scholarly journals Representative bureaucracy and unconscious bias: Exploring the unconscious dimension of active representation

2017 ◽  
Vol 96 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sadiya Akram
Keyword(s):  
Representative Bureaucracy ◽  
Unconscious Bias ◽  
The Unconscious ◽  
Active Representation

Representative bureaucracy and bureaucratic responsiveness : linking passive and active representation in Ghana's education bureaucracy

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Elijah Agyapong
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Research ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Representative Bureaucracy ◽  
Active Representation ◽  
Female Teachers ◽  
Bureaucratic Responsiveness ◽  
Education In Ghana ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Advocacy Role ◽  
The Relationship

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Over the years, scholars have examined representative bureaucracy as a viable means to achieve bureaucratic responsiveness in a democratic society. The theory argues that a diverse public service that mirrors the social demographics of its population in terms of gender, race, and ethnicity (passive representation) is more likely to be responsive to the needs of all citizens (active representation). While a substantial amount of empirical research exists, a comparative understanding of the theory is lacking in Africa. This study expands empirical research on the theory to Ghana, one of the successful democracies in Sub-Saharan Africa, and focuses specifically on female representation in education. The study accomplishes two primary objectives. First, it investigates whether passive representation of female teachers and school administrators would make the education bureaucracy more responsive to girls' education in Ghana. Second, it seeks to understand the mechanisms by which passive representation translates into active representation for female students in the Ghanaian context. The analysis of an administrative dataset on senior high schools within the 216 districts of Ghana revealed that passive representation of female teachers was positively associated with the performance of girls on math and science exit exams. More female students passed the math and science exams in districts that employed more female teachers. The relationship was statistically significant after controlling for other theoretically relevant factors. In order to better understand how passive representation leads to substantive benefits for female students, a comprehensive model was examined which incorporated social backgrounds, attitudes/role acceptance, and active representation. The model hypothesized that a teacher can assume the role of an advocate or a representative of girls' interests. Those who adopt the advocacy role, regardless of their social identities, will be more likely to make decisions or take actions that improve educational outcomes for female students. A random sample of 200 teachers in eight senior high schools within the Accra Metropolis of Ghana was surveyed about their attitudes toward girls' education. In addition, school superintendents and officials in the Ghana Education Service were interviewed to provide qualitative insights. The findings indicated that gender and perceived expectation from various stakeholders influenced the extent to which teachers perceived their roles as advocates of girls. Organizational socialization and the acceptance of impartial bureaucratic roles did not overwhelm the influence of gender and perceived role expectations on the advocacy role. However, adoption of the advocacy role rather than gender predicted the potential for active representation, measured as a teacher's self-reported behavior in terms of actively taking actions to address the educational needs of girls. The findings from this sample lend considerable support for the relationship between role perceptions and the potential for active representation. It suggests that the advocacy role mediates the relationship between passive and active representation. This study therefore provides a better understanding of how a representative bureaucracy can engender responsiveness to women's education in Ghana and the Sub-Saharan African region.

scholarly journals Swipe right for surgical residency: Exploring the unconscious bias in resident selection

Surgery ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 168 (4) ◽  
pp. 724-729 ◽  
Author(s):  
Al-Faraaz Kassam ◽  
Alexander R. Cortez ◽  
Leah K. Winer ◽  
Jennifer E. Baker ◽  
Dennis J. Hanseman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Unconscious Bias ◽  
The Unconscious ◽  
Surgical Residency ◽  
Resident Selection

scholarly journals Lipstick and Logarithms: Gender, Institutional Context, and Representative Bureaucracy

2002 ◽  
Vol 96 (3) ◽  
pp. 553-564 ◽  
Author(s):  
LAEL R. KEISER ◽  
VICKY M. WILKINS ◽  
KENNETH J. MEIER ◽  
CATHERINE A. HOLLAND
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Context ◽  
Past Research ◽  
Representative Bureaucracy ◽  
Public Employees ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
Active Representation ◽  
Women In Education ◽  
Contextual Environment

According to the theory of representative bureaucracy, passive representation among public employees will lead to active representation in bureaucratic outputs. Existing research demonstrates that the link between passive and active representation exists for race but not for sex. Past research on this topic has not, however, taken into account the contextual environment that affects whether sex will translate into gender and lead to active representation in the bureaucracy. In this paper, we create a framework that specifies the conditions that affect whether passive representation results in active representation for sex and then test this framework using the case of education. We find that passive representation of women in education leads to active representation and that the institutional context affects the extent to which this link between passive and active representation occurs.

The unconscious won’t go away—especially in organisations

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 218-229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Long
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Social Factors ◽  
Social Processes ◽  
First Century ◽  
Unconscious Bias ◽  
The Unconscious ◽  
Twenty First Century ◽  
Organisational Research ◽  
Blind Spots

This article traces some of the ways in which the idea of the unconscious has transformed and been adapted from its origins in the eighteenth century to the understanding of organisations in the twenty-first century. Throughout the twentieth century psychoanalysis captured the term through its work with the repressed or dynamic unconscious. While psychoanalysis has often been attacked and has waned in scientific circles, the idea of the unconscious does not seem to go away; it returns in different forms and has continued to evolve since its beginnings. For example, neuroscience talks of “unconscious bias” and has popularised this idea; organisational research looks to the ways in which groups develop cultures with unconscious assumptions; and social psychologists examine social factors that leave societies with blind spots. This article argues that to minimise destructivity and increase creativity, organisations need to be aware of unconscious social processes as they are evidenced nowadays. It ends with stressing some areas where organisations can do this.

Representative Bureaucracy and School Discipline

2016 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 58-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine H. Roch ◽  
Jason Edwards
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Representative Bureaucracy ◽  
Contact Theory ◽  
African American Student ◽  
Target Groups ◽  
Active Representation ◽  
Racial Context ◽  
Group Contact ◽  
Georgia Public Schools ◽  
Threat Theory

This article examines whether the racial context within local communities influences the assignment of disciplinary policies in public schools. First, we consider whether different policies may be assigned to similar target groups across varying racial contexts. Then, we consider whether the racial context moderates the transition from passive representation to active representation among bureaucrats. We draw from two theories of intergroup relations—group contact theory and group threat theory—to help explain the passive-to-active representation link. Using a sample of Georgia public schools, we find that schools rely more on more punitive disciplinary measures in school districts characterized by greater segregation and that this occurs especially among schools with sizable African American student populations. We also find that active representation appears to occur more often in segregated environments, perhaps because of the greater salience of race within these communities.

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