Harvard University’s Implicit Association Test (IAT), part of Project Implicit, is a resource that enables individuals to better understand their own implicit biases and reflect on how those biases influence our beliefs, actions, decisions, and attitudes. 

Individuals are invited to select an IAT from a list of topics related to health and social attitudes including, but not limited to, age, race, religion, gender and employment, sexual orientation, drug and alcohol consumption, mental health, and many more. 

During each IAT, which takes 10-15 minutes to complete, users will be asked to sort and categorize various images and words as well as engage with a questionnaire related to the topic. The strength of association between the various content will be measured based on how fast the user reacts to the associations. The results of the ITA will indicate whether or not there may be an automatic preference (none, slight, moderate, strong…) or implicit bias present. These results can help us to reflect and understand our actions, decisions, and attitudes that could be related to discriminatory practices and ideologies. 

This is a wonderful activity for both staff and students to engage with, reflect upon, and share with each other. While these activities are best suited for a device utilizing a keyboard and screen, there is a touchscreen option available.