Check Your Bias: Resources to Unlearn Implicit Bias
Staff Writer | Updated/Verified: March 24, 2024
We often hold attitudes, feelings, perceptions, stereotypes, and thoughts about people or groups, sometimes without us even knowing. These thoughts and feelings are considered ‘implicit’ when we are unaware of them, yet they exist. Bias comes when, instead of remaining neutral, we have an aversion to or a preference for a particular group of people. These biases are inherent in our beings, as proven by researchers at the University of Washington in 1970, but they do not have to rule us.
We can unlearn biases, retrain our thoughts, open our minds to new people and experiences, and, in essence, ‘check’ our biases before interacting with others at work, school, healthcare, or public servants. Using these tools, our bias(es) won’t impact how we treat others; we can learn to remove them altogether.
The resources below help us explore, examine, and uncover our implicit biases, giving us tools to identify and then discard them. You’ll find tests to determine where you may have your own biases, research, and data to support the need to work on our implicit biases, books, videos, and other resources, along with a special section for those who work in helping professions.
Learn About and Test Your Implicit Bias
Project Implicit is a nonprofit organization devoted to ending stereotypes and biases today through research and programs and its online library.
Unconscious Bias Training That Works
Two women co-authored this article to discuss the best methods that teach others about hidden biases and how simply knowing they exist isn’t enough.
IDEAS in Action designed this page to help readers learn about implicit bias, its science, and the best way to overcome individual bias.
Test Your Implicit Bias – Implicit Association Test (IAT)
Loyola Marymount University offers a free test you can take on your computer to see what implicit biases you have and what to do next.
The National Initiative for Building Community Trust & Justice examines implicit bias to explain its meaning and impact.
Implicit Bias and Structural Racialization
Use this page from the National Equity Project. It examines implicit bias and helps you find training programs and other services.
Understanding Implicit Bias and its Detriment to Organizations
Michael Bret Hood uses facts and stats about organization training programs to show that implicit bias exists and that employers still need to do more.
American Psychological Association
Use the APA to get help learning about implicit bias and finding free resources that show you how to combat microaggressions and understand diversity.
Paradigm offers implicit bias training programs for employers and organizations to help them combat the adverse effects those biases have.
The Kirwan Institute offers a course designed to help you learn about implicit bias and its effects in this video, which is also available as a transcript.
You can learn about unconscious and implicit biases and access an extensive toolkit by attending the University of Oregon workshop.
The March of Dimes offers implicit bias training programs that take place online for six months and help you learn about the programs on its website.
Scholarly Articles
Twelve Tips for Teaching Implicit Bias Recognition and Management
In this article, find the 12 best tips teachers can use to teach students about bias and how they can overcome it.
Resources for Faculty Development: Implicit Bias, Deficit Thinking, and Active Learning
Designed for faculty members and educators, this article provides them with the resources needed to avoid biases at work.
This piece from ScienceDirect looks at some approaches that might reduce professionals’ biases when working with patients.
Minimizing and Addressing Implicit Bias in the Workplace: Be Proactive, Part One
This is part one of a series of articles discussing how employees can be proactive and limit the effects of their implicit biases.
Implicit Bias Reflects the Personal and the Social
In this detailed article, Learn about implicit biases’ impact on your personal life and social relationships.
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Implicit Bias
This article, available as a PDF, explores the benefits of implicit bias and its downsides.
The Bias of Crowds: How Implicit Bias Bridges Personal and Systemic Prejudice
Keith Payne and several others researched implicit biases among groups to focus on how those thoughts lead to prejudice and similar problems.
Proactive Control of Implicit Bias: A Theoretical Model and Implications for Behavior Change
Read the results of four experiments to see how proactive actions can force changes in behavior that reduce implicit biases.
Unconscious Bias Is a Human Condition
In this piece, Mihal Emberton discusses how unconscious bias is a part of the human condition and examines professions like teachers and police officers.
Unconscious Bias in the Classroom: Evidence and Opportunities
Released in 2017, this PDF helps you understand the educational system gaps based on the existing biases and experiences.
The Impact of Unconscious Bias in Healthcare: How to Recognize and Mitigate It
Please read this detailed article to learn more about the healthcare industry’s biases and how to recognize and overcome them.
Articles
How to Think about ‘Implicit Bias’
The authors behind this piece look at some of the common stereotypes found today and how those stereotypes are a form of implicit bias.
This piece teaches that everyone has biases and discusses some of the best ways to overcome or eliminate them from daily life.
Disrupting the Impacts of Implicit Bias
In this article, learn about how and why biases exist and some recent research into the concept and how to change them.
The author of this piece addresses the biases that most people have, the difference between implicit and explicit biases, and how people can overcome them.
Understanding Implicit Bias: What Educators Should Know
Cheryl Staats discusses some of the biases within the educational field and what educators need to know about them to protect and help their students.
Turning a Light on Our Implicit Biases
Brett Milano wrote for the Harvard Gazette about a recent lecture that focused on the biases in educational fields and how those biases affect the way people act.
With Implicit Bias Hurting Patients, Some States Train Doctors
Michael Ollave looks at the implicit biases within the healthcare field, how those biases hurt patients, and the training some states launched to help.
Discover how training programs can help professionals battle their implicit biases and some of the best ways to launch these programs.
Why We Must Understand and Address Implicit Bias
This student’s piece examines the effects of implicit biases in different fields and on various groups and how to combat them.
The Complicated Battle Over Unconscious-Bias Training
In this article, Christine Ro examines the bias training launched by major employers and how those programs may do more harm than good.
Books
Learn how to recognize and overcome the bias that exists in the workplace in this book, which reviewers call one of the definitive books on the subject.
Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People
The authors of this book use straightforward language to break down hidden biases and explain how even good people may have biases they don’t know.
Implicit Bias: An Educator’s Guide to the Language of Microaggressions
The biases that exist in education are the focus of this book, which talks about some of the different types, especially those relating to LGBTQ+ students.
Overcoming Bias: Building Authentic Relationships across Differences
Discover some of the biases in the modern world and how you can overcome them in this book, which also looks at how to build genuine relationships.
Unconscious Bias in Schools: A Developmental Approach to Exploring Race and Racism, Revised Edition
This book uses real-life examples to discuss the biases found today and why some people develop them while working in schools and school systems.
Tools for Identifying Implicit Bias & Expanding Self-Awareness
Get more help identifying and overcoming biases in this book, which acts as a toolkit and includes resources for readers of all ages.
The Secret Life of Decisions: How Unconscious Bias Subverts Your Judgement
Every decision you make impacts others, so this book focuses on decision-making and how unconscious biases affect your choices.
This book topped The New York Times list as more than two million readers found its discussion of the two ways of thinking about bias helpful.
Race on the Brain: What Implicit Bias Gets Wrong About the Struggle for Racial Justice
This book teaches about racial justice and the struggles some face due to implicit biases in the modern world.
Reproducing Racism: How Everyday Choices Lock In White Advantage
Learn how to change the way you think about subjects, especially racism, in this book that focuses on the advantages that white people have.
Diversity Beyond Lip Service: A Coaching Guide for Challenging Bias
The author of this book created a detailed coaching guide to help others learn how to promote diversity and challenge biases simultaneously.
Social Justice
Social Justice: Implicit Bias and Microaggressions
The School of Law at Howard University designed this guide to help students and others find social justice resources, such as the books in its library.
Framing Implicit Bias Impact Reduction in Social Justice Leadership
Learn more about The Social Justice Leadership for Implicit Bias Impact Reduction Framework and how this concept could end implicit biases.
Social Bias, Discrimination and Inequity in Healthcare: Mechanisms, Implications and Recommendations
Check out this article to see how social bias applies to different topics like sexism and racism in this article, which also looks at how to overcome those biases.
Implicit Bias: A Foundation for School Psychologists
Not only does this article go over what school psychologists must do to limit and prevent biases, but it also includes a case study that looks at a practicing psychologist.
Social injustice is the key focus of this article, which looks at what occurs due to implicit bias and what causes people to feel the way they do.
Implicit Bias and Structural Inequity
This PDF, available through the National Equity Project, explains some of the reasons why people have natural biases, such as the things they learn in school.
In this piece, the University of Westminster defines implicit bias and examines the historical context to explain how we arrived at this point.
Addressing Implicit Bias in the Social-Impact Sector
Lakshmi Hutchinson addresses the biases in the workplace and what workers can do to overcome their preconceived notions.
Equity & Social Justice Advisory Group Resources: Assessing your Bias
See how you can identify any inherent biases through this piece, which also goes over the best ways to overcome those thoughts and feelings.
A Framework for Anti-Bias Education
The Learning for Justice released its standards online to help others see what they include, such as avoiding biased speech and working together to identify problems.
Social and Racial Justice as Fundamental Goals for the Field of Human Development
This article focuses on women and gender issues. It will help you learn more about social and racial justice and the best ways to achieve equality.
Videos
Spend just a few minutes watching this video from the National Education Association to discover what implicit bias means.
Implicit Bias – Concepts Unwrapped
This video, created by a department at the University of Texas at Austin, covers the basics of implicit bias and its overall meaning.
Peanut Butter, Jelly, and Racism
The connection between racism and implicit bias becomes clear in this PBS video that compares the two topics to peanut butter and jelly.
We All Have Implicit Biases. So What Can We Do About It?
Dushaw Hockett uses his video to talk about how everyone suffers from some bias and that there are things they can do about it.
You can understand implicit bias better by watching just one of these videos or covering multiple subjects as you watch the whole series.
The Center for Prevention in Minnesota designed this video to cover the fundamentals of implicit bias and why it persists.
UCLA offers an entire video series devoted to implicit bias, and you can watch all of them or just those that interest you.
Watch this video from the Center for Urban Education to see practical examples of bias in action to understand the term better.
Check Our Bias to Wreck Our Bias
This episode is just one from The New York Times series that focuses on internal biases and how to overcome them.
Not only does this video go over implicit biases, but it also provides a toolkit to help viewers change the way they think.
Jonathon LaPook designed this video to focus on implicit bias and the biases existing in the medical field and among healthcare professionals.
In Helping Professionals
Unconscious Bias and the Public Servant: What Can We Do to Overcome Unconscious Bias?
Kiana Atkins wrote a detailed piece on the unconscious biases of public servants and what can be done to overcome those biases.
From the Maryland Department of Health, this PDF goes over the training program it offers to help healthcare professionals overcome their personal biases.
Understanding Implicit Bias in Public Defender Social Workers
The student behind this thesis looked at the implicit biases that social workers in public defender roles have and how they affect their clients.
Beyond Colorblindness: Addressing Racial Trauma and Racial Bias in Social Work
Alexandra Pajack used her experiences as a social worker to address the issues of racial bias and trauma and how those issues affect others.
The National Institutes of Health offers multiple free resources for those who want to learn about implicit bias, including several documents they can download.
Implicit/Unconscious Bias in the Human Services
This video from UC Davis spends nearly nine minutes discussing the unconscious and implicit biases in the human services field today.
Globalization, Social Justice, and the Helping Professions
Grab a copy of this book to learn how globalization and social justice affect those in the helping professions and what they can do to overcome their biases.
Published by Social Work Today, this article from 2006 includes real experiences from a licensed social worker and how she faced ethical situations on the job.
The Helping Professional as an Advocate
Read this piece to see the helping professional’s role and how that individual needs to advocate for their clients without using any previous biases.
Podcasts
Cavan Bordelon is a Louisiana native who launched a highly-rated podcast that tackles subjects relating to implicit bias.
The Mind Of The Village: Understanding Our Implicit Biases
Listen to this podcast to hear several professionals discuss what causes implicit biases and why they’re shared among certain groups.
Speaking of Psychology: Can We Unlearn Implicit Biases? With Mahzarin Banaji, PhD
Hosted by the APA, this podcast talks about unconscious thoughts and how those thoughts can lead to biases, especially among disenfranchised groups.
Code Switch is a popular podcast that won the Show of the Year award in 2020 and brings in people of different colors to talk about their struggles and experiences.
Included: The Disability Equity Podcast
The Included podcast features more than 40 episodes and delves into some biases among disabled people in healthcare and other fields.
Decolonize Social Work focuses on racial bias among social workers and the best ways to change their actions to help everyone.
Understanding Unconscious Bias
In Understanding Unconscious Bias, you’ll learn how the brain processes data and why past experiences can lead to your current biases.
Unconscious Bias School Project
You will want to listen to every episode of this podcast that talks with and to students in various schools about their experiences with implicit biases.
Marie Beecham changed the name of her podcast to focus more on how we can eliminate biases as she discusses racism and similar topics.
Three social workers launched this podcast, which examines common issues within the social work industry and how they affect those who need help.
Racism and Bias
Racial Bias and Discrimination
Pew Research has a series of articles on racial bias and discrimination that cover topics like black workers and how Americans think.
Eliminating Racism and Bias in Schools: The School Counselor’s Role
This PDF focuses on what school counselors can do in their positions to eliminate racism and reduce the biases they usually see and experience.
Racism in Health: The Harms of Biased Medicine
Nature shared this podcast to help others learn about medical biases and how they affect patients and their treatment.
Two organizations collaborated on this piece to discuss the different biases and provide readers with some things to consider.
Reducing Racial Bias Among Health Care Providers: Lessons from Social-Cognitive Psychology
This research article discusses the disparities in healthcare caused by implicit biases and the best methods for reducing those issues.
Understanding Discrimination and Bias
The Jed Foundation discusses the different types of biases, how they relate to discrimination, and how to replace your biases here.
Mike Noon wrote his article to talk about the diversity training some workplaces offer and why that training is often useless regarding biases.
The Far-Reaching Impacts of Racism and Bias
Read through this piece to see the impact that racism has on the modern world and why internal biases are so harmful, especially in terms of race.
Implicit Bias and Structural Racialization
The National Equality Project wrote about the things to consider that lead to racism, including what we learn in school and our experiences.
Racism, Bias, and Discrimination
Available from the APA, this page features many resources on racism, bias, and discrimination, such as how grief affects certain races in different ways.