Free Essay on Philosophy: Implicit Racism

Implicit racism is an unconscious attitude or belief towards any group of people, that affects our actions, understanding, and decisions (Willis-Esqueda 53-55). Due to this bias, people may attribute specific characteristics or qualities to members of a particular group known as stereotyping. Like a mutated virus, racism has mutated in a way that is not directly prohibited by current laws but dramatically contributes to the racial disparities in essential qualities of life. Even well-meaning people who endorse egalitarian values may unintentionally discriminate against other minority groups of people (Holroyd 30-32). Without public recognition or personal recognition, implicit racism can operate with little resistance. The biases are not as detectable as old-school explicit racism by even the beholder. Yet it has the same consequences; unemployment, prosecutions, discriminatory charges, defamation, invasion of privacy, infringement of liberty, emotional pain, and other harm caused by the expression of such bias (Willis-Esqueda 53-55). Therefore, implicit racism is a social problem in our society and proactive measures ought to be taken on a meaningful scale for change to occur.

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Implicit bias is a social issue in our society and not an individual problem. Therefore, it is socially desirable to encourage public discourse to denounce its harmful effects and pervasiveness (Willis-Esqueda 53-55). A helpful way to understanding what occurs in a person's perceptual experience is by thinking of cognition as a dual process, as demonstrated in Kahneman's theory. Two distinct cognitive systems deliver judgment to the agent. Daniel Kahneman raised this theory to a level of knowledge, while psychologists Keith and Richard West named them as system 1 and system 2 (Tay et.al 1-3). According to this theory, the mind is divided into two systems, namely 1 and 2. System 1 shows how the brain is automatic, fast and operates under an intuitive approach, as if under autopilot (Parvini 12-22). Activities under the system 1 are those innate mental activities humans are born with, such as avoiding losses, recognizing objects, and preparing to view the world around us. Through prolonged practice, other mental activities become fast and automatic. Under system 2, the mind is slower. It is under the analytical mode, and system 2 is activated when a person does something that is not natural and is prompted to go through mental exertion (Tay et.al 1-3). This theory, also referred to as the intention theory, helps understand human behavior and influences decision making.

Racial categories are among the most explosive categories given to us by history. Like in branding and ranking systems, racial designations reflected an element difference like Nordstrom and Walmart. Mahzarin Banaji, a social psychologist, came up with the phrase "implicit social cognition" in the 1990s and came up with Implicit Association Test (IAT); to measure the relationship between automatic associations in system 1 and deliberative, slow reports like in system 2 (Greenwald & Mahzarin 4). In the research, Banaji discovered that when it comes to racial perception, there was a conflict between system 1 and system 2. The findings show an explicit, pervasive, and conscious variance in the perceiver's intuition and what is perceived (Greenwald & Mahzarin 4). System 1 and 2 conflict that the perceiver is aware of their inner conflict. In both cases, the variance of racial perception goes underground and becomes implicit. The participants, in other words, in their self- report, would say that they do not have racial beliefs or biases. However, their results would show a manifestation of implicit racism. To explain these occurrences, researchers partially attributed it to the racial history of the racial categories and the damaging consequences (Greenwald & Mahzarin 4). Another explanation was the historical meanings of the used terms dragged the baggage to current consciousness.

Whereas there has been a decline of overt expressions over time, implicit racism continues to operate consistently. Traditionally, blacks and whites have not been treated equally under the law. Evidence on implicit attitudes of the whites toward the blacks has generally been consistent and steady. Procedure on response latency has shown that racial attitudes and stereotypes can operate as stimuli to facilitate individual decision-making or responses, like communication in interracial decision-making, in part affecting non-verbal behaviors. Eberhardt and Stanford show the ramifications of unconscious bias from the brain to society. Their findings demonstrate how the workings of our brains and social conditions in a racial context, interact to determine our responses to other people. According to them, perceptual biases also shape reactions, particularly those that have tense confrontations, leading to tragic outcomes, as seen in most police killing black men. Eberhard's findings also showed that when adrenaline is high, a sequence of dangerous cognitive events is likely to occur.

Further, the findings show that compared to whites, black people committing capital offenses are likely to be sentenced to death. Further studies even showed that blacks who appeared to be the "most" black, were twice more likely to be given the death penalty. Besides, Eberhardt and Stanford's findings show that pictures of black families were associated with bad neighborhoods. Another study on unconscious bias showed that teachers were more likely to discipline black students. The teachers were able to see patterns of bad behavior in black students quickly. Eberhardt's study also showed that financial firm managers tended to choose white-managed firms, even with identical portfolios. Their research on traffic police also showed similar patterns; blacks were likely to be stopped and addressed in disrespectful language. In comparison, whites were addressed more decently.

Also, research by Miller, Doucet, and Saucier shows that racist behaviors continue to affect blacks compared to whites (Willis-Esqueda 53-55). In the United States, jurors are likely to be perceived as guilty, convicted for crimes, and sentenced longer for the same crime committed by whites across all locations and times. Despite a decline in the disparities in judicial outcomes, implicit racism continues to have a subtle influence (Willis-Esqueda 53-55). Jennifer Saul's work on implicit bias takes a feminist approach. Her study shows how women with similar qualifications as men are less likely to be picked for a job compared to their male counterparts. Similarly, male counterparts are paid more for a similar job grade, and there are more likely to be promoted compared to their female counterparts (Saul 256-273).

The opposing school of thought asserts that the research on the psychology of unconscious racism is flawed, and most implications are personal. Most arguments on implicit bias rely on the findings by Banji and the Implicit Association test, stating that it fell short of scientific standards, though hugely influential. Further, the argument is that most people have unconscious prejudice and unconscious impulses, hence racial prejudice should not be any different.

Conclusion

Although there is an overt decline of prejudice, subtle forms of discrimination outlined in implicit and aversive racism framework still exist (Holroyd 30-32). Unconscious bias is an important subject, just like conscious bias, both being important targets for policy interventions. There is no specific antidote for Implicit racism (Parvini 12-22). The legacy of past policies such as segregation on neighborhoods and schools, create conditions which unconsciously trickle down to people's brains. At the government level, changes in policy can reduce implicit bias, which has dire social consequences across the board. At a personal level, pausing and examining own beliefs and practice is the beginning of changing our own unconscious beliefs. To gain traction in pursuing racial equality over the years, people must engage straightforwardly in issues of sociology, history, and justice. There is sheer power in the act of reflection; this is where change starts and the most power lies.

Works Cited

Greenwald, Anthony G., and Mahzarin R. Banaji. "Implicit social cognition: attitudes, self-esteem, and stereotypes." Psychological review 102.1 (1995): pp.4.

Holroyd, Jules. "Implicit racial bias and the anatomy of institutional racism." Criminal Justice Matters 101.1 (2015): pp.30-32.

Parvini, Neema. "Key Concepts: Dual-Process Theory, Heuristics and Biases." Shakespeare and Cognition: Thinking Fast and Slow through Character. Palgrave Pivot, London, 2015. pp.12-22.

Saul, Jennifer. "Ranking exercises in philosophy and implicit bias." Journal of Social Philosophy 43.3 (2012): pp.256-273.

Tay, Shu Wen, Paul Ryan, and C. Anthony Ryan. "Systems 1 and 2 thinking processes and cognitive reflection testing in medical students." Canadian medical education journal 7.2 (2016): pp.97.

Willis-Esqueda, Cynthia, ed. Motivational aspects of prejudice and racism. Vol. 53. Springer Science & Business Media, 2007.pp.53-55