Do individuation instructions reduce the cross-race effect? A registered replication of

Abstract

People usually have less accurate memory for cross-race (CR) than for same-race (SR) faces, a robust and consequential phenomenon known as the Cross-Race Effect (CRE). In an influential paper, Hugenberg et al. (2007) showed that the CRE can be eliminated when participants are instructed to individuate CR faces in order to avoid displaying this effect. This finding has received widespread attention, and many studies have attempted to replicate it, with mixed results. In the present research, we attempted to replicate the effect of the individuation instructions in eliminating the CRE (Hugenberg et al., 2007) in two pre-registered experiments in two different cultures – the United States and Portugal. The results of both experiments found no evidence that instructing participants to individuate CR faces eliminates or even attenuates the CRE. Additionally, we also examined and failed to find support for the idea that these individuation instructions are more effective for the participants who report greater contact with CR faces (Young & Hugenberg, 2012). Finally, we also did not find evidence that the cultural setting moderates the effect of the individuation instructions of the CRE. We critically discuss the potential reasons for the lack of impact on the individuation instructions in the CRE and its implications for a prominent motivational account of this effect.