When someone tells you, “You are biased”, our obvious knee-jerk reaction is, of course,e I am not. You wanna vigorously defend yourself, about the notion of bias.

The thing is, you are Biased. And not just you, everyone around you, everyone you ever knew, everyone you never knew, we all have biases. Sounds odd, but it is true.

Let me present you with a scenario. I am a Software Engineer, so I will present this from the perspective of an engineer. In my professional life, I have worked with PHP, Python, GoLang, and JavaScript. But in terms of the longest and most powerful impact on my career was PHP. It started my career, made me money, and ultimately helped me be independent. I will always have a slight bias towards PHP, even though I know all the demerits of the language. I haven’t written a line of PHP code in almost 2 years, still it will always have a special place in my heart. I write mostly JavaScript and Go these days. But whenever I am presented with a project or a problem, there is somewhere back in my mind, says, “Can we do it in PHP?”. In most cases, the answer is no. And I will end up using something else, but that question always lingers there, somewhere.

Some might call it favoritism, that is, unfortunately, another name for bias. We have such a negative emotion towards the word bias that the mere mention of the word immediately turns towards a negative sentiment. It doesn’t have to.

What most people don’t get is, we are born with some kind of bias. The political party our parents supported, we feel a bias towards it. The football club I used to support, but they no longer compete on a high level, there is a bias there for that team, always.

So, why are we all so biased? Well, it’s not some grand conspiracy or a personal failing. Think of it this way: our brains are incredible machines, constantly trying to make sense of a world that throws a million pieces of information at us every second. To keep from getting bogged down, our brains develop shortcuts, mental heuristics, if you will. These shortcuts help us process information quickly and make decisions on the fly. And these shortcuts? They’re essentially biases. They’re a feature of human cognition, not a bug, even if sometimes they lead us down a less-than-optimal path. It’s how we survive and function, day in and day out.

And this is where the negative connotation of “bias” really gets in the way. My affection for PHP, for instance, isn’t some dark secret. It’s a genuine sentiment born from positive experiences. It’s a favoritism that doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll make a bad technical decision. As I mentioned, that little “Can we do it in PHP?” question is often met with a resounding “No” because my conscious understanding of the project’s needs overrides that initial, almost nostalgic pull. Bias only becomes problematic when it leads us to unfair, illogical, or outright detrimental decisions without our awareness.

These biases aren’t just about what programming language you fancy. They’re deeply ingrained, often without us even realizing it. They stem from everything around us: the political party our parents championed, the football club that once ruled our childhoods (even if they’re now in the lower leagues), or even just the stories we heard growing up. These experiences form the bedrock of our leanings.

The most impact bias has, in my personal opinion, is in hiring. If I ever see a fringe technology that I like in someone’s resume, I get a good feeling towards that candidate. It’s an immediate, gut-level positive reaction. This is a classic example of what’s called an “affinity bias”—a tendency to favor people who are similar to us or who we feel an immediate connection with, perhaps because of shared interests or backgrounds. This isn’t necessarily a conscious decision to discriminate, but it can lead to overlooking highly qualified candidates who just don’t trigger that same immediate, warm feeling. It’s here, in these seemingly small, unconscious moments, that bias can lead to a lack of diversity and missed opportunities.

What we’re talking about here, predominantly, is unconscious bias. It’s different from conscious prejudice. Conscious bias is when someone knowingly holds discriminatory beliefs or acts with deliberate unfairness. Unconscious bias, however, operates below the radar. It’s those subtle mental associations and shortcuts that influence our judgments and decisions without us even being aware of them. My PHP example is a perfect illustration of this—I’m not consciously thinking, “I’m going to unfairly favor PHP here,” but the initial thought still surfaces.

So, the notion I am trying to present here is that correct? Yes, absolutely. We are all biased, and understanding this isn’t about shaming ourselves, but about recognizing a fundamental aspect of human cognition. The first step towards navigating its complexities, especially where it can lead to unfairness, is simply acknowledging that it exists within each of us.

What to do then?

Now, if we’re all so hardwired with these biases, does that mean we’re doomed to make flawed decisions forever? Not at all. The good news is that awareness is the first, most crucial step. Once you realize these mental shortcuts are at play, you can start building strategies to minimize their negative impact.

Think about that hiring scenario again. If I know I have an affinity bias towards candidates who list technologies I like, what can I do?

• Structured Interviews: Instead of just having a free-flowing chat, implement structured interview questions. Ask every candidate the same core questions, and have a clear rubric for evaluating their answers. This forces you to focus on objective criteria rather than gut feelings.
• Diverse Interview Panels: Get more eyes on the candidate. A panel with varied backgrounds and experiences is less likely to share the same biases, providing a more balanced assessment.
• Blind Reviews (where possible): For initial resume screening, can you remove identifying information like names, photos, or even university names that might trigger a bias (e.g., favoring a prestigious alma mater)?
• Slow Down and Reflect: When making an important decision, especially one with significant impact on others, take a moment. Ask yourself: “Am I reacting based on logic and evidence, or is there an underlying feeling pushing me this way?” For my PHP example, that quick self-check, “Can we do it in PHP?” followed by a critical “No, because X, Y, Z,” is exactly that pause and reflection.
• Seek Out Different Perspectives: Actively listen to people who disagree with you or who come from different backgrounds. Their insights can expose blind spots in your thinking.

We can’t erase our biases; they’re part of being human. But by acknowledging their existence and consciously putting mechanisms in place to counteract their potential downsides, we can make more objective, fair, and ultimately, better decisions. It’s about being a smarter engineer, a better colleague, and a more equitable human being.