Module Transcripts:

Avoiding Bias

Slide 3          

Title: What Is Bias?

Speaker: Bias is the belief that someone, a group, or certain ideas are better than others. Bias can be directly stated or implied, so it can appear in writing in a variety of ways.

Click each person to see an example of bias and how it can appear in writing. Next, we will look at why these are examples of bias and why they are a concern.

Slide 4

Title: What Is Bias?

Speaker: Now that you know how Midge and Robert could be biased, click on each of them to learn why this bias can be an issue.

Slide 5

Title: Why Does Bias Matter?

Speaker: APA has guidelines for writing, which says that writing should be academic, professional, specific, and concise. Biased language does not adhere to these guidelines because it is not objective, which makes it non-academic and unprofessional. Additionally, academic writing should not create or reinforce stereotypes. Biased language also tends to be vague, which is something APA style recommends writers avoid in favor of being more specific, while also still being concise.

Slide 6

Title: APA Recommends:

Speaker: Here are the two overarching recommendations from APA to help writers avoid bias. We will refer to these throughout the module.

Using Specific Resources Section

Slide 1

Title: Using Specific Resources to Reduce Bias

Speaker: Sometimes writers present ideas that they feel are true or that they have frequently observed. However, these are personal experiences which may not be representative of the whole reality. Instead, they are actually generalizations we make as humans processing the world around us. Avoiding generalizations helps writers to reduce this bias, as does including specific research to support any and all claims.

Slide 2

Title: Using Specific Resources to Reduce Bias

Speaker: Generalizations are statements that make overall or sweeping conclusions without acknowledging differences or nuances. To discover how bias can occur when writers use general statements, read the following except from a paper. Click on the sentences to reveal if there is biased language.

Slide 3

Title: Using Specific Resources to Reduce Bias

Speaker: Statements that make claims about “all” or “none” are often generalizations and can create bias because it is unlikely that everyone will do or feel a certain way. Click on the generalizations to see a bias-free revision.

Slide 7

Title: Using Specific Resources to Reduce Bias: Recap

Speaker: Review the ways that bias can appear and bias can be reduced through use of specific resources. Once you’re finished, click “Go to Menu” to return to the tutorial’s menu.

Using First Person Appropriately Section

Slide 1

Title: Use First Person Point of View Appropriately

Speaker: Using first person can create or reveal bias in writing. Using first person singular (I, me, my) may lead writers to focus only on their own opinions instead of grounding ideas in evidence. Using first person plural (we, us, our) makes assumptions about the reader - that they belong to the same group as the writer.

Slide 2

Title: Use First Person Point of View Appropriately

Speaker: First person point of view is sometimes acceptable in academic writing, but sometimes it can create a bias. Read the following except from a paper. Click on the sentences to reveal if it contains biased language.

Slide 3

Title: Use First Person Point of View Appropriately

Speaker: Sometimes writers present ideas that they feel to be true or that they have frequently observed, often indicated by phrases like “I think” or “I believe.” The use of first person in these instances focuses on a writer’s opinions, not their evidence-based ideas, creating generalizations. Additionally, using first person point of view only in appropriate situations helps the writer avoid making assumptions.

Slide 4

Title: Use First Person Point of View Appropriately

Speaker: Consider these solutions to avoiding inappropriate use of first person point of view and how you might use them in your own writing.

Slide 5

Title: Use First Person Point of View Appropriately

Speaker: There are cases where using first person can be appropriate and won’t create bias. For example, if you are describing yourself and your experiences or background, using first person is appropriate. Additionally, if you are writing a personal reflection or narrative, using first person is appropriate.

We know that it can be confusing at first to know when to use first person and when to avoid it; we’ll review examples next to help clarify these instances.

Slide 13

Title: Use First Person Point of View Appropriately: Recap

Speaker: Review the ways that bias can appear and bias can be reduced through first person. Once you’re finished, click “Go to Menu” to return to the tutorial’s menu.

Main Section

Slide 5

Title: Reducing Bias by Avoiding Generalizations

Speaker: Generalizations can create bias. Being specific, both by including research or naming groups of people, can reduce bias.

Using Emotionally Neutral Word Choice Section

Slide 1

Title: Using Emotionally Neutral Words

Speaker: Writers may sometimes use words in their writing that carry emotional meaning, either positive or negative. Read the following except from a paper and identify the emotionally loaded words in the paragraph. Then click on the sentences that contain those words.

Slide 2

Title: Using Emotionally Neutral Words

Speaker: A writer might find it helpful to compare two or more groups, people, or organizations when presenting ideas. However, to avoid revealing a writer’s personal feelings or bias, and to avoid creating a biased opinion for the reader, the writer has to carefully choose words.

If a writer says the “bad” school does something, the reader will immediately feel negatively toward that school. If a writer uses a word like “normal”, there is the same effect because the reader will either consciously or unconsciously think whatever is opposite the “normal” to be strange, odd, or not right.

We’ll look at more examples of emotionally neutral words and how to revise them next.

Slide 3

Title: Using Emotionally Neutral Words

Speaker: Let’s compare these sentences. Both sentences use the word “normal,” which introduces bias into the sentence.

In the first sentence, the word “normal” is used to refer to students, identifying students who can complete the IXL modules in 15-20 minutes as part of the majority. Any students who aren’t able to do this are then implied to be abnormal or different than the majority in some way, which the reader can see as being negative.

In the second sentence, the word “normal” is used to refer to a work environment. The writer is referring to environments where the vast majority of employees are onsite full-time. However, the use of “normal” reveals a bias in the writer’s opinion about what constitutes a normal work environment, implying that remote employees, sales people on the road, delivery personnel, and part-time workers are abnormal. This word choice thus shapes the reader’s point of view and introduces bias into the sentence.

We’ll continue to explore emotional words and how to revise them to be emotionally neutral.

Slide 4

Title: Using Emotionally Neutral Words

Speaker: Here are more examples of words that could or could not be emotional. Click on each word to discover if it is emotional or emotionally neutral.

Slide 5

Title: Using Emotionally Neutral Words

Speaker: You may have noticed that many emotionally loaded words are adjectives or descriptive words. Instead of using emotionally loaded adjectives, try to describe the person or thing using specific statistics, observed actions, or demographics.

Using Specific Descriptors Section

Slide 1

Title: Using Specific Descriptors

Speaker: Research is used to support ideas, give background, and as the starting point for analysis and evaluation. As an academic writer, you may find yourself summarizing or paraphrasing research that includes specific participants or talks about specific individuals or groups. The way you describe those participants can either create or reduce bias.

Slide 2

Title: Using Specific Descriptors

Speaker: Here are some examples of descriptions of people that are too vague and create bias in the sentence. Click each sentence to discover how the sentence presents bias.

Slide 3

Title: Using Specific Descriptors

Speaker: Additionally, here are more descriptors that can create bias in a sentence and should be avoided. Click each term to see it used in a way that avoids bias.

Slide 4

Title: APA Manual Alert

Speaker: APA has recommendations for language and word choice when describing groups of people. You can find these recommendations in the following sections. It is also important to note that recommendations and guidelines for language sometimes change. This is because the general rule is to use the designation the group prefers themselves. Over time, this preference may shift or change.

Slide 5

Title: Using Specific Descriptors

Speaker: Read the following passage. Click the sentences that seem biased and could be revised to include more specific descriptors.

Main Section

Slide 7

Title: Recap: Reduce Bias with Word Choice

Speaker: Author word choice can create or eliminate bias: every single word counts. To craft unbiased writing, try to use emotionally neutral words. In addition, when writing about people, describe them using specific descriptors instead of broad categories. Remember to refer to people the way they refer to themselves.

Slide 4

Title: Using People-First Language

Speaker: As the name suggests, people-first language focuses on putting the person before the disability or difference, ensuring that people are defined as individuals, rather than by their disability. Referring to people by singular elements of their identity can reveal the bias of the writer or create a bias for the reader.

A good rule to remember is to put the word “person” literally first in a phrase. Click the phrase below to see an example.

Slide 5

Visual: People-First Language Phrasing

Speaker: Referring to people by singular elements of their identity can reveal the bias of the writer or create a bias for the reader. Review the phrasing you can use to easily incorporate people-first language and a few more examples of this phrasing.

Slide 6

Title: Using People-First Language

Speaker: Many phrases that are commonly used in everyday writing or speaking should be avoided in academic writing to avoid creating bias. The wording of these phrases may create a bias by focusing more on a disability or difference than on the people and individuals. Click on the examples below to learn why they create a bias.

Slide 7

Title: Using People-First Language

Speaker: People-first language avoids negative or emotional word choice as well. One goal of people-first language is to ensure that people are not equated with or reduced to a disability. Avoiding negative or emotional word choice can help with this as well.

Slide 19

Visual: Using People-First Language: Recap

Speaker: Remember that people-first language is important to reduce bias. This type of phrasing helps writers avoid defining a person by just one characteristic.

Reducing Bias Based on Gender

Slide 1

Title: Reducing Bias Based on Gender

Speaker: Gender bias is common in everyday language and it sometimes slips into academic language. APA has many recommendations for avoiding gender bias, which is important because we as writers do not want to create negative feelings toward a gender or to favor one gender, creating bias in our writing.

Slide 4

Title: Using Gender Neutral Phrasing

Speaker: Another way to avoid gender bias is to replace common compound words and phrases that use the word “man.” Click on each of these examples to see a replacement word or phrasing that avoids bias.

Slide 5

Title: Reducing Bias Based on Gender: Good to Know!

Speaker: Compound words and phrases that use woman or wife, such as “housewife” or “cleaning woman” are also good to avoid in order to reduce bias.

Slide 9

Title: Reducing Bias Based on Gender: Recap

Speaker: APA has recommendations for how to describe and refer to people based on their sexual orientation and gender identification to avoid bias. APA continually updates these recommendations. Later in the module, you will be able to access an add-on to the 6th edition regarding this topic.

Reducing Bias Based on Sexuality Section

Slide 1

Title: Reducing Bias Based on Sexuality

Speaker: APA has recommendations for how to describe and refer to people based on their sexual orientation and gender identification to avoid bias. APA continually updates these recommendations. Later in the module, you will be able to access an add-on to the 6th edition regarding this topic.

Slide 2

Title: Reducing Bias Based on Sexuality

Speaker: APA has specific recommendations about words that should be used and words that should be avoided. Certain words tend to create bias based on sexuality in writing. Click on each word or phrase to learn why writers should avoid it.

Slide 6

Title: Reducing Bias Based on Sexuality

Speaker: Pronouns are the words that writers use to replace nouns, and each singular pronoun is gendered. These include she, her, he, and him. When someone does not identify with a particular gender, it is inappropriate to refer to that person with the wrong gendered pronoun. This is why pronoun use is important. Click on each person to learn more about APA recommendations regarding pronoun choice and transgender individuals.

Slide 3

Title: Remember, writers avoid bias by:

Speaker: Remember, writers avoid bias by

• Avoiding generalizations
• Using specific word choice
• Avoiding bias based on gender and sexuality
• Using people-first language