"I'm Not Racist, My Best Friend is a Smurf!": The interactions of implicit measures of assessing racism
Academic Level at Time of Presentation
Graduate
Major
Experimental Psychology
List all Project Mentors & Advisor(s)
Jana Hackathorn
Presentation Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Description
Modern racism, as opposed to old-fashioned racism, is much more implicit. This is due to the modern pressures to be racially sensitive. Although the notion of being multicultural is positive, this pressure is problematic, as it hinders the ability of psychologists to measure self-reported racism. That is, when Caucasian individuals are given measures that ask questions regarding racial bias, they tend to answer in ways that make them appear less racist than they are. White people are more likely to show a preference for white individuals over black individuals when taking the implicit association test (IAT). However, the IAT is incredibly controversial, and many argue that it doesn't measure racism as much as a strength of associations. Thus, the search for good measures of racial bias continues.
The current study was interested in examining the notion that these explicit measures are flawed because they initiate stereotype threat, which is the anxiety related to fulfilling a stereotype. This threat occurs when an individual is reminded of a stereotype and then worries about the stereotype, to the point of ultimately and unintentionally fulfilling the stereotype. Participants will watch a clip of “The Smurfs” to be reminded of a different culture. They will be placed in one of two conditions: one evaluating the cartoon as if it is a measure regarding development, or the stereotype-threat, which is saying this is assessing prejudice among adolescents. The current study is interested in examining a new way of measuring racism, without the use of reaction times.
Affiliations
Psychology: Completed Projects
"I'm Not Racist, My Best Friend is a Smurf!": The interactions of implicit measures of assessing racism
Modern racism, as opposed to old-fashioned racism, is much more implicit. This is due to the modern pressures to be racially sensitive. Although the notion of being multicultural is positive, this pressure is problematic, as it hinders the ability of psychologists to measure self-reported racism. That is, when Caucasian individuals are given measures that ask questions regarding racial bias, they tend to answer in ways that make them appear less racist than they are. White people are more likely to show a preference for white individuals over black individuals when taking the implicit association test (IAT). However, the IAT is incredibly controversial, and many argue that it doesn't measure racism as much as a strength of associations. Thus, the search for good measures of racial bias continues.
The current study was interested in examining the notion that these explicit measures are flawed because they initiate stereotype threat, which is the anxiety related to fulfilling a stereotype. This threat occurs when an individual is reminded of a stereotype and then worries about the stereotype, to the point of ultimately and unintentionally fulfilling the stereotype. Participants will watch a clip of “The Smurfs” to be reminded of a different culture. They will be placed in one of two conditions: one evaluating the cartoon as if it is a measure regarding development, or the stereotype-threat, which is saying this is assessing prejudice among adolescents. The current study is interested in examining a new way of measuring racism, without the use of reaction times.