Ethnic Influences on Exemplar Retrieval and Stereotyping

Abstract

Two studies are reported testing how subject ethnicity influences the categorization and stereotyping of old (previously seen) and new target persons. In both studies, subjects were presented with a series of photos in two blocks. In block one, subjects made stereotypic trait judgments of target persons. In block two, subjects were presented with the photos presented in block 1 (old photos) and with a similar set of new photos. Block two categorization RTs (Experiment 1) and stereotypic trait ratings (Experiment 2) were compared across Hispanic and Anglo subjects and for differences between old photos and new photos. Across both studies, Hispanic subjects categorized and stereotyped the targets more by ethnicity than by gender, while Anglo subjects used gender as the salient dimension. Importantly, those effects were generally stronger for old photos compared to new photos, demonstrating the influence of prior experiences. Results are discussed for their applicability to exemplar theory (Smith & Zárate, 1992) and for models of stereotyping and intergroup behavior.