Unconscious Bias and Mental Health: How It Affects You

Unconscious Bias Beyond Race

While racial bias and discrimination are well-recognized issues, unconscious bias can affect any social group based on various characteristics. Unfortunately, implicit bias is prevalent in mental health treatment.

Types of unconscious bias that may influence mental health care include:

• Ageism: Discriminating against someone because of their age.
• Affinity bias: This bias refers to our tendency to gravitate toward people similar to ourselves.
• Beauty bias: Judging people, particularly women, based on how attractive we think they are.
• Confirmation bias: Refers to the tendency to look for or favor information that confirms our beliefs.
• The contrast effect: This bias refers to comparing the performance of different people because they were experienced either simultaneously or in close succession.
• Gender bias: This is the tendency to prefer one gender over another or assume that one gender is superior or better at something.
• Name bias: When you judge a person based on their name and perceived background.
• The halo/horns effect: This is the tendency to put someone on a pedestal or think more highly of them after learning something impressive about them or perceiving someone negatively after learning something negative about them.
• Weight bias: Judging a person negatively because they are larger or heavier or smaller than average.

These are only some of the many unconscious biases that people indulge in every day. Unfortunately, even mental health specialists have implicit biases. 

Mental health professionals may have unconscious negative or stigmatizing attitudes towards groups that get automatically activated during encounters with clients. Implicit bias is a more subtle form of discrimination that often occurs outside of the person’s conscious awareness.

How Unconscious Bias Influences Mental Health Care

Unconscious bias can subtly impact mental health care in several critical ways, often leading to disparities and unequal treatment. Here’s how these biases can manifest:

Treatment Engagement: Providers may unintentionally engage more positively with patients who align with their own biases. This can result in unequal levels of care, where individuals who share similar backgrounds or characteristics with the provider might receive more attention or empathy. For example, a mental health professional might unconsciously favor younger clients over older ones, leading to differences in the quality and intensity of care provided. This discrepancy can affect the overall therapeutic relationship and the effectiveness of treatment.

Diagnostic Accuracy: Implicit biases can affect diagnostic accuracy, as providers might unconsciously apply stereotypes when assessing symptoms. This can result in misdiagnosis or inadequate treatment plans, particularly if the provider holds biased views about certain groups. For instance, a provider may overlook symptoms of mental illness in certain demographics due to preconceived notions, leading to less effective treatment strategies and poorer health outcomes.

Referral Practices: Biases may influence whether and how a provider refers a patient to specialists or additional services. Preconceived notions about a patient’s background or appearance might affect the provider’s decision-making process. For example, a provider’s bias related to gender or socioeconomic status might impact how seriously they take a patient’s symptoms or how comprehensively they explore treatment options. This can lead to disparities in access to specialized care and support.

These biases can have profound implications for patient outcomes, as they affect how providers interact with patients, make diagnostic decisions, and refer for additional services. By recognizing and addressing these unconscious biases, mental health professionals can work towards delivering more equitable and effective care for all patients.

Importance of Unconscious Bias Training for Mental Health Professionals

Addressing unconscious bias is essential for delivering equitable and effective mental health care. Effective strategies to combat unconscious bias include:

• Promote Self-Awareness: Encourage mental health professionals to engage in self-assessment tools like the Implicit Association Test (IAT) to uncover their own biases.
• Understand Bias Dynamics: Educate professionals about how biases form and influence decision-making. This includes understanding the social and psychological mechanisms behind bias.
• Foster Open Dialogue: Create opportunities for discussions about biases with individuals from diverse backgrounds. Encourage open, respectful conversations to challenge and change biased thinking.
• Implement Comprehensive Training: Provide ongoing training that includes practical strategies for recognizing and mitigating biases. This training should be integrated into professional development and performance evaluations.