International Women's Day: Bias Activity

#BreakTheBias Activity

Purpose:

Welcome to our #BreakTheBias activity. We have put together some reflective questions around biases women face in the workplace. The purpose of this activity is to think about how we can all individually break the biases surrounding us and how to effectively live the Authorities values.

By reducing biases in our workplace, we can help create a caring and respectful environment, where we thrive to embrace diversity and inclusion. 

This is a result we will all benefit from.

How the activity will work:

On the following pages you'll be presented with a statement which you can answer 'yes' or 'no' depending on whether that statement resonates with you. After each answer, you'll be provided with some information as to the sort of biases or stereotypes that it represents as well as some solutions on how to break it. There are some additional resources at the bottom that might be interesting for you to read.

Please note: Personal information will not be recorded, and results will be anonymous! Use these questions as a time to reflect.

References to gender in this exercise often refer to the male/female binary as this is where most of the research is focused. We acknowledge that there are people whose gender identities exist outside of this binary and that those identities are recognised and valid.

We're aware that men also face many biases. However, the focus for this week is on how we can raise awareness against biases on women and take action for equality.

Please get in touch with dandi@caa.govt.nz if you have any queries on this quiz or the resources we have used.

Click next to get started!

The common bias: Men have more to contribute than women (performance and attribution bias)

Women of all races tend to be interrupted far more often than men, and women of colour even more so.

This is not just an issue that affects women but also minorities, introverts and remote workers. By overcoming this bias, organisations can improve their collective thinking, and stimulate innovative conversations from diverse groups. This can provide workplaces with a greater chance to appreciate the full potential of their workforce.

How to challenge this bias: When a woman, or anyone, in a meeting is interrupted, speak up. You could frame this by saying, “I would really like to hear what [Name] has to say, so let’s go back to their point,” or, “[Name] raised an important point. I’d like to consider it further before we move on.”

If you’re leading a meeting, reduce interruptions by following an agenda and asking people to contribute in a structured way. Set some ground rules such as, “no talking over each other,” or going around the group when you are seeking feedback.

Values: Creating a safe and equal environment where everyone can share their thoughts and ideas helps us live by the Authority values of respect and professionalism.

Resources:

• 45% of women business leaders say it's difficult for women to speak up in virtual meetings (cnbc.com)
• Gal Interrupted, Why Men Interrupt Women And How To Avert This In The Workplace (forbes.com)

The common bias: Women feel they need to prove themselves more than men (performance and attribution bias).

Levels of confidence can be a symptom of societal standards for different genders. There are many studies that show women must work twice as hard to prove themselves, as men tend to be judged on their potential while women tend to be judge by their experiences. See the resource from Professor Joan C. Williams on 4 Kinds of Gender Bias Women Face At Work for an overview of her research on this topic.

How to challenge this bias: Women can take chances and learn to believe in themselves. Celebrate their own successes and find allies who can vouch for their successes.

Men can become an ally to women, celebrate their successes and remind others of their achievements. Don’t forget to contribute to the comments section of the Authorities International Women’s Day article and give a shout out to the women in your life, past and present.

Values: Creating an even playing field for women allows us to live the Authorities value of integrity.

Resources:

• Women Apply to Fewer Jobs Than Men, But Are More Likely to Get Hired 
• Why women dont apply for jobs unless they're 100 qualified
• 4 Kinds Of Gender Bias Women Face At Work 
• Proof versus potential: Why women must work harder to move up

The common bias: Women must act in a certain way to be accepted and liked (likeability bias).

Societal norms place certain characteristics on both men and women that can negatively impact both genders when they don’t meet those “norms”. These can occur in both professional workplace settings and social settings.

Stereotypical expectations for women have traditionally been to be kind and communal, whereas common expectations of males tend to be strong, independent, and decisive. When women assert themselves in a way that is stereotypically seen as masculine in a workplace for example, they can be seen as “aggressive”, or “bossy” and their likability can be affected unfavourably. There can be a tightrope effect for women, if they act too masculine, they are respected but not liked, and if they act too feminine, they are liked but not respected.

This can also be a bias men struggle with, not feeling comfortable to show certain emotions at work at risk of being perceived as feminine. Both men and women alike should be comfortable to bring their true selves to work and not be restrained by bias.

How to challenge this bias: If you witness judgement upon women, talk to your manager about what you’re seeing and the important role they play in setting workplace norms. Question, would they have the same reaction if a man did the same thing?

Remember that the language we use for people can subtly affect how they are perceived. It can cause people to think that a person is less competent, leading them to be taken less seriously and can create misconception of a person’s character. For example, calling a woman “aggressive” when she is being confident could create a negative reputation, or to call a woman a “girl” could create the perception that she lacks professional experience or skill.

Values: Being aware of how our language can affect the perception of others and not defining people by traditional societal norms of genders, we will live up to the Authorities values of respect and integrity.

Resources:

• IWD: Catalyst celebrates International Women's Day
• When Women Are Called 'Aggressive' At Work 
• Does being assertive backfire for women in the workplace? 

The common bias: Women are more emotional than men (likeability and perception bias).

Women tend to battle the bias of being more emotional, while men tend to be viewed as rational. These biases can cause people to see a woman with an opinion—especially if she expresses it with conviction—as being emotional, while the same view voiced by a man could be considered reasonable.

This type of bias can also be reflected in the micro-aggression of telling a woman to smile. This can be another way to reinforce the idea that women can only act in a one dimensional positive manner to be liked. For women that are called emotional or are told to smile more this can bring about feelings of negativity, underappreciation, and rejection. This can hurt their ability to communicate and present themselves while also making them dissatisfied in their job.

How to challenge this bias: By calling a woman emotional for communicating her opinion, it could send a message to other women that they shouldn’t speak freely, or that the work environment is not a safe space for them to express themselves. To help challenge this bias you can say something to support the woman’s point of view: “I think [Name] is making a good point. We should consider it.”  You can also push back on the ‘too emotional’ comment directly: “She doesn’t seem too emotional to me. Let’s keep talking.”

Take time to choose your words carefully and think through how it will affect the other person. Give women the freedom to be themselves and own their emotions rather than asking them to fit into your idea of what she should be.

Values: Support colleagues within the work environment to be able to express their opinions without being penalised. This shows respect and integrity.

Resources:

• The-people-penalised-for-expressing-feelings-at-work
• A-new-study-reveals-that-telling-women-they-need-to-smile-more-is-bad-for-business-heres-why
• Men Telling Women to Smile:Is it Sexist
• The emotional labor of women in the workplace | The Outline

The common bias: Women are the primary care givers (maternal and performance bias).

Even though over the last 100 years women’s rights have come a long way, the expectation that women, employed or not, are the primary caregivers appears to have stubbornly held. According to Harvard University’s Implicit Association Test, 76% of people more readily associate men with “career” and women with “family”. This can create a stereotype that women aren’t as committed to work if they need to reduce their hours to balance family commitments. They can also be encouraged to reduce their hours if those at work believe they are distracted by family and domestic duties.

Part-time work and other flexible options enable women/parents or caregivers the opportunity to share their valuable skills and experience in the workplace while also taking care of their other priorities. Women who go part time can sometimes encounter scrutiny focused on their ability to work and can again reinforce the idea of the “prove yourself” bias. They can also be negatively looked upon by employers and colleagues who equate hours worked with accomplishment and productivity.

This bias can also affect those women who choose to not have children and for fathers who want to be the primary caregiver. Multiple studies show men want to spend more time with their families and whilst economic factors are seen as a big barrier to taking off longer parental leave periods, societal biases are also in play.

How to challenge this bias: When a female colleague (particularly if you’re their manager) tells you they are starting a family, don’t assume they will be staying at home. Instead, have a conversation about what their plans are and what support they’d like. If they already have a family, talk with them about how they’re going and how you can both get the best out of each other.  

If women choose to use flexible working arrangements to balance work and family commitments, respect their choices and help them feel like a valued, equal member of a team. Help create boundaries and set up support for the individual and teams to work at their best in a flexible work environment.

Examples of this could be being clear on arrangements that have been made, making sure workloads are realistic and reflect the hours people work, trying to set important meetings and deadlines within times that part-time workers can attend and contribute to. Having good, professional relationships (where comfortable and appropriate) with your colleagues also means they’ll likely to feel more comfortable letting you know if things do get tough or if they’re experiencing any biases that you can help to overcome.

Values: Working with women to establish what is going to work for their lifestyle and work aspirations, whether they are a mother or not, will help us live up to the Authorities values of respect, transparency and collaboration.

Resources:

• Going Part Time Can Be A Cruel Trap For Women, But There's A Way To Do It Right | HuffPost Life
• All The Ways Women Are Still Pressured To Put Family Before Career | HuffPost Communities
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3Aweo-74kY 

• Paid-parental-leave-policy-brief-Nov2014.pdf (growingup.co.nz)
• How to Optimize Family and Career Decisions VIDEO – Lean In

We hope this has helped you to understand more about biases and stereotypes that are common in the workplace and how we can all challenge those to create a more inclusive culture of care and respect.

People of all genders fall into bias traps, knowing that biases exist is not enough we need to look for it and commit to steps to counteract it. Let's all work together to raise awareness against bias and take action for equality.

Please see the video by Leanin.org with a great introduction to the biases women experience that summaries this activity.

If you have any queries or feedback, please contact dandi@caa.govt.nz.