Implicit Bias

Today I had a more in depth look at implicit bias. In simple terms, this is the judgment of a group or groups based on prior experience, what others said, etc.. I have known what this is, but have never really questioned myself to see if I relied on this for some of my views. I did a questionnaire today that asked about my religion and political views. My religious views did not come from an implicit biased view, but I am not sure if my political views did. I still believe in my views that I had prior to these questions, but it made me think if I really did agree with those ideas, or did I just do it because of my family and friends. Consequently, implicit biased can be very harmful to society, and it is important to OT's for a few reasons. I believe the biggest reason is we cannot judge clients. If a client walks into your setting and has different views than you, you are liable to judge them and not put forth your best effort. Even if you did do your best, but showed a negative attitude, it could interfere with their motivation, which we know is a key component of an intervention in occupational therapy (OT).

In addition, I have 3 ways you can try to eliminate this. The first one is write down your views. This is what I did today. It allows you to visually see what you believe which can be more beneficial to you than you think. Secondly, discuss them with others. This will allow you to be able to  see different viewpoints of groups which ultimately might make you change your views. lastly, we all need to constantly look at facts and not rely on what others say. Peer pressure is real, and most of the time it is not for the better. In conclusion, my biggest take away from today's session is how implicit biased views can be a detriment to occupational therapy. Since this is the field of study I am in, it hit the heart. I can say that I am more aware of this term and will continue to look at it and examine my own views.