Bias on the Web

Abstract

Bias is ubiquitous. This is especially pertinent as the web increasingly serves as a student’s primary source of information and guidance (November, 2007), and because ease of internet publishing has spread the preponderance of invalid claims (“Evaluating web sites,” n.d.; “Evaluating web sites,” 2009). Trustworthy scholarship necessitates that we substantiate our claims with solid references. To be credible, we must be diligent about the bias and stereotype in the materials that inform our positions, but also the bias inherent in our own personal perspective.

Treatment

Definition

A definition from Johns Hopkins University, adapted from the Logic of Medicine, describes bias as “any process at any stage of inference which tends to produce results or conclusions that differ systematically from the truth” (Sackett, 1979).  When pursuing truth or constructive and realistic understanding, bias interferes.

Prevalence

While we may believe ourselves to be devoted to truth seeking, or see ourselves as objective, rational beings, we are also all subject to the influence of bias and stereotype. “Categorizing information based on simple and easily accessible categories is a typical cognitive shortcut used by human beings to make quick decisions. The simple act of separating people in groups is enough to trigger inter-group discrimination” (Simard, n.d.).

Some manifestations of bias are easier to detect than others. While explicit bias is quickly identifiable, implicit bias can be more difficult to detect. "Stereotypes are categories that have gone too far," says John Bargh, Ph.D., of New York University. He adds, "We have to rely on our memories and our awareness of what we're doing to have a connection to reality. But when it comes to automatic processing, those cues can be deceptive” (qtd. in Paul, 1998).

Because recognition of bias can be immediate but can also be elusive, its influence is ever poised to slip out of our awareness, and out of our control (Paul, 1998).

Remedy

Three strategies of critical thinking can help us avoid the pitfalls of bias and stereotype:

• Apply principles of scientific thinking or evidential reasoning. “All claims, whether scientific or not, should be subjected to these rules in order to ensure that all possibilities are considered fairly” (Lipps, 1999).

(Lipps, 1999)

However, there’s an additional caution. In research, bias can exert its influence at any phase of discovery. Background and belief inform: researcher hypotheses, initial fact gathering, study preparation, method formation, data analysis, and interpretation of results to form a conclusion (Sackett, 1979).

How many times have we heard the claim, “data speaks for itself”?  In fact, as professors of anthropology, Delcore and Mullooly, have pointed out: “Data never speaks for itself, it always requires an act of interpretation (yes, even statistics are mute until we give them meaning!)” (2009). 

The duo also point out that science “only works via social and cultural means, and that capricious insights and idiosyncrasies — personal, social, cultural — matter greatly in how the work of science gets done” (Delcore & Mullooly, 2009). 

This statement underscores the importance of the next strategy.

• Check source and authority. We substantiate and validate our thinking against resources available to us. Because our search for information often begins on the internet, it’s important to apply standards and practices helpful to the collection of reference material. These include source validations such as cross referencing and validating information (November, 2007), as well as checking the publisher, author, purpose, timeliness, and accessibility of facts from the site (“Evaluating web sites,” n.d.; November, 2007; “Evaluating web sites,” 2009). Closer review of the referenced authority includes: evaluation of credentials, affiliations, motivations, as well as whether their work is subject to peer review, the consistency of their reasoning, and the level of respect offered to them by their field (Lipps, 1999).

• Accept and expect controversy. Science is a social enterprise (Lipps, 1999), done in community. Research and scholarship, like science, rely on shared effort in exploration (Delcore & Mullooly, 2009). Lipps describes that science is advanced by controversy, explaining that “Because science is actually a group activity, each scientist builds on the work of others through criticism and support, and then contributes ideas to be used or criticized by those who follow” (1999).

Ideas and theories grow through disagreement, question, and debate. It’s the dialogue, the lively banter of scholarship, that progresses our next efforts and should be welcome… perhaps even provoked.

Conclusion

Some bias is blatant, marked by hostility, logical fallacy, omissions of evidence, or other immediately apparent prejudice. Other forms are more subtle and seductive, wooing us with claims of bias-free, fact-based clarity, even while implicitly guided by masked objectives and invalidating lapses in reasoning. As scholars, we need to remain diligent about any material we use, and maybe even vigilant when using sources from the web.

This point is crucial. Research and theoretical exploration happen in a social context. If we were to become purveyors of bias, whether inadvertently or intentionally, we not only discredit ourselves and diminish our own merit as academic contributors, but we also risk disservice to our field. This is a harm I would rather not inflict and invite us all to be cautious to avoid.

References

Delcore, H. and Mullooly, J. (2009, July 17). Data and Insight in Tension? Retrieved from http://theanthroguys.com/2009/07/17/data-and-insight-in-tension

Lipps, J.H. 1999. This is science! Pp. 3-16 in J. Scotchmoor and D.A. Springer (eds.). Evolution: Investigating the evidence. Paleontological Society Special Publication, vol. 9. Retrieved from http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/people/jlipps/science.html

November, A. (n.d.) “Find the publisher of a website.”  Retrieved February 28, 2011 from http://novemberlearning.com/resources/information-literacy-resources/v-find-the-publisher-of-a-website/ 

November, Alan (2007, December 6). Who owns the websites your kids access? [video]. Retrieved from  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVLS_rlwnwI 

Paul, A.M. (1998). Where bias begins: The truth about stereotypes. Psychology Today. Retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/199805/where-bias-begins-the-truth-about-stereotypes

Purdue University Libraries. (n.d.) “Evaluating web sites.” Retrieved from http://www.lib.purdue.edu/rguides/studentinstruction/evaluation/evaluatingwebsites.html

Sackett, D. L. (1979). “Bias in analytic research.” J Chron Dis, Vol 32, pp 51 – 63. Pergamon Press Ltd Great Britain. Retrieved from http://www.epidemiology.ch/history/PDF%20bg/Sackett%20DL%201979%20bias%20in%20analytic%20research.pdf

Simard, C. (n.d.). “The prevalence of gender stereotyping and bias: An overview.” Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology. Retrieved March 4, 2011 from http://anitaborg.org/files/the_prevalence_of_gender_stereotyping_and_bias.pdf

University of Maryland University Libraries. (2009, September). “Evaluating web sites.” Retrieved from http://www.lib.umd.edu/guides/evaluate.html/