People overestimate the presence of minorities around them, impeding equity and inclusion
Published Date: 5/10/2022
Source: phys.org
Attempts to build a more equitable and inclusive society has taken a step forward with the discovery of a "diversity illusion" by a team of researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HU). Their findings clearly show that within a social setting most people significantly overestimate the presence of a minority—and this overestimation is made not only by the majority but also by the minority themselves. Moreover, they found that this illusion is likely to hamper attempts to build a more equitable society, as it leads to less support for policies aimed at promoting diversity. Their findings were published in PNAS, the journal of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.