Revealing stereotypes
Jun
01
05:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Livestream
Revealing stereotypes
Do people change behavior after learning they are biased? Teachers in Italian schools give lower grades to immigrant students relative to natives with comparable ability. In two experiments, Michela Carlana and her co-authors reveal teachers their own stereotypes, measured by Implicit Association Tests (IAT). First, randomizing the timing of disclosure, they find that learning one’s IAT before deciding end-of-term grades increases immigrants’ grades. Second, IAT disclosure and generic debiasing have similar average effects but there is important heterogeneity. Teachers with more negative stereotypes give lower grades to immigrants when exposed to generic debiasing, but they correct their stronger bias if informed about their IAT.
Michela Carlana reviewed recent economic research on the role of revealing stereotypes and took questions in her live webinar on June 1 at 17:00 CET. The host was Ulf Zölitz (University of Zurich).
This was a public event with free access via livestream on our website.
This session was presented in association with the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR).
Do people change behavior after learning they are biased? Teachers in Italian schools give lower grades to immigrant students relative to natives with comparable ability. In two experiments, Michela Carlana and her co-authors reveal teachers their own stereotypes, measured by Implicit Association Tests (IAT). First, randomizing the timing of disclosure, they find that learning one’s IAT before deciding end-of-term grades increases immigrants’ grades. Second, IAT disclosure and generic debiasing have similar average effects but there is important heterogeneity. Teachers with more negative stereotypes give lower grades to immigrants when exposed to generic debiasing, but they correct their stronger bias if informed about their IAT.
Michela Carlana reviewed recent economic research on the role of revealing stereotypes and took questions in her live webinar on June 1 at 17:00 CET. The host was Ulf Zölitz (University of Zurich).
Michela Carlana is Assistant Professor of Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School
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Speakers
Michela Carlana is an Assistant Professor of Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. She is affiliated with the Malcolm Wiener Center for Social Policy, the Women in Public Policy Program, and the Center for International Development. Prof. Carlana is working on topics related to inequality and education, with a focus on gender and immigration. She is also a Faculty Affiliate of J-PAL, LEAP- Bocconi and a Research Affiliate of IZA, CESifo, and CEPR.
Ulf Zölitz primary research interests are in the field of applied microeconomics. He is interested in labor economics, economics of education and behavioral economics. His current research focuses on peer effects, the role of personality in education and interventions aiming to enhance the development of cognitive skills in children.
Michela Carlana is an Assistant Professor of Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. She is affiliated with the Malcolm Wiener Center for Social Policy, the Women in Public Policy Program, and the Center for International Development. Prof. Carlana is working on topics related to inequality and education, with a focus on gender and immigration. She is also a Faculty Affiliate of J-PAL, LEAP- Bocconi and a Research Affiliate of IZA, CESifo, and CEPR.
Ulf Zölitz primary research interests are in the field of applied microeconomics. He is interested in labor economics, economics of education and behavioral economics. His current research focuses on peer effects, the role of personality in education and interventions aiming to enhance the development of cognitive skills in children.