Understanding Social Identities in Hiring Practices – A Lesson in Human Resources Class (2024)

This assignment is used as we begin to move into the hiring process. You need to understand your own identities and biases. This understanding can significantly impact how you hire and how you help hiring managers hire for your organization.

Here is one video: Social Identity and Social Interaction by Lisa Sechrest-Ernhardt. Watch this video.  https://youtu.be/29C3ts4YxAALinks to an external site.

1. Reflect on your own social identity and complete the form. (Use social identity form we used in Module 2).

2. From the video, you learned about “master status”. Circle the 3-5 social identities you consider your master statuses. These are the identities that impact you the most.

3. How might these identities show up in the hiring process and effect the way you categorize candidates for interviews?

4. How might your master statuses influence you in the interview stage and ultimately, in assisting in the hiring decision? (Use and leverage the examples from the video such as: how we view diversity, we vs. them, what “meaning” we get from differences.) If we cannot see ourselves, we cannot understand the impact on others.

5. In summary, what did you learn about yourself. How will this reflection and learning impact your ability to interact with others in the hiring process. How will this understanding will help you in the hiring process?