That is how Joelle saw her job. She worked harder than any of her peers, in fact she even picked up the boss’ cleaning on her way into work one day. Not that he demanded it, it was just on the road to work and he was saying he needed a certain suit for an important meeting. Did he thank her? Well, he said, “Hey I appreciate that” and then went about his day.
She was bummed. He could have at least given her some time off for having to make the stop. She told others she was sure that no matter how hard she worked she would never, ever get the praise that was due her.
Are others getting preferred treatment? Do they go to the more important off site meetings? Do “some of them” get the boss’ ear while you seem to only get his back?
Joelle had been her boss’ favorite many years ago when the company was much smaller. Now she felt discounted. Rather than see that the firm had doubled in size and priorities had changed, she felt she had been short changed.
Joelle had a bad case of “confirmation bias”. This is a tendency for people to favor information that confirms their perceptions, regardless of whether the information is true. As a result of these distorted perceptions individuals recall from their own selective memory and interpret facts in a biased way.
The biased perceptions are especially obvious when there is emotion involved. There is also a tendency to interpret ambiguous incidents as supporting their existing position.
Back to Joelle. She has taken a disliking to Ellen who she saw as the boss’ favorite. One day, the boss went to drop off a project chart for Ellen. He sat to talk with her about it and whatever was going on in the conversation, they both had a lively laugh. Joelle was incensed and later told Ellen her behavior was totally inappropriate, that everyone in the office was offended by the loud laughing. In fact, most said they enjoyed hearing the sounds of fun and light-heartedness in the cubicle space.
Confirmation bias is also called by a more common term, self-fulfilling prophecy; the need to behave to make expectations come true. People like Joelle would rather be right than happy. They will skew their remarks to make their position right and other’s wrong. There is always an “I told you so” gleam in their eyes when they can get others to side with them.
In an organization confirmation bias can cause workplace conflicts that have ugly outcomes. People can be falsely accused, can be fired or leave an organization if the perpetrator of the bias is not held accountable. Those like Joelle will fight for their perspective to be “right” even when it is “wrong”.
Rather than searching through all the relevant facts to come to a conclusion, the tendency is to ask questions and make statements to get an affirmative answer to their questions. Those who have a propensity toward confirmation bias are also known as splitters.
A splitter behavior pattern is the most devastating one found in the workplace. Splitters are hard to detect because they will go from one side to the other phrase statements to prove their way is right.
Joelle was a master at this, telling her co-workers to be careful, that the boss may favor you today and have a laugh with you today, but just wait, by tomorrow you will be where she is, at the end of the line.
The best gift an organization can give its employees is some training in spotting confirmation bias, in themselves as well as in others. In “Don’t bring it to Work” key points are discussed to keep this destructive way of relating to a minimum.
1. Revisit job descriptions: as changes occur in a company have a new outline of duties and responsibilities given to employees that are clear and functional
2. Renegotiate tasks: if some of the job description no longer fits give employees an opportunity to voice their preferred ways of working
3. Renew agreements: have a discussion about the interactive parts of a job, when it is appropriate to interact with senior members and when it is no longer helpful to enter into discussions
4. Respect boundaries: make clear decisions about reporting structure and time lines of what can be done and when
These are the safeguards to keep the workplace culture from deteriorating into a polarized battle field. Please remember that work is not a rehab facility and that if those who cannot get beyond old, ingrained beliefs continue to skew their worldly perceptions to the point of dysfunction, it is vital to “unhire” them as soon as possible.