MADISON, Wis. — The University of Wisconsin-Madison has provided an explanation for a survey question shared on social media Wednesday night.
The question in particular asked participants if they would feel uncomfortable being assigned a Black roommate.
After a screenshot of the question was sent to UW-Madison, the university responded by saying researchers use such surveys to “develop and test interventions meant to help people identify bias and keep it from affecting the way they treat people.”
Dr. Will Cox, a principal investigator in UW-Madison’s psychology department, apologized and gave context to the survey itself.
“I am keenly sensitive to how seeing that survey item would be hurtful to Black students, and I apologize that this happened,” Cox said in a statement. “I recognize that Black people and members of other marginalized groups have historically experienced harm in the name of scientific research, and minimizing harm is one of the key principles I live by with my research.
“This tool is designed to help people to recognize and confront their own racial biases against Black people. Decades of past research has shown that completing these scales helps people acknowledge that sometimes, their thoughts, emotions, and behavior may be more biased against Black people than they’d like. Many studies have shown that, for most people, this tool not only helps them recognize that they may be vulnerable to racial biases, but it actually motivates them to take action to reduce those biases.”
Cox’s full statement is available in the tweet below.
UW–Madison researchers use surveys like this one to develop and test interventions meant to help people identify bias and keep it from affecting the way they treat people.
Here’s more context about the survey question from principal investigator, Dr. Will Cox. pic.twitter.com/dDTyojun8a
— UW–MaskUp (@UWMadison) September 10, 2020
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