The Mental Representations Of High And Low Entitativity Groups

Abstract

The mental representations of two groups were examined. It was predicted that judgments about a low entitativity group would involve the consultation of specific behavioral exemplars, whereas judgments about a high entitativity group would not. These predictions were tested using a modified version of Klein & Loftus' (1993) task-facilitation paradigm. Results showed that an initial task requiring a trait judgment about the group facilitated the later recall of a behavior performed by the group, but only when the group was low in entitativity. These results provide further evidence of differential information processes as a function of the perceived entitativity of a group, and shed light on the cognitive representations of such groups.