THE NEUROSCIENCE

OF INCLUSION:

MANAGING
UNCONSCIOUS
BIAS

! Mary E. Casey & Shannon Murphy Robinson

BrainSkills@Work, LLC
www.brainksillsatwork.com
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! CONTENTS
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Why a Brain-Based Approach to Inclusion?! 3

The Unconscious Brain ! 5

Different Brains Different Times! 12

BrainStates Management™ Model! 15

Inclusion Skills and The Higher Brain! 15

In Summary! 17

About the Authors 19

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Why
! a Neuroscience-Based Approach to
Inclusion?
!
Organizations today understand that leveraging diversity and inclusion is imperative

for current and future business success. Over the next decade, the diversity within

organizations will increase significantly, and will continue to provide opportunities for

increased innovation, product development, market share and financial growth.1

However, the business benefits of diversity can only be realized when organizations

create work environments where each employee feels valued for their personal

contribution, and is motivated and engaged to do their best work. Inclusion skills are

essential to realizing the benefits of a highly talented and diverse workforce.

Neuroscience is now revealing that when it comes to dealing with differences and

being inclusive, the brain works both for us and against us. Brain imaging studies

show that simply viewing a photograph of another person can cause different areas of

the brain to light up. When a person in a photograph

looks more like us, there is increased activity in the

“Neuroscience is revealing
reward center of our brain. If the person in a photograph that when it comes to
dealing with differences,
looks very different from us, there is either no reward the brain works both for us
and against us.”
center activity, or more concerning, the brain area

associated with fear and threats becomes more active.2

Whether we are aware of it or not, the unconscious brain is influencing our perceptions

and our behavior. There are many ways that the unconscious brain can trump our

good intentions to be inclusive.

1“Why Change Now? Preparing for the Work Place of Tomorrow,” Deloitte Consulting, 2009, www.deloitte.com

2 2University
of Toronto. "Human brain recognizes and reacts to race." ScienceDaily, 27 April 2010.
<www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100426113108.htm>

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Within the brain, there is also a complimentary set of processes that can be

consciously engaged to move the brain forward which is essential for consistently

demonstrating inclusion skills. Understanding these and other brain dynamics brain is

a key strategy for overcoming unconscious bias in the workplace.

This paper will present and discuss a number of these brain processes, and show that

biases are a natural part of the brain’s operating system. In fact, the brain is a bias

making making machine and no amount of self-reflection will uncover all of our

unconscious biases, preferences or expectations. While it is

very important to continually build awareness of our biases,

“Biases are a natural
part of the brain’s this is not a sufficient strategy for improving and sustaining
operating system.”
employees’ ability to demonstrate inclusive behaviors.

Secondly, the paper will consider a new approach to

developing inclusion skills, one that accounts for the dynamics of the unconscious

brain, and develops the ability to operate from the neocortex - the higher brain -more

of the time.

From a diversity and inclusion perspective, it is the higher brain that ensures our ability

to:

• Recognize bias and consciously re-pattern the brain’s stereotyped habits and
patterns

• Listen past what is already known

• Engage empathy and put ourselves “in someone else’s shoes”

• Avert the brain’s automatic judgments and “right vs. wrong” thinking patterns

• Consistently identify shared interests and execute on shared outcomes

• Create positive conversations that reinforce trust-based relationships across

differences

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• Increase and maintain high levels of self-awareness

• Assume positive intent

• Engage the heart and transformational thinking

The Unconscious Brain

Neuroscience is challenging the belief that things in the environment must first enter

into our conscious awareness before they affect our behavior. For example, “priming”

is a term used to describe how the unconscious brain notices and records everything

we are exposed to on a daily basis, even when it’s outside of our conscious awareness.

The unconscious brain pays attention to things in the environment that effect or

“prime” us to behave in ways we are not aware of.

For example, in one study by psychologist John Bargh, a researcher and professor at

Yale, students were given a list of words to read before going to a “colleague” to ask

for their next assignment (the colleague was another researcher). One group of

students was given positive, respectful words like “appreciate,” “patiently,” and

”respect,” while the other group was given disrespectful words like “rude,”

“aggressively,” “disturb,” and “intrude.” The study included an unexpected delay the

students weren’t told about. When they went to see the “colleague” and get their next

assignment, they were told they would have to wait 10 minutes until the colleague was

off the phone. The researchers then observed the students as they waited. The results

showed that the waiting behaviors between the two groups were indeed different.

The group that got the positive words exhibited positively associated behaviors. They

waited patiently with positive expressions and attitudes, and almost no one from this

group interrupted the conversation. The second group, which got the list of

disrespectful behaviors and was primed to be rude, was markedly different in their

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behaviors. They were much quicker to become irritated and interrupt the conversation

- on average after just five minutes. Simply reading a list of words created unconscious

associated behaviors. This is called the “ideomotor effect,” when we are primed by an

idea that unconsciously influences our behavior and actions.3

!
From a diversity and inclusion perspective, a significant priming experiment was

conducted by psychologists Joshua Aronson and Claude Steele on the impact of

priming on internalized racial stereotypes. In this study, there were two groups of

students who were given a test comprised of 20 questions from the GRE (Graduate

Record Examination). Each group was composed of both black and white students. In

Group 1, the white and black students scored equally well. In Group 2, the students

were given an additional instruction, and asked to mark the box indicating their race

on a pretest questionnaire. This priming proved to be a powerful impact on

performance as the number of correct answers among black students in Group 2

dropped significantly. When the researchers talked to the black students after the test

and asked them if anything lowered their performance, or if it bothered them that they

were asked to indicate their race, the majority of students said “no.”4 In the workplace,

individuals who have internalized negative stereotypes (what Aronson and Steele refer

to this as “stereotype threat”) may be even more vulnerable to exclusionary behaviors,

and the negative impact of these behaviors on performance.

!
Employees are exposed to thousands of messages every day that unconsciously prime

their thoughts and expectations and create unconscious

“Many organizations
behaviors. Outside of our awareness, the unconscious brain unconsciously prime
negative behaviors.”
notices and records what behaviors get rewarded and what

3Daniel Kahneman, Thinking Fast and Slow, (New York, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011)

4Claude Steele, ”A Threat in the Air: How Stereotypes Shape Intellectual Identity and Performance". American
Psychologist, Vol 52(6), Jun 1997

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behaviors get discouraged or punished. Many organizations unconsciously prime

negative behaviors which can activate the lower brain and take the neocortex offline.

When this happens, negative priming behaviors contribute to significant reductions in

employee engagement, morale, and productivity.5

!
Priming and unconscious expectations also influence how leaders view employee’s

capabilities, assess their potential, and consider them for development opportunities

and further advancement. Understanding the neuroscience of unconscious

expectations can help explain why women and people of color have not experienced

more consistent advancement into executive and board positions. Unconscious

expectations easily translate into beliefs about who is an “us” and who is a “them,” and

who “fits” and for what kind of jobs. These expectations do not need to be stated

explicitly to become internalized and an accepted part of an organization’s unspoken

norms and operating culture. Learning to work from the higher brain is essential to

recognizing and counteracting these tendencies.

Unconscious Decisions

It is estimated that 40-50% of the decisions we make every day are unconscious.6 One

way the brain takes in information and makes decisions outside of our conscious

awareness is referred to as the brain’s “accountant.” The accountant is made up of a

number of brain regions that work together to determine the perceived risks vs.

rewards of taking an intended action, and this happens outside of our conscious

awareness.7

5 David Rock and Dr. Yiyuan Ting, “Neuroscience of Engagement,” NeuroLeadership Journal, Issue Two, 2009

6 Charles Duhigg, The Power of Habit, (New York, Random House, 2011)

7Dr. Srini Pillay, Your Brain and Business: The Neuroscience of Great Leaders, (Upper Saddle New Jersey, Pearson
Education, 2011)

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In diversity situations, the unconscious brain may calculate that getting to know

someone who is very different from ourselves involves more risk than reward as it

means stepping outside of our comfort zone. Even though higher brain gives us the

ability to counteract these tendencies, if we don’t recognize

“It is estimated that
40-50% of the decisions
we make every day are
unconscious.”
these unconscious processes and understand their
underlying dynamics, the brain’s accountant can tip the
balance towards perceiving differences as producing more

risk than reward, and make the decision - without our

conscious awareness- to not move forward and make a connection with someone

whose differences may make us uncomfortable.

Moreover, the reward center has to be online for the brain to perceive that the rewards

of an intended action are greater than the perceived risks. Fear, worry, anxiety and

defensive reactions take the brain’s reward center off line, and with it, the brain’s

ability to envision something new and move towards it. The brain’s reward center also

plays a key role in sustaining motivation, achieving goals and being able to take a risk

and manage the discomfort of going out of pattern. The reward center also helps us to

stay connected to our higher purpose and values and act with integrity - especially

when the environment may be priming and rewarding behaviors that interfere with

creating an inclusive work environment.

Consider the case of Jay, a senior leader a large financial organization. Jay believes

strongly in the business benefits of having a diverse work team. As such, he decided

to make a change to the recruiting process and recruit more diverse candidates from

universities that were not customary for the organization. Jay felt strongly that hiring

the most talented diverse candidates would bring new perspectives and ideas as well

as provide better insight into their increasingly diverse customer base. What he didn’t

expect, however, was that once the new recruits were on board, his boss would push

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back whenever one of them was put forward for a visible project or opportunity. At the

start, Jay’s boss had been supportive of his decision to hire graduates from other

universities. Over time, however, Jay discovered that his boss wasn’t prepared to

provide the support they would need to succeed in more advanced roles. Eventually,

Jay went back to recruiting from the traditional universities, and most of his

nontraditional recruits have left the organization.

Jay’s motivation to increase the diversity on his team by changing the recruiting

process was strong, and yet without his boss’ support, there was no reward in the

environment to keep his brain moving forward towards the goal. For the brain,

rewards are essential. In Jay’s case, there were no external rewards for the new

behavior, and so Jay had a decision to make. Jay decided that his boss’ lack of support

was stronger than his desire to increase the diversity on his team. From a

neuroscience perspective, a good question to ask is did Jay consciously make that

decision, or did the brain’s accountant make the decision for him? And if it was the

accountant and therefore unconscious, how can that be counteracted?

Working positively with the dynamics and circuitry involved in the brain’s accountant

provides an enormous opportunity to be smarter about the behavior change process,

and more successful in sustaining behavior changes over time.

One brain-based strategy that could help Jay is to consciously identify and engage

internal rewards, and then actively work to keep them present and online. Internal

rewards are the positive feelings and sense of inner connectedness and satisfaction

that comes with acting in line with one’s higher values, goals and purposes. Internal

rewards can be very subtle and need to be consciously cultivated. They are also a key

strategy for consciously keeping the brain’s accountant more balanced in evaluating

the perceived risks vs. the perceived rewards of an intended action. Intentionally

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acting in alignment with one’s higher goals and core values can create the internal

experience of coherence and integrity, and this is highly rewarding for the brain.

In Jay’s case, he may have been more successful sustaining his team’s diversity had he

been more aware of his brain’s unconscious processes, and been able to consciously

commit to acting in accord with his highest values, purposes and goals. Had Jay taken

time to reflect on his core values and determined that he did place a high value on

creating a diverse team, this could have strengthened his motivation and his ability to

take new actions towards influencing his boss and/or the broader organization.

Staying in alignment with his higher values and goals could help Jay create an internal

experience of personal clarity, inner coherence and

“Acting in alignment with
personal integrity. Creating a clear vision of the kind of
higher values and goals is
person you want to be, and clarifying and committing to one way to keep the
reward center online and
acting in alignment these higher values and goals is one
the brain moving forward.”
way to help keep the reward center online and the brain

moving forward toward positive action.

Neuropathways, Patterns and Maps

Another set of processes in the brain that impact our ability to be inclusive are

neuropathways that form unconscious patterns and maps in the brain. The process of

creating neuropathways in the brain means simply that neurons (brain cells) send

signals to other neurons and create a physical connection. As long as you continue to

think the same thought or engage in the same behavior, those neurons will keep

talking to each other and eventually establish a very strong connection.

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Neuroscientists refer to this as the process whereby “neurons that fire together wire

together.”8

In a simple metaphor, it is like forging a new path across a field. The first time it takes

considerable time and effort. However, with repeated trips, the path becomes more

defined and easier to navigate until finally you don’t even have to think about it. This

is a similar idea to how neuropathways operate in the brain. When we engage in

certain behaviors and attitudes on a regular basis, the brain starts to prefer these well

established pathways as this both conserves brain energy and increases brain

efficiency. Neuropathways are also what make it challenging to override conditioned

behaviors, habits, biases and stereotypes.9

!
Consider the case of Sandy, a floor supervisor in a production facility. During the

eleven years that Sandy has been in this role, she has seen the diversity on her team

increase significantly. Sandy prides herself on the fact that she has learned to work

positively and successfully across these differences, and has developed good

relationships with the majority of her employees.

!
Sandy’s challenge is, however, that some individuals continue to make derogatory

comments about others’ differences, and avoid communicating with them unless it is

absolutely essential. Sandy has set clear expectations that every team member needs

to behave in ways that are considerate, respectful and inclusive, and has provided

consistent reminders during team meetings and one-on-one conversations. This has

improved their behavior for a short time, but then the old behaviors return. Sandy is

very concerned as she can see that her team’s lack of collaboration and respect is

8 Norman Doidge, M.D., The Brain That Changes Itself, (New York, Penguin Books, 2007)

9Robert M.Sapolsky, PhD, “Are Humans Hard-Wired for Racial Prejudice?” LA Times, July 28, 2013

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impacting production times and keeping the department from reaching its increasingly

challenging goals.

!
What if Sandy’s employees could be helped by a completely different approach to the

behavior change process - an approach that is based on neuroscience?

Our BrainStates Management™ system provides such an approach, and includes an

integrated skills development strategy. The BrainStates Management™ system helps

employees understand how to override the unconscious brain and make new choices

about their behavior based on inclusion, respect and appreciation. This brain-based

approach is based on understanding and working with three different regions of the

brain.

Different Brains Different Times

To understand BrainStates Management™, it is helpful to review the three regions of

the triune brain underlying this neuroscience-based approach.

Neocortex - Higher Brain

The neocortex is the newest part of the brain to have evolved, and it is considered to

be the powerhouse of our executive thought and reasoning abilities. Sometimes

referred to as the “higher brain,” it is the center of our conscious thought processes,

and it is what makes it possible for us to “think about our thinking,” and intentionally

direct our behavior towards achieving our goals. It is from the neocortex that we have

the capacity to put ourselves in another persons shoes and seek to understand their

different life experiences, backgrounds and perspectives. Our ability to keep an open

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mind, pursue new ideas, look for shared interests and act with purpose and integrity

are also functions of the neocortex.10

The competency of inclusion lies in the neocortex. To consistently and effectively

demonstrate inclusive behaviors requires that these higher brain abilities be online. A

significant challenge to this process is, however, that the neocortex is easily

destabilized by lower brain regions, and can go offline without our conscious

awareness.

The Limbic and Reptilian Brains

The limbic region of the brain is the second oldest part of the brain to develop and it

plays an important role in the mediation and control of emotions, both positive and

negative. The limbic system sets the mind’s “emotional tone,” and is involved in

filtering external events to what is internally important. Memory is tied closely with the

limbic system, and it is also involved in modulating

motivation. Additionally, this midbrain region can be a “The lower brain can
easily trump our
tipping point for either a threat response or more positive good intentions to be
inclusive.”
emotions associated with the reward center.

!
From a survival perspective, the limbic brain’s circuitry and networks are wired much

more strongly towards minimizing threats than towards maximizing rewards.11 The

brain’s determination to minimize threats is built into the limbic region primarily

through negative emotions, defensive reactions and tendencies related to the

amygdala. From a diversity and inclusion perspective, this creates a challenge as

10Lui, J. H.; Hansen, D. V.; Kriegstein, A. R. (2011). "Development and Evolution of the Human Neocortex". Cell 146
(1): 18–36. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2011.06.030. PMC 3610574. PMID 21729779. 

11Leonard Mlodinow, Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior, (New York, Pantheon Books,
2012)

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studies show that peoples’ differences can be perceived by the brain as a threat. One

aspect of the amygdala is that it operates in what is called “low resolution,” which is

similar to looking at a thumbnail version of a digital picture rather than the full picture

itself. This “low resolution” mechanism allows the amygdala to process incoming data

much faster as it scans incoming stimuli, both positive and negative, enabling it to

respond in milliseconds. The lower brain may register a threat when there may not be

one present, and this can easily trump our good intentions to be inclusive.

!
As mentioned, recent neuroscience findings have shown that peoples’ brains show a

preference for people who look like us over peoples who don’t. As with Sandy’s

employees who weren’t able to move beyond their negative judgments of others’

differences, the limbic region can overtake higher thinking processes and limit

perception and self-awareness, and significantly limit one’s ability to make new

choices and engage in new behaviors.

!
The Reptilian Brain is the oldest brain and is most closely associated with the body’s

“fight or flight” stress response and is the essential mechanism in ensuring our survival

against threats. It is tied directly to the autonomic nervous system, and prepares the

muscles for quick movements, improves oxygen usage, and sends adrenaline into the

system for fast action. The fight or flight survival response can also be triggered by

social threats such as feeling excluded, not feeling valued, or being marginalized - all

of which occur in diversity situations.

!
What is needed now is an approach that accounts for the brain’s dual dynamics of

threats vs. open-mindedness and creates an efficient framework for learning to

recognize and overcome unconscious bias. The BrainStates Management™ Model

provides key tools and strategies for managing these dual dynamics, and helps keep

the higher brain online to effectively and consistently demonstrate inclusive behaviors.

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BrainStates Management™ Model

The three brain states of the BrainStates Management™ Model correspond to the three
regions of the triune brain: the Neocortex (Higher Brain BrainState™), the Limbic Region

(Limbic Land BrainState™), and the Reptilian Brain (Threat/Stress Response

BrainState™).

Neuroscience shows that whatever brain state is dominating in any given moment

directly impacts how we see the world (perception), what we think is possible (choices)

and the degree to which we can make a conscious decision about these two things

(self-awareness).

As you can see, when the Higher

Brain is dominating, perception is

Competency of
most open, choices are most Inclusion

conscious, and self-awareness is at

its highest. The Higher Brain is

where the competency of inclusion

lies. When either the Limbic Land

or the Threat/Stress Response

brain states is dominating,

perception begins to narrow, choices are driven more by the unconscious brain, and

self-awareness is reduced.

Inclusion Skills and the Higher Brain

Leveraging the benefits of a highly diverse workforce is challenging. The unconscious

brain can easily trigger negative assumptions, judgments and biases about others’

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differences. From a brain perspective, this can cause perception to narrow, limit
available choices and create a corresponding drop in self-awareness. These dynamics
can also arise when one is under pressure or stress. Therefore, in BrainStates
Management™, individuals learn how to recognize when lower brain states are
dominating and develop skills, and strategies for re-engaging the higher brain.
!
This process takes conscious attention and be can be tricky. When lower brain states
are dominating, self-awareness is reduced and the motivation to move forward can be
overtaken by unconscious brain processes. Additionally, lower brain states create the
perception that options are limited, and often create an increasing sense of confidence
that you are the right.12
!
Recognizing brain states provides a significant strategy in overcoming unconscious
bias because shifting to the higher brain provides the opportunity to override
established neuropathways that underly stereotypical reactions, and consciously
establish neuropathways based on inclusive attitudes and behaviors. Increasing one’s
ability to operate from the higher brain more of the time

“the higher brain provides creates a tremendous opportunity for employees and
the opportunity to override leaders to advance their inclusion skills, and more
established neuropathways
consistently demonstrate inclusive behaviors across a
that underly stereotypical
reactions.” range of differences. The competency to work from the
higher brain more of the time provides the opportunity to
create workplaces where there is the potential to consistently make new choices about
one’s behavior - choices that favor compassion, understanding, appreciation and
respect.
!
12Robert A., Burton, MD, On Being Certain, Believing You are Right Even When You’re Not (St. Martin’s Press, New
York, 2008)

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Learning to override the unconscious dynamics of the lower brain, and engaging the
higher brain to move forward towards creating connections with others also activates
the brain’s reward center - the positive brain. Engaging the positive brain increases
personal motivation and engagement, and the ability to focus on shared interests and
shared outcomes. Moreover, it is only when the neocortex and the brain’s reward
center are online that it is possible for the brain to produce oxytocin, the essential
hormone for building trust.13
!
In Summary
The old brain is wired to be on the defensive, and it is essential to learn to new skills to

counteract these tendencies. Unconscious biases are not going away. The brain is

essentially a bias making machine, and through its unconscious processes it filters the

world we see and creates assumptions, biases and beliefs we may not be aware of.

!
The good news is that neuroscience provides the opportunity to develop brain skills

that help individual recognize and overcome unconscious biases, and be more

conscious in their decision making. Through brain science, it’s now possible to create

diversity and inclusion training tools and skills that are in sync with how the brain

actually works.
!
The next phase of inclusions skills training will harness the neuroscience of the higher

brain in order to override the brain’s unconscious defensive reactions and make it

possible to more consistently demonstrate behaviors of respect, appreciation and

inclusion, and build connections and trust across differences.

13 Paul J. Zak, The Moral Molecule: The Source of Love and Prosperity, (Penguin Group, New York, 2012)

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Leaders who are skillful at managing their own brains will be able to be positively

impact the recruitment, retention and development of a diverse workforce. It is also

possible for all employees to learn to work from the higher brain more of the time, and

help create inclusive work environments where everyone feels valued and motivated to

perform at their highest levels. Developing leaders and employees’ ability to operate

from the higher brain more of the time benefits the organization and leads to higher

productivity, engagement and performance. By recognizing and shifting brain states,

it is now possible learn to work with the brain to be more successful in leveraging

diversity for future business success.

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To learn more about BrainStates Management™, and take a BrainStates Management™

Assessment to learn more about your own brain state tendencies, visit

www.brainskillsatwork.com.

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About the Authors

Mary Casey M.A. and Shannon Murphy Robinson M.A. are Co-Founders of
BrainSkills@Work. Together, they bring over 35 years of diversity and inclusion,
intercultural management and leadership development expertise. Working with
companies such as Deloitte, Medtronic, Microsoft, Mayo Clinic, PNC Bank, PepsiCo
International, and others, they have successfully created and implemented large scale
global and domestic diversity training initiatives.
!
In May 2011, Mary and Shannon formed BrainSkills@Work™ to apply neuroscience
findings to increase leaders and individuals performance effectiveness, as well as
improve their ability to achieve more consistent and long term behavior change
outcomes. BrainSkills@Work’s training and coaching programs are designed to teach
individuals and leaders how to work with the brain to demonstrate higher levels of
competency in four main performance areas: inclusion, change and resiliency,
leadership development and high performing teams.
!
In 2012, Mary and Shannon were each awarded Advanced Certification as
NeuroBusiness coaches at Harvard with Dr. Srini Pillay, Harvard medical school
professor, and CEO of NeuroBusiness Group. Shannon and Mary’s Book The
Neuroscience of Inclusion: New Skills for New Times, will be out in summer, 2014.

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