Automatic and controlled processes in stereotype priming.

Abstract

The experiments in this article were conducted to observe the automatic activation of gender stereo- types and to assess theoretically specified conditions under which such stereotype priming may be moderated. Across 4 experiments, 3 patterns of data were observed: (a) evidence of stereotype prim- ing under baseline conditions of intention and high cognitive constraints, (b) significant reduction of stereotype priming when a counterstereotype intention was formed even though cognitive con- straints were high, and (c) complete reversal of stereotype priming when a counterstereotype inten- tion was formed and cognitive constraints were low. These data support proposals that stereotypes may be automatically activated as well as proposals that perceivers can control and even eliminate such effects. That perceiver intentions and cognitive resources may be im- portant factors in the activation and influence of stereotypes has important theoretical and practical implications. For theory, an examination of the controllability of stereotyping can inform one about the conditions under which perceivers can and will oppose an automatic process. Whether perceivers are able to control the influence of stereotypes on their response, in turn, has implications for a variety of situations in which stereotypes can have serious consequences. However, little research has ex- amined the role of perceiver intentions and cognitive con- straints in determining the operation of automatic and con- trolled processes in stereotyping with procedures established to reveal the interplay of these opposing processes. The purpose of this research was twofold: (a) to examine the automatic processes that may underlie stereotyping and (b) to examine the role of intention and cognitive resources in moder- ating the influence of such processes on response. The first goal of the research was to improve and extend initial demonstra- tions of the automaticity with which stereotypes may be primed, as revealed by a semantic priming procedure developed for such a purpose. A second, more important goal of the pres- ent research was to provide an assessment of the conditions un- der which automatic processes need not result in a stereotypic response. The priming procedures used in the present research readily permit observation of competing tendencies toward the automatic expression of stereotypes and the control that may be exerted against such expression. An examination of these opposing processes in action allows much to be learned about the conditions that facilitate and inhibit stereotyping. In light of the present research goals, it is useful to consider the stereotyping process in more detail and to determine where automatic and controlled processes might have an effect. Sev- eral models of stereotyping distinguish between stereotype acti- vation (categorization) and stereotype application as sequential steps in stereotyping (Brewer, 1988; Fiske & Neuberg, 1990; Gilbert & Hixon, 1991 ). That is, stereotypes cannot be used in judgment if those stereotypes have not been previously acti- vated by situational cues, such as the target's skin color or cloth- ing. Hence, stereotype activation is a necessary but not a suffi- cient step in stereotyping. For the stereotyping process to be

Keywords

Affiliated Institutions

• Yale University US

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