During my first week at Southwestern, one of the first statements by a professor that got me up in arms was from Dr. Melissa Johnson.  In our Introduction to Anthropology class she told us, "See you guys on Friday where we will talk about how all of you guys are racist!"

What, me RACIST? No way!

Little did I know that what Dr. Johnson was telling us was very true. We are all racist.  We all have prejudices (some more than others) about certain groups of people.  Even when we aren't blatantly racist, we are guilty of unintentional or unconscious racism called implicit racism.

However, how can we find out about these unintentional or unconscious racist biases of ours if they're implicit, out of our reach or direct attention?

One way is through the Implicit Association Test (IAT), a test developed by Greenwald, McGhee, & Schwartz (1998) that uses pictures and words to measure your level of preference between two groups such as: gay or straight people, thin or fat people, young or old people.  The IAT measures your preference by comparing the speed in which you make associations between a picture (e.g., a young or old person) and a word with a negative or positive connotation (e.g., pleasure v. agony).  The rate at which you make these associations shows your preference for one group over the other.

I took the IAT's on: Sexuality, Skin Tone, and Weight.

My results were:

-Moderate automatic preference for gay people compared to straight people

-Moderate automatic preference for thin people compared to fat people

-Strong automatic preference for light skin compared to dark skin

In order of least shocking to most shocking I found my IAT on thin people to be fairly accurate, my preference for light skin is a little surprising but not quite as surprising as my moderate preference for gay people.

My IAT on thin people is very true to my conscious beliefs and behavior towards thin and fat people.  I can be very vain sometimes and the physical appearance of others is an important trait to me.  Thus, it doesn't surprise me that I consciously prefer thin people over people who may not fall under the category of being 'thin'.  From the people I've dated (I have never dated someone who is hefty or overweight) to all of the people I have been friends with throughout my life, I have had very few close relationships with people who are overweight. In addition, I personally struggle with my self-image/self-esteem because I do not weigh what I would like to weigh.  My weight is very important to me and it literally mortifies me to think about ever being overweight.  Overall, I think my Weight IAT result show my true attitude towards people of different weights.  

My moderate automatic preference for light skin compared to dark skin was a bit surprising but when I  put some thought into why I got that result, it makes sense for the most part. Although my ethnicity is hispanic/latina, prior to attending Southwestern I have experienced being a part of the majority rather than the minority because I have always lived along the Texas/Mexico border.  Throughout my life I have had very little interaction with people who have dark skin.  (Yes, there are some very dark skinned Mexicans/hispanics but in general most people are in the range of light skinned to darkly tanned).  Even when I have moved away from the border, I moved into an area and school where most of the population is light skinned, therefore I continue to have a very meager exposure to people with dark skin.  Arguably, my lack of exposure to people with dark skin has shaped my preference for people with light skin compared to people with dark skin because I am much more accustomed to interacting with people with light skin.  

Additionally, I think it may also have to do with my attraction to men/women with light skin.  All of my first childhood crushes (i.e., Darien from Sailor Moon, Link from The Legend of Zelda) were light skinned men so from an early age I had a preference and attraction to men with light skin.  Whereas several of my friends always swoon over someone who is tan or dark, I always make a face of disgust.  I am very, very rarely attracted to someone who has dark skin, I am usually (I would say 98% of the time) always attracted to men/women who have light skin.

I would like to believe that I am not racist to people because of their skin tone, however this test tells me a lot more about how I consciously may be treating people of a darker skin color of mine.  I hope that over time my automatic preference changes.

Fun Tidbit:
My brother and I are spitting images of our parents.  My brother looks a lot more like my mom's side of the family, is much more conservative like my mother and has my mother's tastes; both my mom and brother are attracted to people of the opposite sex who have dark skin.  

On the other hand, I am much more similar to my father.  I look a lot more like my dad's side of the family, my father and I have almost similar personalities/ more liberal (than my mom and brother) and we both have the same taste in the opposite sex, we have always been attracted to people with light skin.

(My dad has dark skin and my mom has pale white light skin.  They were made for each other).

The most confusing result is my IAT result for Sexuality: moderate preference for gay people compared to straight people.  I really have no idea why I got this result.  Most of my friends are straight and I have only ever been in straight relationships.  Granted, I consider my sexuality to fall under the category of 'bisexual' but even then I just use that label because it's the easiest way to say, "I like men and women but I prefer men and have only had romantic relationships with men although I am not opposed to loving a woman romantically, I have just never fallen in love with a woman".  I don't think that I have a preference for gay people compared to straight people because of something like straight people victimizing me or discriminating against me because:

A) Most people don't know I'm bisexual (I don't hide it, but I don't wear it like a sign around my neck).

B) I go to a school where I have personally never encountered someone who cared about my identity/orientation and treated me differently because of it.

C) I never have felt like I am being directly oppressed because of my sexuality.  Although I truly advocate and believe in the equal rights for LGBT (and all other abbreviations) people and couples, I have always been in straight relationships.  Therefore I don't personally feel like I have been rid of my rights like my right to marry, adopt, ect…

However, I was raised in a mostly conservative, protestant home and I have never told my family about how I identify.  Currently, only one family member (a cousin) knows about my sexual identity.  Most of my friends know and if they don't know it's because they haven't asked or the topic hasn't been brought up.  I don't know if subconsciously I wish that I could just be open about how I feel with my family and that may be the root of my preference?  I can't seem to pinpoint the reason behind this result.

To conclude, these tests have brought to my attention how embarrassing it feels to know you have prejudices about some groups.  Although I accept that I have a preference for thin people, it embarrasses me to post that I have this preference.  It's not fair to people who are not thin to be viewed under a microscope by me.  I even feel like it's hypocritical of me because my parents are overweight and it saddens me to think that someone else like myself (with this weight preference) would treat the two people I love the most in the world differently because they don't fit within certain weight standards.  I don't think I can ever really rid myself of this preference completely.  However, I do hope to progress and have less of a prejudice towards people who are overweight.  For my skin tone results, I am feel the same way as I do with weight.  I can't put myself on a pedestal and claim that I am colorblind, I know that I see color.  However, I can only hope to progress so that I find myself less and less in situations where I give preference to someone of a certain skin color.  Lastly, although my results for sexuality claim I have a preference for gay people compared to straight people, I personally don't feel one preference over the other.  Nonetheless, if this is something that I am completely oblivious to then I also hope to maybe view straight and gay people on equal terms.

Greenwald, A. G., McGhee, D. E., & Schwartz, J. L. K. (1998). Measuring individual differences in implicit cognition: The implicit association test. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74(6), 1464-1480. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.74.6.1464

p.s., my title is what I always tell my friends when they ask me why I don't like Mr. Tall, dark, and handsome. It's because, "I like my chocolate white".  I like Mr. Tall, white, and handsome.

Have you ever had to comfort a friend during an uncomfortable or embarrassing experience?  What is one of the most common things you tell you friend?

"Oh don't worry [friend's name], it happens to everyone!"

As social beings, we take comfort in knowing that even in our not-so-shining moments, everyone else has experienced the same thing at one point or another.  Therefore, we really don't have worry because it happens to everyone else!

Does taking a fall in the hallway in front of your crush really happen to everyone else?  Maybe it does but maybe it doesn’t. However, telling ourselves that it does is a very common thought amongst most people. The tendency to overestimate the extent that other people share our behaviors, opinions, and beliefs is called the false-consensus effect (Ross, Greene, & House, 1977).

Although it may seem silly that we should inflate how many other people share our thoughts and beliefs, it's a form of defense for our self-esteem.  As previously mentioned, we take comfort in knowing that the majority (whether it’s other people in general or people our age or in our particular situation) feels the same way we do.  The more people agree with our belief or opinion, the more we feel that the reason most people agree is because it is the right  belief or opinion.  The more people have experienced what we are going through, the more we feel that it is not a personal but rather global experience that everyone else has undergone and/or is going through.

Recently, I have fallen prey to the false-consensus effect.  One statement that I have been tossing around in my head lately is that the majority of other seniors at Southwestern are at a loss with what they are going to do with their lives.   I tell myself that I am not the only one who is now questioning my graduate school interests and mostly everyone else is experiencing the same dilemma in their academic career.  Given that not knowing what I want to do with my life puts me in a predicament of uncertainty, I want to know that I am not alone in feeling this way.  Therefore, I tell myself that everyone else is feeling the same way (false-consensus effect) so that I don't feel like something is personally wrong with me (self-defense).

n = 389

Ross, L., Greene, D., & House, P. (1977). The false consensus effect: An egocentric bias in social perception and attribution processes. Journal Of Experimental Social Psychology, 13(3), 279-301. doi:10.1016/0022-1031(77)90049-X

Rogues are such assholes.  God, could that paladin be any more elitist? 

Even in the world of Azeroth, the class (or specialization in combat) that people choose to play carries more than just armor and a bag full of food and gold.  Characters within the game are also subject to judgement or impressions formed by other players around them.  These judgements can sometimes be group schemas (i.e., stereotypes) about what these players are like.

Although some people act in ways that hold a stereotype to be true (i.e., a lot of people that play paladins do seem to be elitist and cocky), how much of the stereotype being true is based on the assumption that we expect a person to act in a stereotypical way?

One answer offered by social psychologists is that we are being affected by a self-fulfilling prophecy (Rosenthal & Jacobson, 1968). When we have expectations about a person, our expectations guide us to interpret their behavior in ways that confirm the expectation we hold.  In short, if you expect someone to act cocky and foolish, you interpret their behavior to be cocky and foolish.  As a result, you think to yourself, "I am so right about that person, they are cocky and foolish".  Your expectation (i.e., prophecy) of their behavior becomes fulfilled.  

Even a real world concept such as the self-fulfilling prophecy can carry over to virtual worlds such as World of Warcraft but there's been many a time where my stereotype and expectation of a player has shaped the way I interact with them, eventually acting in ways that are exactly how I expected them to be.

The video I posted above plays on some of the most popular stereotypes of each class in World of Warcraft.  Some of the most prolific are that: players who play paladins are usually elitist, cocky, and love to show-off, rogues are stealthy, sneaky and will always go for a cheap-shot at someone and people who play hunters are (who are often called hunTARDS) are usually very young (i.e., age-wise) and never know what they are suppose to be doing. Using these stereotypes, I have interacted with many players with these set of assumptions.  

For example, because I have the assumption that hunters are usually going to be dumb players if a hunter asks me a question about gameplay or strategy I will usually roll my eyes, sigh and answer the question with an obvious tone of annoyance.  I think to myself, "Of course I get the huntard that doesn't know a thing".  Thus, even something as common as asking a question is filtered through my prophecy that all hunters are dumb and I conclude that in fact, all hunters are dumb.

n = 453

Rosenthal, R., & Jacobson, L. (1968). Pygmalion in the classroom: Teacher expectation and pupils' intellectual development. New York, NY US: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.

Do you ever find yourself changing from situation from situation like a chameleon?  You hold up one façade when you find yourself interacting with one group of people and take a 180° turn in appearance with another?

Researcher Mark Snyder (1987) calls this phenomena self-monitoring.  According to this theory, we have a tendency to monitor/gauge our behavior and have the ability (or choose) to change to adapt to a social situation.

However, not everyone self-monitors to the same degree.  Some people are considered to be high self-monitoring.  A high self-monitor is more likely to be constantly observant of their social environment and will change their behavior to match the social climate.  For example, a person may have a passion and hobby for sailing and not for dolphins.  However, if he or she is at a fundraiser that benefits the rescue and aid of dolphins a high self-monitor will adapt their behavior to reflect the interest of the social environment, dolphins.  Thus, the passionate sailor will now go on and on to people at the fundraiser about their concern, love, and active fight for the rights of dolphins even though he or she had never given dolphins a second thought prior to the fundraiser.  For a high self-monitor, appearance in a social situation is considerably important.  

On the opposite end of the spectrum are low self-monitors.  In the previously mentioned situation, a low self-monitor who does not feel the need to be adaptive to different social situations may engage with patrons of the party admitting that he or she has never really given dolphins much thought or not discuss the welfare of dolphins at all.  A low self-monitor is considered to remain consistent (i.e., consistent behavior) across social situations (Snyder & Monson, 1975).

After taking The Self-Monitoring Scale (Snyder, 1974; Snyder & Gangestad, 1986), I found myself a bit surprised.  I had a score of '11' which is somewhat the median in the scale that ranges from 0 (low self-monitoring) to 18 (high self-monitoring).  I actually thought I would be higher in self-monitoring because I am very self-conscious about my outward appearance to others and also very extroverted.  However, I think the surprise is a more pleasant than upsetting.  

I am considerably adaptive in changing my behavior according to the social situation I find myself in.  Whenever I am among my hometown church congregation I am the quiet, shy, and respectful minister's daughter.  At school, different social groups know different "me's".  In my classes, I tend to be the more passive and quiet student who occasionally speaks up in class (Depending on the class.  I am much more talkative in some of my philosophy classes than my psychology classes). Among friends I pull back all the restraints on my sailor's mouth and say every combination of the f-bomb possible. In front of some of my professors I interact in a more composed, serious and professional manner whereas with others (i.e., mostly Dr. Selbin) who have gotten to know me on a more personal level I interact with very differently than with other faculty at Southwestern.  

Normally, I am considerably shy, meek and don't hold myself to high regards.  However, I know how to turn the light switch from my passive, quiet self to taking charge and lead.  Throughout my middle school and high school years I have always held positions of authority and leadership at school and in larger church youth organizations.  This quiet girl usually fades in the background with her friends at a party but will always gladly take the microphone in front of an audience without feeling too nervous or shy.  I walk with my head facing the ground sometimes but will lift my head up to be all smiles and engaging in conversation when I have to share cocktails with the Southwestern Board of Trustees.  

I am not a super chameleon, I feel that the reason I fall within the median of the Self-Monitoring Scale is because many of my personality traits remain consistent across social situations.  Nonetheless, I am observant of my social climate and will change my behavior to match what I feel is the most beneficial way to behave or carry myself.  

n = 695

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Snyder, M. (1974). The self-monitoring of expressive behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 30(4) 526–537. doi:10.1037/h0037039

Snyder, M. (1987). Public appearances/private realities: The psychology of self-monitoring. New York, NY US: Freeman/ Times Books/ Henry Holt & Co.

Snyder, M., & Gangestad, S. (1986). On the nature of self-monitoring: Matters of assessment, matters of validity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(1) 125–139. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.51.1.125

Snyder, M., & Monson, T. C. (1975). Persons, situations, and the control of social behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 32(4) 637–644. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.32.4.637