How (Un)Ethical Are You

How (Un)Ethical Are You

• Most of us believe that we are ethical and unbiased. We believe that we:

• Make good decisions
• Are objective, and
• Reach fair and rational conclusions

• Research shows that in reality most fall short of our inflated self-perception, where we have the illusion of objectivity. These unconscious or implicit biases can be contrary to our consciously held, explicit beliefs.
• The prevalence of these biases suggests that the most well being person unwittingly allows conscious thoughts and feeling to influence our objective decisions.
• This article explores four related sources of unintentional unethical decision-making:

1. Implicit forms of prejudice
2. Bias that favours one’s own group,
3. A tendency to over-claim credit, and
4. Conflict of interest

• As leaders we need to let go of the notion that our conscious attitudes always represent what we think.

1. Implicit Prejudice: Bias that emerges from unconscious beliefs

• Research shows that people judge according to unconscious stereotypes and attitudes, or implicit prejudice. We learn to associate things that commonly go together and expect them to inevitably co-exist. – Example Thunder and rain, grey hair and old age. We automatically make such associations to help us organize our thoughts. We grow to trust these stereo-types, however, they are binding and typically not accurate.

• Because implicit prejudice come from the ordinary and unconscious tendency to make associations, it is distinct from conscious forms of prejudice. This explains why people who are free of conscious prejudice still demonstrate biases.
• For example: people who had strong implicit biases were less likely to select women for positions who exhibited “masculine” personalities qualities, such as ambition or independence. The biased perception was that these women possessed less social skills than men.

2. In-Group Favouritism: Bias the Favours Your Group

• Have you ever helped someone get a position by asking a favour. Few people set out to exclude anyone through such acts of kindness. In-group favouritism amounts to giving extra credit to someone within your group. Yet while discriminating against those who are not part of the group is considered unethical, helping people seemingly close to us is often viewed favourably.

• Research shows that where people are equally qualified and similar in all respects, the person who is considered “part of the group” will unconsciously be seen to be more qualified. There is no hatred or hostility….this behaviour is the root of discriminatory favouritism. An example of this is where minorities, who are sometimes more qualified, are unconsciously discriminated against.

3. Overclaiming Credit: Bias that Favours You

• People generally hold positive views about themselves.. Studies show that the majority of people consider themselves above average. The more we think of our own contributions, the less fairly we judge others. Research also shows that the more people think of themselves , the less other people want to collaborate with them. People overclaiming can destabilize alliances.

• Where people are in relationship and one takes too much credit for their contributions, they become skeptical about whether the other person is doing their fair share. As a result both parties reduce their own amount of effort in the relationship.

Unconscious overclaiming can be expected to reduce the performance and longevity of groups.

4. Conflict of Interest: Bias that Favours those who can Benefit You

• Conflict of interest can lead to intentionally corrupt behaviour. Research shows how much conflicts can unintentionally skew decision-making.

Example: You have cousin who cheats on his taxes. You work for the tax department. You have a very close relationship with him. He is a builder and renovates your house for you at a reduce “family” rate. He is not doing well financially. Your neighbour also worked on your house. You discover that he cheats on his taxes as well. You report him.

• Are you : objective, unbiased, benefitting? Has your decision-making been unintentionally skewed? Were your actions in the best interest of all involved: your cousin, your neighbour, you?

• There is a built-in conflict of interest because of the family relationship. This built-in conflict makes it impossible for you to see the implicit bias in your flawed decision-making. There is also in-group favouritism. There is also Implicit Prejudice by association: “Blood is thicker than water” – an automatic unconscious association.

What do we do?

Trying harder is not enough

• To overcome these bias many companies are trying harder to focus their ethical teaching on broad principles of moral philosophy to help leaders understand the ethical challenges. Trying harder is not the trick.

• Ethics training needs to focus on how our minds work and expose leaders directly to the unconscious mechanisms that underlie biased decision-making. Leaders can make wiser choices if they are aware of their unconscious biases. Leaders need continual conscious strategies to counter the pull of their unconscious biases.

Collect data

• The first step to reducing unconscious bias is to collect data to reveal its presence. People are often so surprised by their bias. That is because people tend to rely and trust in their own intuition. People need to unpack and examine the facts surrounding the bias. Unpacking means evaluating the fairness of the claims of the bias.

• Knowing the magnitude and pervasiveness of your own biases can help direct your attention to areas of decision-making that are in need of examination.

Shape your environment

• Research shows that implicit attitudes can be shaped by external cues in the environment. Study findings suggest that one remedy for implicit bias is to expose oneself to images and social environments that challenge stereotypes.

• Don’t remain in an environment that reinforces your bias. Create new or alternative environments. If the environment is promoting unconscious biased or unethical behaviour, consider creating countervailing experiences.

Broaden you decision-making

• Would you be willing to ever be in a group where you were disadvantaged by your own decision? How would your decision differ if you could make theme wearing various identities not your own? John Rawls calls this the “veil of ignorance”. He says that if you can put yourself aside/deny your own identity, then you could make real ethical choices. To deny your identity would be to by-pass your biases.

The Vigilant Manager

• If you answered in the beginning of this chapter that you were an ethical person, how would you honestly answer it now. People who aspire to be ethical must challenge the assumptions that they are always unbiased and acknowledge that cognitive vigilance, even more than good intentions, is a defining characteristic of an ethical manager.

• They must actively:

• Collect data
• Shape the environment, and
• Broaden their decision-making

• Only those who understand their own potential for unethical behaviour can become the ethical decision makers that they aspire to be.