Acknowledging Bias
Dr. Gonzalez was recruited as an accomplished postdoctoral fellow to become a tenure-track assistant professor at a major research university. To help her navigate the transition, Dr. Gonzalez is assigned a mentor, Dr. Acker, who is a full professor in the same basic sciences department. They agree to meet one-on-one every other week.
At one of their first mentoring meetings, Dr. Acker enthusiastically invites Dr. Gonzalez to assist in the search for a new faculty member. He explains that the department will be announcing another new faculty position, for which they are seeking a diverse candidate pool. Dr. Acker then asks Dr. Gonzalez, who is Latina, to attend a minority-focused conference to promote the position to potential candidates. As she walks out of his office, he light heartedly says they are taking this strategy because they feel that it would otherwise “be very difficult to find diverse candidates with strong credentials like yours.”
Reflections
Q: What do you think about Dr. Acker’s invitation?
A: The invitation could be a great opportunity for Dr. Gonzalez to help in the university’s equity and inclusion efforts. This might also be a role that Dr. Gonzalez would enjoy. However, the time devoted to this effort could detract from her research and teaching – two areas in which she must demonstrate excellence and productivity if she hopes to achieve tenure.
While it is important to have an approachable representative from the university/department speaking to potential faculty candidates, it is equally important that Dr. Gonzalez’ role not be limited to this. It would be beneficial for her to become a full member of the search committee, where she could also take part in reviewing applications, interviewing candidates, and making hiring recommendations.
Q: Is it possible to interpret Dr. Acker’s comment about Dr. Gonzalez’s strong credentials as anything other than a compliment?
A: This comment may have been consciously intended as a compliment. However, the subtext suggests that Dr. Acker may have some implicit bias, specifically, that racial and ethnic minorities are not as qualified as other scientists.
Q: How might this comment be internalized by Dr. Gonzalez?
A: This comment might make Dr. Gonzalez question her own merit (stereotype threat) and the reasons why she was hired (concerns about tokenism). In addition, her mentor’s implication that she is an exception could make her feel that her community in general is not valued at her university. She might react by compartmentalizing her Latina identity, expressing it only outside of the work environment. Any of these reactions could cause stress and lead to decreased job satisfaction.
Q: Pretend that you are a close colleague of Dr. Acker’s. If he shared with you his plans to encourage his mentee to play this role in the faculty search process, what advice would you give him? A:
- You might ask him how he thinks this service role would benefit his mentee, and if he perceives any downsides to her participating. Of the many possible service roles that Dr. Gonzalez could take on, is this one a good match with her interests, available time, and priorities as a newly hired, tenure-seeking faculty member? Does he know what service roles she is already committed to?
- You might ask Dr. Acker if he considered the possibility that this invitation could be perceived negatively by Dr. Gonzalez (for example, as a form of cultural taxation, whereby additional responsibilities are placed upon non-white faculty because of their ethnic or racial backgrounds).
- The implicit power differential in their mentoring relationship could make it difficult for Dr. Gonzalez to decline the invitation (if that was her preference). You could encourage Dr. Acker to pose this invitation in the context of a larger mentoring conversation about faculty service expectations and the options available to Dr. Gonzalez.
