WASHINGTON (TND) — A study on hiring practices published by the American Psychological Association found that employers who hire based on an employee’s merits may be perpetuating inequality.
The study “Can Selecting the Most Qualified Candidate Be Unfair?” measured perceptions of merit-based hiring practices after being taught about a potential worker’s socioeconomic status.
Fairness heuristic theory suggests that, as long as people consider selection processes such as hiring and promotion to be meritocratic and fair, they may continue to accept ever-increasing levels of income inequality,” the study reads. “Yet, in reality, inequality and merit-based decisions are deeply intertwined.”Researchers began by suggesting a worker’s success is largely determined by their family’s income early in life. A worker with a much humbler beginning may experience diminished achievements later in life compared to those with more resources, they claim.
"Socioeconomic advantages and disadvantages early in life can have profound influences on educational achievement, test scores, work experiences, and other qualifications that form the basis of ‘meritocratic’ selection processes,” the study reads. “Yet the near-universal support for meritocracy suggests that most people may not give much weight to unequal advantages and disadvantages."
The study went on to claim that learning about these disadvantages causes individuals across the political spectrum to reevaluate their perceptions of hiring for merit.
Learning about the presence of socioeconomic inequality in people’s backgrounds in general led participants to be significantly more supportive of policy initiatives that foster socioeconomic diversity inorganizations,” the study reads.The study did not include an emphasis on race due to the way it “can lead to defensiveness among conservatives,” authors noted. They also mentioned that conservatives were less likely than their liberal counterparts to change their opinions of merit-based hiring practices.
Hiring practices centered around diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts have earned sharp criticism from conservatives. A major Cornell University donor this week suspended donations and demanded the school oust its president and provost over their alleged excessive devotion to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts.
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