Implicit Bias Test

Today, I decided to take the implicit associations test. Some describe the tool as an accurate way to determine one's personal biases based on their association with words and a select category of people. Others, however, critique the test as extremely flawed. Because I am not nearly credentialed enough to have the utmost opinion on it, I don't have the answer as to the accuracy of the test.

You can read up on the scientific basis of it on your own and if you understand these kinds of things, feel free to chime in your educated opinion. You can even review some of the test's data. I also will provide you with two critiques from professionals, available here and here.

Regardless, I am a firm believer that ALL of us have prejudices and biases. They form from media, government, our social circles, our families, our religions, among many other things. The trick is confronting and dealing with these prejudices instead of trying to pretend they do not exist. The longer we hide our prejudices, the longer they will continue to control the world and the way we interact with others. I am not going to write an essay on implicit bias or prejudices today. But am I going to say this simply:

We MUST understand the difference between overt -isms and passive -isms. By -isms, I mean heterosexism, racism, sexism, ableism, cissexism and the many more -isms that make up our society today. Everyone knows that the Westboro Baptist Church and Kim Davis are overt heterosexists. Everyone knows that David Duke and the Neo-Nazi regime are overt racists. These tests are not for people like them (although I would be curious to see how they would score.) Instead, these are for the passive -ists. Our mothers, fathers, teachers, friends, neighbors and most importantly ourselves. We must be ready and willing to tackle our own biases, especially if we are going to consider ourselves an "ally".

Anyway, I am going to share my results and my thoughts on them. If you decide to take the test and want to discuss them with me, feel free. You don't have to do so publicly. You can e-mail me at archangeladvocacy@gmail.com or DM me on Twitter @archangeltampa.

1st Test--Heterosexism

I am a proud, out gay man. According to my IAT, I have a slight automatic preference for gay people over straight people.

I can say that I was surprised it was "slight". I expected to aim at a stronger preference. I enjoy the company of gay men and lesbians. That's no secret. I wasn't completely blown away by the results either. Mostly indifferent about it. I know that I have heterosexist tendencies and with heterosexual as the default, it is difficult to unlearn. But as I grow and become more self-aware, I have become a lot less favorable of heteronormative belief systems, in many ways, but that's a topic for another day.

According to their web data, only 8% ranked into the "slight automatic preference". The majority of the respondents ranked at a "strong automatic preference" for straight people. This just isn't surprising at all. Straight is the default and for many, it is the normal. Only 18% of respondents ranked neutral.

2nd Test--Gender-Science Association

So, in this section, I found that, according to the test, I have a slight bias association with men in science and women in the liberal arts. This is a form of sexism in which people associate men with positions in medicine, mathematics, anthropology and similar sciences and women in positions in education, art, music and theater.

18% of respondent where on par with where I ranked, with a more automatic association with men in science and women in liberal arts. I was surprised to see that the majority of respondents were only moderate in this assumption rather than strong but nonetheless, the overwhelming majority ranked in an association of men in science. Very few ranked in the opposite belief system.

3rd Test--Colorism

According to this test, I show a slight automatic preference for people with lighter skin than I do with darker skinned people. Colorism is a problem that is separate from racism and exists in every race. Our media is likely one of the largest contributors to our colorist belief systems, with light-skinned people hailed as the exemplary beauties and dark-skinned as not so beautiful. I can't say I was entirely surprised by my results. I can't remember a time where I ever "actively" displayed colorism but the fact is, I know I have prejudices, like everyone else. So, this is something for me to think about.

Not surprisingly again, the majority of respondents showed a preference to light skin verses dark skin. 17% aligned with my results in a slight preference response whereas 19% were neutral. Once again, the data shows that very few people had even a slight preference to dark skinned individuals.

4th Test--Racism

According to the data, I scored with no specific preference to black people or white people. Does a person in this category mean they are not racist? I wouldn't say that at all. I think that racism is a very complex matter and is a part of all of our daily lives as white people. The data doesn't exonerate me of white privilege nor should anyone construe it so.

Are you noticing a trend yet? Once again, the majority of the respondents had strong favor towards white people. Only 18% of respondents aligned with a neutral stance and a very small margin had preference toward black people.

What this data shows, to me, is exactly what social justice activists, many who don't hold science degrees of any kind, have been talking about. It's that implicit bias that continues to rear it's ugly head. And we continue to refuse to address it because we don't want to be perceived as racist, sexist and heterosexist.

But we do hold these biases. And it is our jobs, and not the jobs of the people of the marginalized groups, to tackle them. We can't do it with coddling and with deflection.

I personally would have loved to see these results 5 years ago. I think I have grown in my time since then and believe that I would have scored with much stronger biases back then. It remains to be seen how I would score 5 years from now.

Self-examination is a crucial aspect of growth, not just as an individual but as a society. So, if you dare, take the tests. See how you score. See what parts of your biases you need to truly examine and reflect on.

I don't have the solutions for ending these prejudices and biases. But I know that ignoring them isn't it.

Much love,
ArchAngel O:)

Thank you to Reginald Cunningham for your article that inspired this venture.