Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People

A major theme running through the book is that the unconscious mind has tremendous power to guide our thoughts, actions, and behaviors. According to the authors, hidden biases exist without our awareness and can only be exposed to us through methods like the Implicit Association Test (IAT). Despite our inability to recognize them in our daily lives, they are incredibly powerful. They may lead us to stereotype and exclude others, thereby perpetuating systems of discrimination already in place. That unconscious thoughts have so much influence is a prevailing idea in contemporary psychology—having replaced previous beliefs that “human behavior was primarily guided by conscious thoughts and feelings” (xiv). The notion of hidden biases directly reinforces and perpetuates current ideology. By conveying a set of influential biases as hidden, the authors link them directly to the unconscious.

The authors explain that there are two sides of the mind: the reflective and the automatic. The reflective side is the conscious side, and it plays a critical role in our daily decision-making. We consciously form judgments and preferences that influence our actions. For example, we choose a political affiliation and vote for a particular candidate. However, we also have an automatic side that likewise forms judgments and preferences that influence our actions. The automatic side is the unconscious side, and it’s where hidden biases are housed. While the power dynamic between the two sides is not entirely clear, the automatic side certainly holds its own. The authors explain that the automatic side can undermine conscious intentions and lead us to act in unexpected ways or “toward less conscious decisions” (55). We may set out or intend to do one thing and end up doing something entirely different—without ever recognizing why.

The power of the automatic or unconscious mind is perhaps the most pervasive idea in the book. Hidden biases matter because automatic thoughts can compete with, or override, reflective thoughts. People can say they believe in equality for everyone but still practice subtle forms of discrimination without recognizing it. Other concepts in the book also depend on the power of the unconscious. Stereotyping is often a product of the automatic mental associations we draw between a group of people and an idea. Because unconscious thoughts have so much influence over us, the authors remain skeptical that people can completely overcome their hidden biases. They worry about the “many routine, daily social interactions” (167) in which implicit biases put others at a disadvantage.

However, the authors believe that recognizing one’s hidden biases—and the power of the unconscious—is an important first step, and they provide several IATs in the book, encouraging the reader to take them.

The authors continuously push the connection between hidden biases and discriminatory behavior. They do so because they view discrimination motivated by implicit prejudices as potentially more consequential in creating and perpetuating Black disadvantage than overt racism. According to the authors, the number of people who are openly racist comprises only a “small proportion of people” (209). Conversely, a vast majority of the people who take the Race IAT score a white preference—which predicts discrimination. The authors therefore find it “reasonable to conclude” (209) that implicit bias is perhaps the most significant contributor to Black disadvantage.

After author Anthony (Tony) G. Greenwald devised the Race IAT in the mid-1990s, a slew of research studies connecting IAT results to discriminatory behavior followed. They found that scoring a white preference on the Race IAT served as a “moderate predictor of racially discriminatory behavior” (52). The scenarios simulated in research experiments included job interviews, medical treatments and recommendations, and assessing Black and white faces. A white preference on the Race IAT skewed research participants toward favoring white job applicants, white medical patients, and white faces.

The authors primarily focus on racial discrimination toward Black Americans. The appendices include discussions of how racial attitudes toward Black Americans have changed as well as an examination of the types of contemporary disadvantages Black Americans experience. The authors conclude, based on research, that disadvantages exist in housing, health care, hiring, and criminal justice, and are partially a result of discrimination rather than other causes. While racism is not as overt as it once was, the authors argue that it is still very much present in contemporary society. It simply exists more covertly through hidden biases that influence behavior.

In many ways, the book attempts to serve as a wake-up call to those who, like the authors, embrace equality but score a white preference on the Race IAT. The authors clearly indicate that such a score most likely translates into discriminatory behavior on the part of the test taker. Privileging those who are similar by practicing “in-group favoritism” (162), or failing to help those who are different serve as ways one might be inadvertently perpetuating disadvantage. While discrimination can be directed toward all types of people, the authors make clear that discriminatory behavior based on race—built on hidden biases—is particularly pervasive.