The pervasiveness of spontaneously generated prejudiced responses has adverse effects on those who endure continual bias and discrimination, and creates self-criticism among individuals who unsuccessfully attempt to control their prejudices. The general aim of the proposed research is to counter the prevalent notion that spontaneously generated prejudiced responses and their deleterious consequences are inevitable. A self-regulation model is presented to explain how control over prejudiced responses can be exerted by people who are motivated to do so (i.e., low-prejudiced individuals). The model~s central proposition is that low-prejudiced individuals~ awareness f their prejudiced responses has affective, motivational, and behavioral consequences that facilitate their subsequent ability to avoid prejudiced responses. The proposed program of research tests critical issues following from this model: (1) Are low-prejudiced individuals able to avoid stereotypic responses when they consciously intend to do so? Because low-prejudiced persons have a ready replacement for stereotypes (i.e., their low-prejudiced attitudes), the conscious intention to avoid stereotypes is expected to meet with success. (2) Can control be exerted over the spontaneously generated prejudiced responses that occur when the conscious intention to suppress stereotypes is not already activated? The self-regulation model suggests that control over such prejudiced responses can be achieved through the establishment of cues of punishment. Specifically, external stimulus cues associated with past prejudiced responses should serve to inhibit the automatic processing that could otherwise produce prejudiced responses. Thus, in the present research, the realization among low-prejudiced individuals that they engaged in prejudiced responses should establish cues for punishment, which should facilitate subsequent control over spontaneously generated prejudiced responses. (3) What are the long-term outcomes of practice at self-regulating one~s prejudiced responses? The self-regulation model makes several specific predictions that are examined in the present research: (a) inhibition of ongoing behavior should become an automatic reaction to stereotype activation, and (b) low-prejudiced attitudes should become more accessible, so that ~ even spontaneously prejudiced responses can be avoided.
| Monteith, Margo J; Ashburn-Nardo, Leslie; Voils, Corrine I et al. (2002) Putting the brakes on prejudice: on the development and operation of cues for control. J Pers Soc Psychol 83:1029-50 |
| Ashburn-Nardo, L; Voils, C I; Monteith, M J (2001) Implicit associations as the seeds of intergroup bias: how easily do they take root? J Pers Soc Psychol 81:789-99 |
| Monteith, M J; Voils, C I (1998) Proneness to prejudiced responses: toward understanding the authenticity of self-reported discrepancies. J Pers Soc Psychol 75:901-16 |
