Unpacking bias: perspectives from neuroscience and social psychology

Invited by the Champalimaud Foundation, our researcher Iolanda Évora will speak about prejudice and social psychology at the event Unpacking Bias.

Will we act consciously in all situations? Will we act with racist or sexist prejudices without being aware of it?

We make countless decisions each hour, each minute. Most of these decisions are made without our active awareness and while they may be inconsequential to us, they can impact upon other people. For instance, when we choose a seat on the train next to people who look most similar to ourselves or how much eye contact we make (or don’t make).

In this Ar event, we will start by revealing some surprises hidden within your own unconscious brain. The host Jovin Jacobs – neuroscience researcher at the Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown – will illustrate in an interactive manner how all humans are biased in how we act, react and interact with each other, and how that impacts ourselves and the people around us.

We look beyond the unconscious, to how we can outsmart ourselves and consciously act  to  stop the perpetuation of discriminatory structures and actions towards our neighbours, colleagues and fellow humans. For this we invite questions from the audience to be discussed at a virtual round table with our speakers and additional expert panellists, bringing both professional and personal perspectives.

Together, we will have explored how implicit and explicit biases are rooted in our brains and surroundings and discussed what we can do to move towards a more inclusive, less discriminatory environment for all.

At the invitation of the Champalimaud Foundation/Champalimaud Foundation, our researcher Iolanda Évora will talk about prejudice and social psychology.

Unpacking Bias will take place on 17 June at 9pm online.