Prejudices and implicit bias (Reading)

The word prejudice basically means a formed negative, unreasonable stereotype towards a group of people.

• It can be suppressed: “I know I have a prejudice towards LGBTQI+ people but will not show it because I am aware it is not accepted.”
• Mostly, it is rationalized: “Gay people are mentally sick, and I know this because I have heard it many times. That’s the way it is.”

What makes implicit bias so difficult to detect is that we are not aware of it. The first step towards gaining such awareness is accepting one’s personal and professional obligation to study one’s own bias in order to effectively provide mental health support to LGBTQI+ clients. Once we become aware of it, we might instinctively deny it and it takes courage to try to transform our personal and interpersonal beliefs. Understanding the messages, we received and having the heteronormative social norms around us in mind can help us identify our own beliefs and biases that we can then challenge, helping to make us stronger allies.

Once aware of our own bias, we could try to implement the following techniques to transform it:

Individuating is the process of focusing on specific information about the person, avoiding categorizing them based on stereotypes around various elements of their identity.

• “How can I set my assumptions aside in order to get to know the person who is seeking help?”
• “Do I only perceive the person as trans without taking into consideration all other aspects of their personal history, development, experiences, relationships?”

Perspective taking is the process of putting ourselves in the shoes of the person seeking support .

• “If I was gay, how would I feel in this moment, meeting this new mental health practitioner? What would I be worried about? What am I thinking?”