Minimizing Bias

Emotional and Non-emotional

Emotional Bias

• Past
• Personality
• Situation
• Provocation

Emotional Bias

• Avoid harming others
• Avoid being disliked
• Avoid being controlled

Emotional Bias

• Avoid being harmed
• Avoid being humiliated
• Help or protect
• Humiliate or punish

Emotional Bias

• Compete
• Gain materially
• Be liked
• Please authority figure

Emotional Bias

• Control
• Take advantage of others
• Defy authority figures
• Appear to be more adequate, superior, competent

Non-emotional

• Professional background
• Fund of Knowledge

Professional Background

Heuristic: An example is our tendency to base judgement more on prominent memories than on normative data.

Theoretical Perspective: Influences the expert's information-processing style. For example, the constructivist approach versus DI.

Fund of Knowledge

Fund of knowledge

• Professional Background
• Recent Trainings
• Experiences
• Awareness of most current research

PERSONAL FACTORS

Minimizing Bias

Did I think about the evaluation more or less than is typical?

Did I think excessively about the educator involved in this evaluation?

Have I been more or less diligent than is typical?

Is my evaluation and opinions narrower or broader than usual?

Does my opinion resemble my opinions in other evaluations with similar evidence?

Have I had interpersonal difficulty with the person being evaluated that will influence my opinion?

Do I have preexisting emotions or motivations about an issue or the person in this evaluation?

Is my background knowledge being applied appropriately?

Is my training and experience adequate for this evaluation?

Does my theoretical perspective or beliefs about learning, teaching, and assessment leave aspects of this evaluation unexplained?

Does my reasoning involve unchecked heuristics and biases?