Perception Institute

The Perception Institute, formerly known as the American Values Institute, is a consortium of mind science researchers, educators, and social justice advocates. A catalyst for original research and a translator of existing research, we develop strategies to reduce racial bias and anxiety and influence the public narrative through cultural conversations. We make the complex science around race and the mind accessible, and show how these scientific phenomena affect every sphere of our lives, including health care, employment, education, and criminal justice. Our goal is a nation in which, instead of insisting on a false “color blindness,” we all have 20/20 vision when it comes to race; where our culture isn’t filled with toxic, dehumanizing visions of people of color; and our public policies reflect what science has been telling us about how discrimination and bias really work.