Is it possible to be unbiased?

[beansprouts]

I started a thread earlier today with the intention of uncovering a bias. As a result I became more aware of my own.

 

Our childhood environment, our knowledge, our experience with different types of people, our political views, our perception of truth, our culture and even our language color our perception of the world. Is it even possible to be unbiased or is true objectivity a myth?

[Linda...inOwasso]

No, unfortunately, I don't think it's possible.

[elegantlion]

We are products of our experiences and how we responded to those experiences. They make us who we are and define out pov. That doesn't mean that we can't appreciate the other side of something or change our minds, but no one is a blank slate kwim? I think the goal should be to work for balance.

 

:iagree:

[8filltheheart]

Overcoming bias?

 

Well, I guess it really depends on what you mean. I have views that are uncompromising for me. I make my decisions based on those beliefs. It does not give me a right to be disrespectful to people with different perspectives, whether I agree with them or not. Likewise, I desire respect from others that disagree with my POV.

 

I think that perspective/opinions can be held quite strongly and still achieve great conversation. (I did that today with a former atheist now Protestant, extremely liberal, pro-choice friend---3 hrs of great dialogue. In her terminology.....we each are respectful of the others' personal truth. :) We are definitely NOT like-minded considering I am totally Catholic, pro-life, non-contracepting, and about as conservative as they come, but I consider her one of my closest friends here. Our conversations are definitely interesting.)

 

However, I think there are those that have only 2 levels of communication.......agreement or confrontation. With those personalities, the bias is so extreme that respecting or trying to understand the other's POV isn't even an objective.

[TeacherZee]

We are products of our experiences and how we responded to those experiences. They make us who we are and define out pov. That doesn't mean that we can't appreciate the other side of something or change our minds, but no one is a blank slate kwim? I think the goal should be to work for balance.

 

:iagree: also we need to be aware of the fact that we have biases and what those biases might be so that we can stop ourselves in our tracks and say "wait a second is this just my preconceptions talking and should I be more open to this idea"

[Mekanamom]

We are products of our experiences and how we responded to those experiences. They make us who we are and define out pov. That doesn't mean that we can't appreciate the other side of something or change our minds, but no one is a blank slate kwim? I think the goal should be to work for balance.

 

I think we are products of the interaction between nature (biology) and nurture (experiences), but I don't think we can completely untangle one from the other.

 

I don't think we can be unbiased. But we are able to adapt to new information, of course, as we are continually experiencing new things and undergoing biological changes as well.

 

I agree- no one is a blank slate. And yes, working for balance is a great goal.

[Spy Car]

This won't be a popular view (I'm guessing) but, while not denying we all have beliefs, life experiences, and are subject innumerable other factors that filter the way we make sense of information, I do think it is possible (even if the results are imperfect) to strive for (and achieve) reasonably unbiased and objective views of human events.

 

Bill

[MomOfOneFunOne]

I don't really think that bias equates with prejudice; bias is so much more benign. However, end results are critical. If our biases cause us to act with prejudice, then we have a problem.

 

It is our duty as thinking people to evaluate our choices/actions and biases judge them as worthy of us or not. I don't really think there is anything wrong with being biased in this way.

[Mom to Aly]

This won't be a popular view (I'm guessing) but, while not denying we all have beliefs, life experiences, and are subject innumerable other factors that filter the way we make sense of information, I do think it is possible (even if the results are imperfect) to strive for (and achieve) reasonably unbiased and objective views of human events.

 

Bill

 

:iagree: My father was from India--actually, he was born in what is now Lahore, in Pakistan. During the partition between India and Pakistan, his mother and sister were killed in front of him--the people who took over the area he lived in went through and killed all the women and female children--he was still a boy. Despite that, he still was not prejudiced against Pakistanis or Muslims.

 

He adored both his mother and this sister--he was a man who never showed emotion, except when he spoke of them; and when I was young, the first time he told me the story, I remember saying how horrible those people were, and that I hated them, and he told me, no, that we cannot hate all of those people for the action of a few. If he did not create a prejudice over that, I truly believe it is possible to live without bias or prejudice in your life.

[Jenny in Atl]

I think when one admits and understands their biases, they can move beyond them to see the other side. It's not easy, and takes daily work, but it can be done. That said, I'm a cynic, and see mankind as a hole not moving in this direction. One step forward and 1,000 steps back.

[HRAAB]

Does unbiased = relativism? No absolutes? I'm wondering how we can view human events in an objective manner, when those events were the products of strongly held biases.

 

I want to believe we can be objective, but I have my doubts.

 

Janet

[8filltheheart]

I don't think the words bias and prejudice are interchangeable. I think one can be biased and not be prejudiced.

 

It is next to impossible to not be biased in some sense. Somethings we can attempt to be empathetic but without the personal experience, we cannot fully appreciate the circumstance. The incomplete ability to understand to some extent will create bias.

 

We also have a specific perspective that does form our POV. That POV is our bias.

[angela in ohio]

No, and I will go further and say that it is difficult to have a consversation with someone who has strong biases and believes that people (mostly themselves, of course) can be unbiased. :)

 

But enough about my m-i-l....

[Spy Car]

:iagree: My father was from India--actually, he was born in what is now Lahore, in Pakistan. During the partition between India and Pakistan, his mother and sister were killed in front of him--the people who took over the area he lived in went through and killed all the women and female children--he was still a boy. Despite that, he still was not prejudiced against Pakistanis or Muslims.

 

He adored both his mother and this sister--he was a man who never showed emotion, except when he spoke of them; and when I was young, the first time he told me the story, I remember saying how horrible those people were, and that I hated them, and he told me, no, that we cannot hate all of those people for the action of a few. If he did not create a prejudice over that, I truly believe it is possible to live without bias or prejudice in your life.

 

While my father had less a less horrific experience than your father (and let me say how sorry I am to read what he went through) my dad was a Marine fighter-pilot in the Pacific theatre in WWII fighting against Japan.

 

He was very nearly killed when his plane was downed at sea during a typhoon, and he lost many (many) dear friends and fellow Marines during the war.

 

But even as he was fighting against Japan, my father developed a respect for the individual Japanese prisoners that he came to interact with on the island bases he operated from. He'd had an interest in japanese cultural before the war and that deepened after the war.

 

We (my brother and I) were raised with an appreciation for Japanese culture, and I've never hear a negative word about Japan or the Japanese from my father in my life. While at the same time, never getting the feeling that the American part in the war (and his participation) was anything but necessary and honorable.

 

I'd say my father is pretty unbiased.

 

Bill

[beansprouts]

Does unbiased = relativism? No absolutes?

 

And if this is the case, is it even desirable to be unbiased?

[VaKim]

I think only a robot could be completely unbiased and objective.

[Mekanamom]

I don't think the words bias and prejudice are interchangeable. I think one can be biased and not be prejudiced.

 

It is next to impossible to not be biased in some sense. Somethings we can attempt to be empathetic but without the personal experience, we cannot fully appreciate the circumstance. The incomplete ability to understand to some extent will create bias.

 

We also have a specific perspective that does form our POV. That POV is our bias.

 

:iagree:

[Guest Virginia Dawn]

I don't think the words bias and prejudice are interchangeable. I think one can be biased and not be prejudiced.

 

It is next to impossible to not be biased in some sense. Somethings we can attempt to be empathetic but without the personal experience, we cannot fully appreciate the circumstance. The incomplete ability to understand to some extent will create bias.

 

We also have a specific perspective that does form our POV. That POV is our bias.

 

I agree. I don't think anyone can be unbiased because we do not have the ability to see all of life from all points of view.

 

Prejudice is not the same. Pre-judging happens when: 1. We know someone has different qualities (and/or biases) than ourselves, 2. We assume certain things about them because of that 3. We pass judgement as to how they should be treated by ourselves and society.

 

I would say we use prejudice to decide if someone is even worthy of our consideration.

 

Biases can change with experience, but they only change they don't disappear.

 

Prejudice can be overcome by learning not to assume, and choosing not to pass judgement.

 

Warning: Christian content ahead.

 

The New Testament teaches that it is not our place to judge those outside of Christianity. There is only one judge, and we are not it.

 

Jesus told us that whatever yard stick we use to measure others that same rule would be used to measure us. (paraphrased) That is a very sobering thought.

[HRAAB]

While my father had less a less horrific experience than your father (and let me say how sorry I am to read what he went through) my dad was a Marine fighter-pilot in the Pacific theatre in WWII fighting against Japan.

 

He was very nearly killed when his plane was downed at sea during a typhoon, and he lost many (many) dear friends and fellow Marines during the war.

 

But even as he was fighting against Japan, my father developed a respect for the individual Japanese prisoners that he came to interact with on the island bases he operated from. He'd had an interest in japanese cultural before the war and that deepened after the war.

 

We (my brother and I) were raised with an appreciation for Japanese culture, and I've never hear a negative word about Japan or the Japanese from my father in my life. While at the same time, never getting the feeling that the American part in the war (and his participation) was anything but necessary and honorable.

 

I'd say my father is pretty unbiased.

 

Bill

 

See, I tend to think of unbiased as without any strong opinions or a whatever is good for you type attitude. That's why I was wondering what others thought being unbiased means. Your father probably has some strongly held convictions based on his experiences, but he didn't let those cloud his ability to view people individually or to condemn a whole race based on one event in history. When I hear stories like yours or Mom to Aly's story of her father, I think of high minded and noble, virtuous. People who are able to reason through events and form their opinions from the inside. I'm not explaining myself well.

 

Back when I was working we planned a dinner at a Japanese steak house. One of my co-workers refused to go because her dh wouldn't eat in a Japanese restaurant. He fought those (blank) Japanese in the war.

 

What is it that enabled your dad to maintain his respect for the Japanese while this other man was unable to do so. Is that what bias is?

 

Janet

[Nestof3]

I don't see bias as necessarily a bad thing. It depends on what it's about and what someone defines as a bias. Some people consider an opinion or a judgment a bias.

[Miss Sherry]

I think all of us filter everything through our own value system, conscious or unconscious. I think it is possible for our value system to change if we will evaluate why we think the way we do and study various ideas and opinions.

A person may be unbiased in some regards but there will be other ways that a person is very biased because they have already decided what they think about certain ideas etc.

 

I do not think it is possible to be competely unbiased. You would have to not have had any life experience at all or not have been thinking and processing many thoughts to be competely unbiased.

 

Being prejudiced is not the same as being biased.

[Twinmom]

From a sociology major, I'd have to say that no...it is not possible to be unbiased. Our culture, our families, our education, our faith...all color our perceptions of the world and it is impossible to completely step outside this.

 

My definition of bias, however, is different than how I see most people use the term. I see the term bias as interchangeable with worldview. From that perspective, we all have a bias, we all have a worldview. We can try to look at things from another's worldview but we will always see them through at least part of our own lens. That doesn't equate intolerance or discrimination, it's just a fact of life. For that matter, my view of the word tolerance is probably different than how it is commonly used. Tolerance means being accepting towards others with a different bias, worldview, etc. It does NOT mean that we accept all biases or worldviews as having an equal measure of truth but rather that we accept and love each other as equals, despite our differences.

 

Hope that is clear as mud! :D

[beansprouts]

From a sociology major, I'd have to say that no...it is not possible to be unbiased. Our culture, our families, our education, our faith...all color our perceptions of the world and it is impossible to completely step outside this.

 

My definition of bias, however, is different than how I see most people use the term. I see the term bias as interchangeable with worldview. From that perspective, we all have a bias, we all have a worldview. We can try to look at things from another's worldview but we will always see them through at least part of our own lens. That doesn't equate intolerance or discrimination, it's just a fact of life. For that matter, my view of the word tolerance is probably different than how it is commonly used. Tolerance means being accepting towards others with a different bias, worldview, etc. It does NOT mean that we accept all biases or worldviews as having an equal measure of truth but rather that we accept and love each other as equals, despite our differences.

 

Hope that is clear as mud! :D

 

Completely! I agree. I see both bias and tolerance in the same way that you do. (Except I don't think I could have explained it as well.)

[Michelle in MO]

I started a thread earlier today with the intention of uncovering a bias. As a result I became more aware of my own.

 

Our childhood environment, our knowledge, our experience with different types of people, our political views, our perception of truth, our culture and even our language color our perception of the world. Is it even possible to be unbiased or is true objectivity a myth?

 

objectivity is possible. This is especially true in the humanities: in the interpretation of historical events, literature, etc. I think it's better for an individual to acknowledge his/her personal bias instead of trying to pretend otherwise.

[mommylawyer]

I clerked for two judges a few years ago. Judges are supposed to be unbiased, even once they hear a case - judges are supposed to apply the law to make their ruling. But it's hard - their own personal experiences have some influence over what they do; and sometimes, even the parties, their attorneys, their witnesses, etc. have an impact, too.

 

I believe it's hard to be unbiased, but we can always work with that goal in mind - depending on the situation, of course.

[Mom to Aly]

While my father had less a less horrific experience than your father (and let me say how sorry I am to read what he went through) my dad was a Marine fighter-pilot in the Pacific theatre in WWII fighting against Japan.

 

He was very nearly killed when his plane was downed at sea during a typhoon, and he lost many (many) dear friends and fellow Marines during the war.

 

But even as he was fighting against Japan, my father developed a respect for the individual Japanese prisoners that he came to interact with on the island bases he operated from. He'd had an interest in japanese cultural before the war and that deepened after the war.

 

We (my brother and I) were raised with an appreciation for Japanese culture, and I've never hear a negative word about Japan or the Japanese from my father in my life. While at the same time, never getting the feeling that the American part in the war (and his participation) was anything but necessary and honorable.

 

I'd say my father is pretty unbiased.

 

Bill

Your father sounds very special. :)

[Mom to Aly]

I don't think the words bias and prejudice are interchangeable. I think one can be biased and not be prejudiced.

 

It is next to impossible to not be biased in some sense. Somethings we can attempt to be empathetic but without the personal experience, we cannot fully appreciate the circumstance. The incomplete ability to understand to some extent will create bias.

 

We also have a specific perspective that does form our POV. That POV is our bias.

 

Actually, you are correct. I guess I do have biases, just as I have opinions. I prefer not to have prejudices. Thanks for pointing that out.

[clwcain]

I've only read the initial post.

 

My reaction is, "why would you want to be unbiased?" Unless you're using bias in a way I don't understand, which is always possible...

[EKS]

No. But I'm biased.

 

Did someone say that already?

 

:001_smile:

[Jenny in Atl]

While my father had less a less horrific experience than your father (and let me say how sorry I am to read what he went through) my dad was a Marine fighter-pilot in the Pacific theatre in WWII fighting against Japan.

 

He was very nearly killed when his plane was downed at sea during a typhoon, and he lost many (many) dear friends and fellow Marines during the war.

 

But even as he was fighting against Japan, my father developed a respect for the individual Japanese prisoners that he came to interact with on the island bases he operated from. He'd had an interest in japanese cultural before the war and that deepened after the war.

 

We (my brother and I) were raised with an appreciation for Japanese culture, and I've never hear a negative word about Japan or the Japanese from my father in my life. While at the same time, never getting the feeling that the American part in the war (and his participation) was anything but necessary and honorable.

 

I'd say my father is pretty unbiased.

 

Bill

 

My dad has had the privilege of traveling all over this globe. Served in Japan in the 50's, been to Africa (numerous countries there), Asia, the Middle East, and South America. He has found groups tend to be hard, but individuals are amazing. Even in cultures he could not understand (were things like female circumcision are practiced), he was able to connect and make life long friends. I think bias at times can be a good thing, but it can also get in the way of experiences well worth having.

[Reya]

I started a thread earlier today with the intention of uncovering a bias. As a result I became more aware of my own.

 

Our childhood environment, our knowledge, our experience with different types of people, our political views, our perception of truth, our culture and even our language color our perception of the world. Is it even possible to be unbiased or is true objectivity a myth?

 

Of course you can't. THe most biased people I know believe they aren't. :-)

[VaKim]

Of course you can't. THe most biased people I know believe they aren't. :-)

 

This is an EXCELLENT point!

[Sixmeadows]

:001_smile:

[beansprouts]

Of course you can't. THe most biased people I know believe they aren't. :-)

 

 

I'm not biased, I'm RIGHT!! :lol: