Attention allocation and the variability of the stereotype priming effect
Abstract
The stereotype priming effect is assumed to be a rather uniform and robust effect. However, a closer look at the existing literature suggests that the ‘standard’ stereotype priming effect may be more susceptible to variability than originally believed. In the present study, we sought to demonstrate that the stereotype priming effect displays significant variability in strength depending upon the level of attention allocated to the stereotype feature of interest. Participants were assigned to 1 of 3 conditions: a lexical decision task (LDT) condition, a pre-primed LDT condition, and a gender categorization condition. It was predicted that the stereotype priming effect to be strongest in the gender categorization condition, absent in the LDT condition, and intermediate in the pre-primed LDT condition. Results revealed no evidence of priming in the LDT and pre-primed LDT conditions, and strong priming in the gender categorization condition. Implications for the current conceptualization of stereotype priming are discussed.
Subject Area
Social psychology|Cognitive psychology
Recommended Citation
White, Katherine R, "Attention allocation and the variability of the stereotype priming effect" (2009). ETD Collection for University of Texas, El Paso. AAI1473903.
https://scholarworks.utep.edu/dissertations/AAI1473903