About the Course
Increasing awareness of our biases is only the beginning. We must start with where they come from and how we allow them to impact the decisions we make in our lives and about people we meet. At IDPI, we explore the external influences that feed our individual thoughts and beliefs. In this online program, which incorporates webinars, case studies, coaching support and more, we raise awareness of our mental shortcuts which lead to snap judgments, often based on race, gender, sexuality, religion, disabilities, and about people’s talents or character.
The implicit/unconscious bias workshop will help participants understand the needed steps to reduce their biases and the impact of decisions based on them, and instead enhance a curious and emotionally intelligent mindset. Engaging an organization of any size to participate in a DEIA journey requires raising visibility and appealing to the masses. Hosting a launch event will help to create broad awareness of your DEI mission and goals, encourage support, and build curiosity in some to learn more.
Skills You'll Learn
Goals
This stand-alone certification course focuses on raising awareness of unconscious bias and steps individuals can take to prevent biased attitudes and behaviors from interfering with their decisions and interactions. Participants will also delve into the neuroscience that drives our biases and beliefs and learn ways to RETRAIN the brain to view people differently.
IDPI’s Unconscious Bias Training:
- Defines the concept of unconscious bias
- Depicts different types of unconscious biases
- Demonstrates how biases can influence workplace decisions and interactions
- Uncovers where your personal biases come from and how to recognize your blind spots.
- Understand the correlation between your biases and the decision making process, and minimizing negative effects.
IDPI’s Unconscious Bias program is an industry-leading training workshop for all of your organizational leaders. Upon completion of the certification, participants will be able to:
INCREASE YOUR LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT TO DEVELOPING A MINIMALLY BIASED ORGANIZATION: Participants will be able to understand the commitment needed to infuse Equity, Inclusion and Belonging into the DNA of your organization and understand WHY it is a priority.
- Not operating with biases practices, policies and programs helps to build your company reputation.
AWARENESS: One primary goal is to introduce and bring awareness to yourself and your organization. You’ll be able to uncover opportunities for identifying how your biases may impact inclusion and belonging within your organization and how mitigating biases fit into the organization’s overall mission and strategy.
- Increase awareness and diversity consciousness
CULTURE BUILDING & STAFF ENGAGEMENT: You will have the tools to begin bringing people together, and create communication opportunities around one central focus – minimizing biases and creating equity.
- Gain buy-in from employees
- Demonstrate the value of equity, inclusion and belonging
Take a Look Inside
Across the world there has been public outcry over incidents in the workplace and within our community that highlights discrimination and prejudiced beliefs and behaviors. Research shows that our biases, whether unconscious or explicit are a part of the root cause of negative thinking and actions. There is also mounting evidence of the actual cost of employees’ feeling excluded. As leaders who are striving to make their companies or their communities more diverse, equitable, and inclusive, it won’t happen by chance, it happens by choice. YOUR ACTION IS REQUIRED to be a change maker within your network. The “Impact of Implicit and Unconscious Bias” certification program is developed and validated by university professionals trained at Harvard University, UC Berkeley, UC Davis and University of Central Missouri. It is designed to encourage honest self-reflection of our own biases, their origin and the drivers that continue to feed them. With this knowledge, along with a basic understanding of neuroscience (how our brain works and the correlation biased thoughts and behaviors), participants will be able to drive change within their network of influence.
The “Impact of Implicit and Unconscious Bias” certification requirements include:
- 6 On-demand courses
- 1 Industry interview
- 2 Interactive activities
- 4 Worksheets
- 3 Strategies/Tools
- Perspective taking exercises
Course Topics
If you have a brain you have a bias
We all have unconscious biases, it’s how our brain functions in efficiency mode and it quickly tries to make sense of the world and people around us. This causes us to categorize and label people and situations. The question is, how do you ensure that in your brain’s efficiency process, you don’t allow it to negatively impact your decision-making process. To do this, you must understand your blindspots, your triggers and how to minimize their impact on your thoughts, actions and decisions.
Types of Bias and Strategies to Dismantle Them
Bias is usually based on stereotypes and prejudgments relating to the physical characteristics of an individual or social group which, without intention and exploration do not change over time.
The most common biases at work are:
- Affinity bias
- Confirmation bias
- Horn & Halo effect
- Gender
- Race/Ethnicity
- Conformity bias
We’ll explore the TYPES of biases that show up at work and in our community and how they can result in discriminatory practices. Understanding the types of cognitive biases is important to understand and find the balance to understand which are helpful, or negative, and further prejudicial biases.
Social Identities and its Impact on our Lived Experiences
Our social identities and the intersection of those identities create different lived experiences where people are subjected to overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage. These intersecting factors are what make us multi-layered individuals, as one aspect of our identities influences the other aspects of our identities to paint the full picture of who we are.
The most common biases based on social identities are:
- Race
- Ethnicity
- Gender
- Religion
- Sexual orientation
- Socioeconomic background
In this program participants will understand the impact of interconnected social identities, and how biases and prejudices have impacted people’s response to discrimination and prejudice.
Implicit Association and their Impact
Due to our past experiences, family, social circles and media, we all have unconscious biases that define our beliefs, influencing our attitudes, and shaping our behavior. To overcome these biases we first need to identify those implicit associations that are rooted in our brains. This is different than identifying inherent prejudices, but more about our ingrained automatic preferences. Understanding what these are is the foundation to addressing our cognitive biases.
Disruptive Discussion: Change your Perspective and your Perspective will Change
Our perspectives are rooted in our beliefs, experiences and exposures. However, because of “confirmation bias” we typically seek to continue seeking confirmation about our beliefs instead of seeking to explore if our beliefs are rooted in FACT vs. PERSPECTIVE.
Affinity Bias, a Matter of Exposure
Affinity Bias is the tendency to favor people who share similar interests, backgrounds, and experiences with us. Because of affinity bias, we tend to feel more comfortable around people who are like us. We also tend to unconsciously reject those who act or look different to us. Affinity bias might also impede our ability to know, understand and accept people that are different than us. It’s a matter of exposing and educating ourselves about other social identities and groups of people that we’re less familiar with.
Certificate Information
Certificate requirements:
- Certificate courses must be completed within 1 year of enrollment.
- Completing all required modules is mandatory during the outlined timeframe to be eligible fro receive a certificate of completion.
- Knowledge check completion at 75%+ is required to pass each module.
Measuring Impact
- Participants will take a Pre and Post Implicit Bias Assessment to identify where biases may exist and their ability to minimize them.
- Completion of the I/UB Personal Action Planning Process which creates a customized roadmap to address implicit/unconscious bias and the participant’s ability to identify sustainable practices to minimize biased based decisions.
- The participant’s ability to communicate value and apply skills, opportunities and the impact of paying more attention to underrepresented group members, and actions that promote a genuinely more inclusive environment.
- Identify measurable outcomes to minimize biases at work and enhance equity in policies, practices and programs (SMART goals), and have the ability to present findings to organizational leaders.
Enrollment Information
Enroll
Set your goals
Solicit your company to sponsor you in your DEI leadership journey. Here’s a template to request your letter of support. Also, based on the goals you have personally set, you might consider taking advantage of multiple certification programs. It’s both cost efficient and will enhance the trajectory of your DEI knowledge and skills, as well as your ability to be an effective DEI leader.
Gain support
Solicit your company to sponsor you in your DEI leadership journey. Here’s a template to request your letter of support.
