Vicarious Learning Blog

Implicit Associations

Implicit associations are feelings and thoughts which are not directly accessible to an individual. For example, you may believe that all people are created equal yet, by default, tend to associate one gender, race or age group with more positive behaviors or skills compared to other people. These implicit associations are probably a deep reflection of your education, your upbringing and the society in which you live. In everyday life we are often able to override our inherent biases and overrule these more basic motivations. But how then can we find out what we really think and feel? How do we make these implicit emotions and thoughts explicit? Harvard University have a great series of implicit association tests, including ones on race, color, age, religion... To take a test, click the link -->demonstration -->various links. You can learn a lot about yourself. Perhaps some uncomfortable truths, too.

Posted at 06:22PM Jun 24, 2008 by Finbar Dineen in General  |  Comments[0]