Definition of Terms

Stereotypes
A stereotype is a belief, image or distorted truth about a person or group of people. It’s a big generalisation that allows for little social variation. You’ll find that stereotypes are based on views from people in the mass media, ideas passed on by parents, peers and other people in society. Stereotypes can either be positive or negative.

Prejudice
Prejudice is usually where people have a negative attitude toward members of a particular group. Common features of prejudice include negative feelings, stereotyped beliefs and a tendency to discriminate against specific members of a group. Prejudice can happen because of a number of different factors such as someone’s sex, race, age, nationality etc. Some of the most well-known types of prejudice can include anything from racism to sexism and homophobia.

Discrimination
Discrimination is where people are treated unequally because of a specific characteristic about them. If someone is treated badly or unfairly because of a characteristic then this is known as discrimination. Reasons why people might be discriminated against could be because of their sex/gender, if they’re disabled or their race. Unfortunately discrimination is often linked to bullying and harassment. There is a law against discrimination whether it’s happening in the workplace, education or even accommodation.

In the workplace, unconscious bias has become an important topic when it comes to diversity and inclusion. Businesses and organisations are now starting to include unconscious bias testing and training as part of their diversity and inclusion strategy.

Undergoing unconscious bias tests are an important step in understanding the roots of stereotypes and prejudice in today’s society.

Unconscious bias refers to our bias views that unconsciously influence our thoughts and behaviours without our awareness towards other people. These bias views can influence our thought process when making decisions and are triggered by our brain making fast judgements of other people we don’t know without knowing all the relevant information.

If your business is interested in incorporating some unconscious bias testing into their recruitment or HR then contact Hogrefe on http://www.hogrefe.co.uk/