Background
If one is not self-conscious or aware of how others may be conditioned to see prejudice, power, and privilege, it can be highly problematic. It is crucial to be conscious of personal prejudices and learn how to incorporate them into the services offered, whether people work in social services. Personnel must also refrain from using their position of authority or privilege to influence or persuade customers into doing something they do not like. Self-reflection and the use of self-assessment tools are essential in these situations to give customers the most outstanding care and service possible.
Personal Experiences With IATs and Initial Reactions
The Skin Tone Implicit-Association Test (IAT) was the first one I took. Its purpose was to see if I had a preference for someone else’s skin tone. I gave light skin a significant auto preference over dark skin, scoring 22%. However, I don’t know how that choice can be determined by pressing the category buttons. This score may have been altered once the test changed, which finger you used for each category. Because I grew up with so many varied skin tones and never considered them to be structurally different, I don’t have a preference for any particular skin tone.
The second IAT I took was the Gender IAT, which was meant to gauge how I felt about how men and women relate to one another in terms of work and family. I scored 39% in favor of men having jobs and women having families. Since the exam used the same finger association matrix, my replies occasionally took a while. I disagree that I have a predominantly negative attitude about males and careers since I value successful women who have accomplished careers. The notion that men should pursue jobs while women should focus on raising children dates back to a time when that was the norm, but today’s women are also pursuing careers on par with men.
Unconscious Bias in Human Services and Strategies for Mitigation
Professionals in human services who are unaware of prejudices might severely impact the job they conduct because they may give customers general evaluations without even knowing them. Being ignorant may also cause a professional to lose faith in the customer they are assisting, since ignorance can cause misconceptions (Nadan & Stark, 2017). The professional’s prejudice may cause him to misdiagnose the patient, which will lead to the patient receiving the wrong kind of care. Remembering that everyone is a person with a narrative that brought them to this session and that everyone is subject to prejudice in social services is one method to prevent being impacted by it (Diller, 2019).
To provide patients with the necessary care, it is crucial to listen with an open mind to what they are actually saying and what they need (Nadan et al., 2017). Second, rather than being in a position of power and making the customer feel like their opinions do not really matter, one may prevent the impact of prejudice by relating to and cooperating with the client (Diller, 2019). Understanding the needs of the client is crucial for offering appropriate services.
Self-Reflection: Power, Privilege, and Increased Awareness of Personal Biases
I would identify myself as white, a dominant official language speaker, educated, and without a disability, using the Wheel of Power. I lack power and privilege since I have not been a long-term union member, according to the wheel. It is intriguing to see how many of my characteristics may be classified as power, even if I do not believe that to be the case.
Areas of power and privilege may impact the jobs performed by human service departments. Customers may form assumptions about employees based only on appearance and how they portray themselves, which may make them feel frightened, uneasy, and unsure of their ability to earn trust. An employee can exploit a client’s knowledge that he is an advocate for their cause to appeal to authority and privilege (Mayfield, 2020). Having stated that, one must also completely picture what advocacy would appear to them in particular.
Second, the social worker can discuss privilege and power in interactions with clients to demonstrate to them that he is acting in their best interests regardless of perceived social positions (Dror, 2020). By doing so, he will be better able to comprehend the client’s views and challenges and how to use the right resources to design the greatest solution for him. Because of this assignment, I became more aware of the numerous predispositions around us. Because I intentionally never consider anybody or anything in this way, I was really astonished by the findings of my IAT, which indicated that I had a preference for something or saw a particular gender as less career—or family-focused. I learned from this assignment that I need to be more introspective and concentrate more on how I can provide my clients with the greatest counsel.
Conclusion
There are no precise rules that can be followed to help someone become the ideal social worker or representative of community assistance. To become more self-aware, open to understanding various cultures, and knowledgeable about how to level the playing field for clients to win their trust and deliver correct services, professionals and students can make use of specific tools. It is vital to keep in mind that if people are unaware of who they are or how others may see them, discrimination, power, and privilege can be grave concerns.
References
Diller, J. V. (2019). Cultural diversity. A primer for human services. Cengage.
Dror, I. E. (2020). Cognitive and human factors in expert decision making: six fallacies and the eight sources of bias. Analytical Chemistry, 92(12), 7998–8004. Web.
Mayfield, V. (2020). Cultural competence now: 56 exercises to help educators understand and challenge bias, racism, and privilege. ASCD.
Nadan, Y., & Stark, M. (2017). The pedagogy of discomfort: Enhancing reflectivity on stereotypes and bias. British Journal of Social Work, 47(3), 683-700. Web.