Whether we want to admit it or not, discriminatory tendencies exist in most of us. Like any social problem, as active members in society, we all play a role in it, but have the potential to make this role a positive one.

Most of us are unaware of the extent to which we may have biases of our own. While it is natural to draw conclusions about people we are less familiar with, we must also recognize that these conclusions can be misguided and have negative consequences.

Personal biases can be a result of one's environment--upbringing, a specific experience, media impact, among other influences. Most of us are raised in communities where those around us possess similar world views that often make it easy for subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) stereotypes about dissimilar groups to go unchallenged. It's important to become aware of these (often unconscious) feelings and/or actions, because identifying them is the first step in changing them.

Think you know yourself? Explore your own hidden biases with this test, created by psychologists at Harvard, the University of Virginia and the University of Washington.