Examining our lens: how bias heightens disparities in trauma research

Trauma research is an expansive discipline that informs injury prevention, best practices in care, and novel interventions. However, implicit bias, or the unconscious stereotypical beliefs about groups of people, can have profound implications for traumatic injury research. Several forms of implicit bias can emerge in trauma research, which deepens existing disparities based on race or ethnicity, sex, ability status, socioeconomic status, and other factors. This paper reviews how implicit bias affects the development of research and the application of findings, potentially leading to suboptimal care and misdirected preventive strategies in trauma. We present the recent dialogue and progress on implicit bias in research at the Summit on the Advancement of Focused Equity Research in Trauma (SAFER-Trauma) conference, an Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality-funded assembly of multiple disciplines which was convened to tackle the challenges involved in addressing disparities in traumatic injury. Through this review, we seek to generate momentum for action toward reducing implicit bias and establishing comprehensive equity-focused standards of trauma research and practice.