Date of Completion

Spring 5-1-2024

Thesis Advisor(s)

Jeanette Wick; Brian Aneskievich

Honors Major

Pharmacy Studies

Abstract

American healthcare is a broad, complicated field of study and work. Those who work in healthcare may possess or be affected by implicit biases, which complicates matters more. Implicit bias is the unconscious mental tendency to create automatic associations with a particular group of people.1 As such, implicit biases have the potential to become explicit biases in the form of stereotyping, microaggressions, prejudice, and ultimately discrimination. Researchers believe implicit biases may have a biological basis in human brains, and several theories implicate bias in decision-making processes. The implications of bias have promoted researchers to perform many studies about effects on patient care in healthcare-related professions and how it factors into social determinants of health. Understanding the basics of implicit bias allows healthcare workers to fully examine their unconscious attitudes and how those attitudes affect their day-to-day responsibilities.

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