What Researchers Discovered When They Sent 80,000 Fake Résumés to U.S. Jobs
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A group of economists recently performed an experiment on around 100 of the largest companies in the United States. They sent 80,000 résumés to 10,000 entry-level jobs from 2019 to 2021, applying for work using made-up résumés with equivalent qualifications but using different personal characteristics. Those characteristics included changing applicants’ names to suggest that they were white or Black — using names such as Latisha or Amy, Lamar or Adam.
On average, employers contacted the presumed white applicants 9.5 percent more often than they did the presumed Black applicants. This practice varied significantly by firm and industry. One-fifth of the companies — many of them retailers or car dealers — were responsible for nearly half of the gap in callbacks to white and Black applicants. The results demonstrate how entrenched employment discrimination can be in many parts of the U.S. labor market.
The experiment was the largest of its kind in the United States. Companies were given a letter grade indicating which of them were the least and most biased.
Companies that received an ACharter/Spectrum
Dr. Pepper
Kroger
Avis-Budget
Ryder System
FedEx
Waste Management
Mondelez
Sysco
Hilton
Kohl's
Companies that received a BJ.B. Hunt
Lowe's
XPO Logistics
McLane Company
AECOM
Publix
Sears
Sherwin-Williams
Lab Corp
Target
WestRock
Geico
Performance Food Group
US Foods
Dollar General
Kindred Healthcare
US Bank
KFC
Tyson Foods
Ulta Beauty
TJX
United Health
United Rentals
Olive Garden
Home Depot
International Paper
Starbucks
Honeywell
Hertz
Universal Health
Safeway
Quest Diagnostics
J.C.Penney
Macy's
LKO Auto
Bed Bath & Beyond
Nordstrom
Cardinal Health
Foot Locker
Murphy USA
Edward Jones
Dillard's
Walmart
Pizza Hut
Republic Services
Victoria's Secret
Dollar Tree
Marriott
Bath & Body Works
JPMorgan Chase
Walgreens
Cinta's
Gap
Ross Stores
Tractor Supply
PepsiCo
Dick's Sporting Goods
Companies that received a CAramark
Best Buy
Comcast
AT&T
CBRE
UGI
Estee Lauder
DISH
Ascena Ann Taylor/Loft
Rite Aid
Dean Foods
VFC - North Face / Vans
Nationwide
Disney
State Farm
Companies that received a DStanley Black & Decker
GameStop
Builders FirstSource
Jones Lang LaSalle
AutoZone
CVS Health
Costco
Pilot Flying J
CarMax
Companies that received an FO'Reilly Automotive
Goodyear
Advance Auto Parts
Genuine Parts - Napa Auto
AutoNation
The speed of light from Earth to the Moon in real time (c = 3×10^8 m/s) -
@Spintendo Welcome back, long time no see!
Speaking of studies, did u catch this one?
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@blablarg18
Thank you, that's much appreciated!
(fist-bump)In looking at the study you mentioned, II like what I'm reading. I think that children benefit when studies like this are implemented. The best way to prevent people from embarking on a road they do not really want is to do as much as possible to ferret out those who are not serious about the journey.
The study you mentioned describes in good detail the differences between two states: gender non-connectedness (which appears to be more transient) and gender dysphoria (which is more pronounced and long-term).
"Gender non-contentedness has previously been associated with mental health problems (Potter et al., 2021) and clinical gender dysphoria has been reported to co-occur with diverse psychiatric problems, such as depression and anxiety disorders, eating disorders, and autism spectrum disorder (Bechard et al., 2017; Dhejne et al., 2016; Donaldson et al., 2018; Holt et al., 2016). This may potentially be due to minority stress, discrimination and/or bullying (Pellicane & Ciesla, 2022; Tankersley et al., 2021). Future research should use more extensive measures of gender non-contentedness and gender identity to further elucidate developmental patterns of these concepts in relation to adolescent well-being and mental health."
I also appreciate the authors going out of their way to mention the limitations of their own study, in particular, one of the main questions they used to arrive at their conclusions:
The main limitation of the current study is that we could not use a very fine-grained proxy for gender non-contentedness. Although the YSR and ASR are widely used instruments, the item “I wish to be of the opposite sex” is worded in a binary manner, thereby excluding any responses reflecting a non-binary gender identity. In addition, this single item, with only three response options, may not fully capture the broader concept of gender non-contentedness. In a previous study in youth, gender non-contentedness was assessed in a similar way, but with five instead of three response options; “never,” “rarely,” “sometimes,” “often,” or “always.” In that study, 9% of individuals answered one of the latter four, with 6% of them answering “rarely” (Potter et al., 2021). It can be speculated that a large percentage of individuals in our sample who answered to “sometimes” wish to be of the opposite sex, might have answered “rarely” if this answer option was provided. Therefore, our numbers may overestimate the prevalence of gender non-contentedness.
So it seems that the number of people "changing their minds" may be overblown, according to the study's own authors. But like they said, more research needs to be done. Avoiding regret is definitely something that should be at the forefront of any interactions taken long before treatment is even contemplated.
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@Spintendo I am somehow not surprised by this. As a white person born and raised here in Canada, I am now a minority, as there are more dark skinned immigrants around these parts than there are white people who were born and raised here. I have sent out HUNDREDS of applications, only to get a few calls for an interview. In every case where I have gotten the interview, I have been turned down for the job in favour of an immigrant worker. It's disgusting really that even Canada has become all about the poor immigrants, such that it happens at the expense of people who were born and raised here.
