different cultures and traditions."

Be Open and Accept Yourself. Sometimes, we feel insecure when facing discrimination or prejudice and may want to withdraw from the world to avoid being hurt. While avoiding others can serve as a form of self-protection, it can cause stress and negative responses to prejudice.

• Understand and embrace yourself, no matter what others think.
• Identify those you can trust with personal information and be open with them.

Join a Group. Being part of a group helps individuals become more resilient when confronting prejudice and can help prevent mental health problems.

• You can join any group, but choose one that suits you (for example, a Women’s group, LGBT group, African American group, Religious group, etc.). This can help you become emotionally stronger (reducing anger or depression and improving self-control) when facing prejudice.

Seek support from your family. If you face prejudice or discrimination, it’s important to reach out to social support networks to address these issues and overcome any obstacles. Family support can mitigate the negative mental health impacts caused by discrimination.

• Discuss the prejudice you’re facing with your relatives or friends.

Expect positive or neutral outcomes. If you have previously experienced prejudice or discrimination, it’s understandable to fear encountering it again. However, expecting others to impose bias or assume certain behaviors can cause immense stress.

• Don’t fear rejection. Try to view each situation and interaction as a new experience.
• Expecting prejudice from others may automatically lead to prejudice. Avoid making assumptions or judgments about people (e.g., assuming they are biased, judgmental, or racist). Remember, if you hold biases about others and assume they will discriminate, you become the one with prejudice.

Address the issue in a healthy and creative way. Some individuals may resort to harmful behaviors, such as aggression or unnecessary confrontation, to deal with prejudice. Instead of sacrificing your own values, use methods that help you release or address the emotions caused by discrimination.

• Express yourself through: art, literature, dance, singing, acting, or any other creative activity.

Get involved in activities. Taking proactive steps to reduce prejudice can help change your perception.

• One way is to become an ambassador or volunteer for an organization aimed at reducing prejudice and discrimination.
• If volunteering isn't an option, consider donating money or goods. Many homeless shelters accept canned food, clothes, and other items.