Glossary
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Bias: prejudice in favour of or against one thing, person, or group compared with another, usually in a way considered to be unfair.
Biased Assimilation of Information: the tendency for people to over-scrutinize contradictory information since it's easier to maintain our existing beliefs than to change them (Greitemeyer, 2014).
Confirmation Bias: (noun) the tendency to interpret new evidence as confirmation of one's existing beliefs or theories.
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Discrimination: (noun) the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex.
Age Discrimination: Ageism occurs when a person is stereotyped and discriminated against based on their age (World Health Organization, 2019). Age-based discrimination commonly stems from the belief that older individuals are unable to adapt to changes in the workplace, such as new technology, the way younger workers can. In the graphic communications industry, employers may deem young employees more capable of software technologies and older employees more capable of operating presses or machinery and equipment. Within the industry, ageism can be found both in the hiring process, where older applicants are often overlooked, or within the workplace itself. Discussing the issue of ageism is essential, as many employers do not fully understand it, or hold the preexisting bias that older individuals are not as capable of doing certain tasks.
Disability Discrimination: linked to ableism, discrimination based on disability prevents those with disabilites from being employed, even if they are qualified. This unfair treatment occurs solely because an individual has a noticeable disability.
Gender Discrimination: In the graphic communications industry there is gender-based prejudice characterized by a considerable pay gap between men and women, especially at the decision-making level. In fact, in a study conducted by The Brookfield Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship in 2016, it was found that female workers with a bachelor's degree were earning on average $19750 less than their male counterparts (Deschamps, 2019). Furthermore, external hiring places men in positions where they are promoted at an early level, while women remain a minority even at a more senior level. Women are poorly represented across all graphic communications sectors since men occupy more positions in the industry than women (Prezelski, 2005).
Racial Discrimination: The Ontario Human Rights Commission defines racial discrimination as discrimination based on geographic, historical, political, economic, social and cultural factors, as well as physical traits, even though none of these can be used to justify racial superiority or racial prejudice (Ontario Human Rights Commission, n.d.). According to studies, at least 62% of Black Canadians agree that racial discrimination is an issue in their workplace, demonstrating just how prevalent this issue is in todays society (Ranosa, 2020).
Workplace Discrimination: Experiencing discrimination at or surrounding work. It extends beyond the act of hiring or firing, including the experiences of those currently employed. Above the list of standard discriminatory possibilities, workplace discrimination can also occur because of someone’s specific relationship to another employee or employer in the same environment.
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LGBTQ+: An initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning and other individuals who identify as a gender that is not a traditional norm.
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Gender: Refers to the characteristics of women, men, girls, and boys that are socially constructed. Gender identity refers to a person’s deeply felt, internal and individual experience of gender, which may or may not correspond to the person’s physiology or designated sex at birth.
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Sex: A label that assigned by a doctor at birth based on the genitals an individual possesses and the chromosomes they have. Also referred to as biological sex.
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Gender Pronouns: Refers to the set of third-person pronouns that an individual prefers that others use in order to identify that person's gender identity. This can include she/her, he/him, they/them or any combination thereof.