ArticlePDF Available

Beyond Test Performance: A Broader View of Stereotype Threat

DOI:10.1016/j.copsyc.2016.05.002
Authors:
Neil Lewis Jr at Cornell University
Neil Lewis Jr
Denise Sekaquaptewa at University of Michigan
Denise Sekaquaptewa
Download full-text PDF
Read full-text
Download citation
Content uploaded by Denise Sekaquaptewa
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Denise Sekaquaptewa on Oct 01, 2019
Content may be subject to copyright.
Beyond
test
performance:
a
broader
view
of
stereotype
threat
Neil
A
Lewis
Jr.
and
Denise
Sekaquaptewa
Stereotype
threat
is
the
‘social
psychological
threat
that
arises
when
one
is
in
a
situation
or
doing
something
for
which
a
negative
stereotype
about
one’s
group
applies’
[1].
Although
much
of
the
research
on
stereotype
threat
has
focused
on
how
stereotype
threat
affects
test
performance,
its
original
conception
described
a
broader
and
more
general
phenomenon.
In
this
article
we
review
stereotype
threat
research,
taking
a
broader
view
on
threat
beyond
the
realm
of
test
performance,
focusing
on
its
antecedents
(e.g.,
environmental
stereotype
cues)
and
consequences
(e.g.,
effects
on
interracial
interaction).
Interventions
have
also
focused
primarily
on
improving
or
preserving
test
performance,
indicating
the
need
for
interventions
that
address
the
broader
consequences
of
threat.
Address
University
of
Michigan,
Department
of
Psychology,
USA
Corresponding
author:
Sekaquaptewa,
Denise
(dsekaqua@umich.edu)
Current
Opinion
in
Psychology
2016,
11:40–43
This
review
comes
from
a
themed
issue
on
Intergroup
relations
Edited
by
Jolanda
Jetten
and
Nyla
R.
Branscombe
For
a
complete
overview
see
the
Issue
and
the
Editorial
Available
online
13th
May
2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2016.05.002
2352-250X/#
2016
Elsevier
Ltd.
All
rights
reserved.
In
the
mid-1990s,
Steele
and
Aronson
[2]
introduced
the
concept
of
stereotype
threat
to
the
psychological
literature,
which
provided
a
framework
to
understand
the
experience
of
being
the
target
of
a
negative
stereotype.
Since
that
time,
a
large
body
of
research
has
accumulated
on
this
topic,
describing
both
antecedent
factors
and
consequences
of
experiencing
stereotype
threat.
As
defined
by
Steele
and
colleagues
[1],
see
also
[3],
stereotype
threat
is:
‘the
social
psychological
threat
that
arises
when
one
is
in
a
situation
or
doing
something
for
which
a
negative
stereo-
type
about
one’s
group
applies.
This
predicament
threa-
tens
one
with
being
negatively
stereotyped,
with
being
judged
or
treated
stereotypically,
or
with
the
prospect
of
conforming
to
the
stereotype
.
.
.
And
for
those
who
identify
with
the
domain
to
which
the
stereotype
is
relevant,
this
predicament
can
be
self-threatening.’
Most
early
stereotype
threat
research
focused
on
the
negative
consequences
of
this
experience
on
performance,
particularly
on
test
scores
[for
a
meta-analytic
review,
see
[4]].
Work
has
also
focused
on
identifying
the
conditions
that
induce
stereotype
threat,
as
well
as
identifying
vari-
ables
that
moderate
and
mediate
effects
of
threat
on
test
performance
[5
,6
].
The
primary
focus
on
test
scores
made
sense,
given
that
test
scores
(particularly
on
standardized
tests)
are
often
used
as
gateways
to
opportunities
such
as
admissions
to
educational
programs
or
employment
[7].
Yet
such
a
sharp
focus
on
the
influence
of
threat
on
test
performance
provides
too
narrow
a
view
on
a
psychological
experience
that
was
clearly
considered
a
broader
phenom-
enon,
as
captured
by
Steele’s
initial
theorizing.
Therefore,
more
recent
work
has
broadened
the
view
on
threat
to
focus
on
antecedents
and
consequences
beyond
the
realm
of
test
performance.
This
more
recent
research
documents
that
stereotype
threat
has
implications
for
other
important
out-
comes
including
doctor–patient
interactions,
workplace
well-being,
and
intergroup
relations.
In
this
article,
we
begin
by
describing
research
on
the
influence
of
stereotype
threat
on
test
performance
as
a
basis
for
understanding
the
phe-
nomenon,
then
synthesize
stereotype
threat
research
from
other
domains
to
provide
a
broader
framework
for
under-
standing
the
antecedents
and
consequences
of
threat.
When
and
why
stereotype
threat
undermines
test
performance
Stereotype
threat
is
induced
by
being
in
a
situation
in
which
negative
stereotypes
about
one’s
group
are
activat-
ed
or
‘in
the
air’
[1].
This
situational
threat
can
lead
to
diminished
test
performance
for
targets
of
the
stereotype.
This
effect
is
well
documented,
particularly
on
written
academic
tests.
In
more
than
three
hundred
demonstra-
tions,
stereotype
threat
has
been
shown
to
reduce
test
performance
among
negatively
stereotyped
groups
such
as
racial/ethnic
minority
students
and
women
in
male-
dominated
fields
[4,5
].
For
example,
African
American
students,
who
are
stereotyped
as
poor
academic
perfor-
mers,
scored
worse
than
Whites
on
a
test
when
it
was
described
as
an
assessment
of
intellectual
ability.
How-
ever,
when
the
same
test
was
described
as
non-diagnostic
of
intellectual
ability,
African
American
students
per-
formed
equally
to
White
students,
as
the
alternative
test
description
reduced
concerns
about
the
implications
of
poor
performance
for
African
American
students
[2].
Similar
results
emerge
among
women
in
mathematics
[e.g.,
[8]]
and
science
fields
[9],
given
stereotypes
about
women’s
lower
ability
and
interest
in
these
fields
com-
pared
to
men.
In
addition
to
academic
performance
decrements,
stereotype
threat
also
diminishes
perfor-
mance
on
other
tests.
One
study
in
particular
demonstrat-
ed
that
having
the
elderly
think
of
themselves
as
older
(vs.
younger)
and
reminding
them
of
the
stereotype
that
Available
online
at
www.sciencedirect.com
ScienceDirect
Current
Opinion
in
Psychology
2016,
11:40–43
www.sciencedirect.com
memory
declines
with
age
lowered
their
performance
on
a
memory
test
[10].
Importantly,
these
studies
indicate
that
members
of
stereotyped
groups
have
ability
equal
to
that
of
majority
groups,
as
no
group
differences
in
test
scores
emerge
in
situations
in
which
stereotype
threat
is
reduced.
In
addition
to
demonstrations
of
the
effect,
research
has
also
uncovered
information
about
the
conditions
neces-
sary
for
stereotype
threat
to
occur,
and
the
mechanisms
by
which
it
influences
performance.
There
are
three
main
criteria
for
stereotype
threat
to
occur.
The
first
criterion,
stereotype
awareness,
requires
that
the
stereotype
exist
and
the
target
be
aware
of
it
[11,12].
That
is,
people
within
a
society
must
have
a
shared
schema
or
belief
about
mem-
bers
of
a
particular
group,
and
members
of
those
groups
must
be
aware
that
people
may
apply
those
stereotypes
to
them.
The
second
criterion,
domain
identification,
requires
that
the
target
be
invested
in
the
domain
[13].
In
other
words,
it
is
those
who
care
most
about
doing
well,
or
for
whom
being
a
part
of
the
domain
is
an
important
part
of
their
self-concept,
that
experience
the
worst
outcomes
related
to
stereotype
threat.
The
third
criterion,
task
difficulty,
requires
that
the
task
at
hand
be
difficult
[8];
without
difficulty,
one
need
not
be
threatened.
When
all
of
these
factors
combine,
a
person
can
experience
stereo-
type
threat
and
its
deleterious
consequences.
With
respect
to
mechanism,
stereotype
threat
operates
by
triggering
a
sequence
of
negative
thoughts,
negative
appraisals,
and
negative
emotions
in
the
target
of
the
stereotype
[14].
These
processes
can
lead
to
decrements
in
working
memory,
a
necessary
capacity
for
optimal
task
performance.
When
working
memory
becomes
depleted,
targets
of
stereotype
threat
underperform
on
stereotype
relevant
tests
[14].
Antecedents
of
stereotype
threat:
a
broader
view
In
many
laboratory
experiments,
researchers
have
used
a
variety
of
manipulations
to
induce
or
reduce
stereotype
threat,
typically
by
changing
the
relevance
of
the
stereo-
type
to
the
performance
task.
For
example,
to
induce
threat,
the
test
may
be
described
as
diagnostic
of
an
ability
in
which
one’s
group
is
stereotyped
as
lacking
[e.g.,
[2]].
To
reduce
threat,
the
test
may
be
described
as
being
diagnostic
of
a
stereotype-irrelevant
ability
[e.g.,
problem
solving
[2]],
or
as
being
non-diagnostic
of
any
ability
[e.g.,
[15]].
These
manipulations
were
critical
to
documenting
the
effects
of
stereotype
threat
in
a
controlled
setting.
They
demonstrat-
ed
that
for
stereotype
threat
effects
to
occur,
some
aspect
of
the
situation
needs
to
activate
a
negative
stereotype
about
one’s
group,
and
that
threat
cue
produces
the
negative
downstream
consequences.
Research
then
focused
on
a
broadened
conception
of
these
threat
cues,
leading
to
the
development
of
a
‘cues
hypothesis’
[16].
The
cues
hypothesis
proposes
that
the
way
environments
are
organized
has
important
impacts
on
groups
who
may
be
vulnerable
to
stereotype
threat.
When
settings
contain
threatening
cues,
they
increase
the
chance
for
stereotype
threat
to
occur.
The
presence
of
these
cues
prompts
states
of
heightened
cognitive
and
physiological
vigilance,
decreased
feelings
of
belonging,
and
decreased
desire
to
participate
in
a
setting
[16].
Three
categories
of
cues
that
often
produce
threat
outcomes
are:
(1)
situations
in
which
members
of
one’s
group
are
under-
represented
in
a
domain
[16–18];
(2)
situations
in
which
physical
objects
suggest
that
members
of
one’s
group
do
not
belong
in
a
domain
[e.g.,
[19]];
and
(3)
situations
in
which
members
of
one’s
group
are
treated
negatively;
this
could
manifest
as
overt
discrimination
or
as
microaggres-
sions
in
which
people
subtly
derogate
members
of
one’s
group
[20,21].
The
existence
of
these
types
of
cues
can
create
climates
that
produce
negative
outcomes
including
underperformance,
but
also
broader
outcomes
such
as
a
decreased
sense
of
belonging
in
a
field,
and
lowered
motivation
to
persist
in
that
domain
[22].
It
appears
then
that
many
elements
of
the
environments
in
which
we
live
and
work
may
trigger
stereotypes
[16,19].
Given
this,
it
is
important
to
recognize
and
examine
the
influences
our
environments
may
have,
as
environmental
interventions
may
be
a
promising
endeavor
for
stereotype
threat
reduction
[22].
We
may
not
have
much
control
over
our
deep-seated
stereotypic
beliefs,
which
are
notoriously
difficult
to
change
[23].
We
do
however
have
more
control
over
our
environments,
and
thus
have
the
potential
to
shape
them
to
be
less
threat-inducing.
Consequences
of
stereotype
threat:
a
broader
view
Research
on
the
cues
hypothesis
not
only
demonstrated
the
effects
of
stereotype
threat
cues
on
performance,
but
also
on
other
important
outcomes.
For
example,
stereo-
type
threat
cues
can
diminish
sense
of
belonging
in
and
identification
with
an
academic
field
[19,25],
and
lower
performance
expectancies
on
an
upcoming
test
[18,24].
These
outcomes
may
not
only
undermine
performance
[17,18],
but
also
interest
and
persistence
in
stereotype
relevant
domains
[16,24,25].
Effects
of
stereotype
threat
also
extend
to
a
variety
of
non-academic
domains.
Stereotype
threat
has
been
shown
to
undermine
the
quality
of
doctor–patient
inter-
actions
leading
to
worse
health
outcomes
for
patients
[26].
It
has
also
been
shown
to
undermine
athletic
performance
[27,28],
driving
performance
[29,30],
and
workplace
suc-
cess
and
well-being
[[31,32],
see
also
[33

]].
Perhaps
most
interesting,
stereotype
threat
can
influence
the
quality
of
intergroup
relations,
particularly
interracial
interactions
in
the
United
States
[34,35

,36].
For
exam-
ple,
during
Black–White
interracial
interactions,
mem-
bers
of
each
race
become
aware
of
the
stereotypes
about
their
own
race,
and
the
awareness
of
these
stereotypes
can
A
broader
view
of
stereotype
threat
Lewis
and
Sekaquaptewa
41
www.sciencedirect.com
Current
Opinion
in
Psychology
2016,
11:40–43
lead
to
uncomfortable
and
insincere
interactions
in
which
Blacks
are
concerned
about
being
perceived
in
terms
of
Black
stereotypes
[37]
and
Whites
are
concerned
with
appearing
racist
[38].
Because
these
poor
interracial
inter-
actions
are
unsatisfying
for
all,
they
probably
decrease
people’s
motivations
to
have
more
interracial
interactions
in
the
future,
which
is
detrimental
for
improving
inter-
group
relations
[38].
Overall,
the
generalizability
of
stereotype
threat
effects
across
domains
reflects
the
broad
influence
of
threat
on
the
way
people
approach
a
variety
of
tasks.
When
one’s
motivation,
persistence,
sense
of
belonging,
and
expec-
tations
for
performance
and
intergroup
contact
are
dimin-
ished
by
threat,
this
can
affect
nearly
any
ensuing
task.
Implications
for
interventions
Given
the
negative
consequences
that
often
accompany
stereotype
threat,
there
have
been
many
attempts
to
create
interventions
to
prevent
or
reduce
stereotype
threat
(see
www.reducingstereotypethreat.org
for
a
com-
prehensive
list).
Many
of
these
existing
intervention
strategies
have
been
aimed
at
preserving
or
increasing
test
performance
among
members
of
stereotyped
groups,
consistent
with
the
focus
on
test
outcomes.
These
inter-
ventions
tend
to
fall
into
one
of
five
general
categories.
Task
reframing
interventions
operate
by
changing
the
descriptions
of
tasks
to
minimize
the
relevance
of
a
stereotype
[e.g.,
[39]].
Threat
cue
removal
interventions
omit
triggers
known
to
activate
negative
stereotypes,
such
as
moving
demographic
questions
to
the
end
of
standardized
tests
to
avoid
priming
negative
stereotypes
[e.g.,
[40]].
Role
model
interventions
demonstrate
that
having
more
in-group
peers
reduces
stereotype
threat
and
improves
participation,
aspirations,
and
persistence
[41

,42].
Self-affirmation
interventions
encourage
people
to
focus
on
positive
aspects
of
themselves
in
order
to
buffer
against
threat,
improving
mathematics
perfor-
mance
and
grade
point
averages
over
time
[43,44].
Finally,
mindset
interventions
encourage
students
to
think
about
intelligence
as
something
that
can
be
increased,
and
this
mindset
results
in
greater
enjoyment
and
value
of
education,
and
improved
grades
in
school
[[45,46],
see
also
[47]].
Taken
together
these
studies
demonstrate
that
stereo-
type
threat
can
be
reduced
with
relatively
small
inter-
ventions.
Despite
the
promise
of
these
interventions
however,
they
have
focused
almost
exclusively
on
reduc-
ing
stereotype
threat
in
the
context
of
academic
perfor-
mance.
Given
the
prevalence
of
stereotype
threat
in
other
important
domains
discussed
above
(e.g.,
health,
work-
place
well-being,
intergroup
relations),
more
work
is
needed
to
broaden
the
scope
of
these
interventions
to
reduce
stereotype
threat
in
situations
other
than
test
performance.
Broader
interventions
in
this
spirit
have
the
potential
to
achieve
desirable
social
goals
such
as
improving
the
quality
of
doctor–patient
interactions,
im-
proving
work
climates,
and
making
interracial
interac-
tions
more
genuine
and
productive.
Conclusions
Research
on
stereotype
threat
has
revealed
the
important
influence
of
stereotype
threat
on
critically
objective
out-
comes
such
as
test
scores,
as
well
as
more
subjective
outcomes
ranging
from
motivation
and
persistence
to
the
quality
of
intergroup
interaction.
Triggers
of
stereo-
type
threat
are
also
prevalent
and
wide-ranging,
when
one
takes
a
broader
view
of
threat.
While
much
of
the
focus
has
been
on
effects
of
stereotype
threat
on
test
perfor-
mance,
the
broader
body
of
work
on
threat
suggests
that
the
influence
of
stereotypes
on
our
everyday
lives
may
be
far-reaching
[48].
Therefore,
our
future
interventions
to
reduce
threat
should
also
take
a
broader
view.
Conflict
of
interest
Nothing
declared.
References
and
recommended
reading
Papers
of
particular
interest,
published
within
the
period
of
review,
have
been
highlighted
as:
of
special
interest

of
outstanding
interest
1.
Steele
CM:
A
threat
in
the
air:
how
stereotypes
shape
intellectual
identity
and
performance.
Am
Psychol
1999,
52:613-629.
2.
Steele
CM,
Aronson
J:
Stereotype
threat
and
the
intellectual
test
performance
of
African
Americans.
J
Pers
Soc
Psychol
1995,
69:797-811.
3.
Steele
CM,
Spencer
SJ,
Aronson
J:
Contending
with
group
image:
the
psychology
of
stereotype
and
social
identity
threat.
Adv
Exp
Soc
Psychol
2002,
34:379-440.
4.
Nguyen
HHD,
Ryan
AM:
Does
stereotype
threat
affect
test
performance
of
minorities
and
women?
A
meta-analysis
of
experimental
evidence.
J
Appl
Psychol
2008,
93:1314-1334.
5.
Schmader
T,
Hall
WM:
Stereotype
threat..
pp
1–14
Emerging
Trends
in
the
Social
and
Behavioral
Sciences:
An
Interdisciplinary,
Searchable,
and
Linkable
Resource.
Wiley;
2015.
This
paper
provides
a
review
of
the
cognitive
and
affective
mechanisms
of
stereotype
threat,
and
points
out
areas
in
this
field
that
still
need
to
be
addressed,
such
as
the
role
of
cultural
variation
in
stereotype
threat
effects.
6.
Shapiro
J,
Aronson
J,
McGlone
MS:
Stereotype
Threat.
In
Handbook
of
Prejudice,
Stereotyping,
and
Discrimination,
edn
2.
Edited
by
Nelson
TD.
Psychology
Press;
2016:87-105.
This
chapter
provides
a
broad
review
of
research
revealing
stereotype
threat
as
a
cognitive
burden
that
undermines
success
and
interest
in
a
stereotyped
domain.
7.
Astin
AW:
Assessment
for
Excellence:
The
Philosophy
and
Practice
of
Assessment
and
Evaluation
in
Higher
Education.
Rowman
&
Littlefield
Publishers;
2012.
8.
Spencer
SJ,
Steele
CM,
Quinn
DM:
Stereotype
threat
and
women’s
math
performance.
J
Exp
Soc
Psychol
1999,
35:4-28.
9.
Beasley
MA,
Fischer
MJ:
Why
they
leave:
the
impact
of
stereotype
threat
on
the
attrition
of
women
and
minorities
from
science,
math
and
engineering
majors.
Soc
Psychol
Educ
2012,
15:427-448.
10.
Haslam
C,
Morton
TA,
Haslam
SA,
Varnes
L,
Graham
R,
Gamaz
L:
When
the
age
is
in,
the
wit
is
out:
age-related
self-
categorization
and
defecit
expectations
reduce
performance
42
Intergroup
relations
Current
Opinion
in
Psychology
2016,
11:40–43
www.sciencedirect.com
on
clinical
tests
used
in
dementia
assessment.
Psychol
Aging
2012,
27:779-784.
11.
Deaux
K,
Bikmen
N,
Gilkes
A,
Ventuneac
A,
Joseph
Y,
Payne
YA,
Steele
CM:
Becoming
American:
stereotype
threat
effects
in
Afro-
Caribbean
immigrant
groups.
Soc
Psychol
Q
2007,
70:384-404.
12.
Shih
M,
Pittinsky
TL,
Ambady
N:
Stereotype
susceptibility:
identity
salience
and
shifts
in
quantitative
performance.
Psychol
Sci
1999,
10:80-83.
13.
Aronson
J,
Lustina
MJ,
Good
C,
Keough
K,
Steele
CM,
Brown
J:
When
white
men
can’t
do
math:
necessary
and
sufficient
factors
in
stereotype
threat.
J
Exp
Soc
Psychol
1999,
35:29-46.
14.
Schmader
T,
Johns
M:
Converging
evidence
that
stereotype
threat
reduces
working
memory
capacity.
J
Pers
Soc
Psychol
2003,
85:440-452.
15.
Brown
RP,
Day
EA:
The
difference
isn’t
Black
and
White:
stereotype
threat
and
the
race
gap
on
Raven’s
advanced
progressive
matrices.
J
Appl
Psychol
2006,
91:979-985.
16.
Murphy
MC,
Steele
CM,
Gross
JJ:
Signaling
threat:
how
situational
cues
affect
women
in
math,
science,
and
engineering
settings.
Psychol
Sci
2007,
18:879-885.
17.
Sekaquaptewa
D,
Thompson
M:
The
differential
effects
of
solo
status
on
members
of
high-
and
low-status
groups.
Pers
Soc
Psychol
B
2002,
28:694-707.
18.
Sekaquaptewa
D,
Thompson
M:
Solo
status,
stereotype
threat,
and
performance
expectancies:
their
effects
on
women’s
performance.
J
Exp
Soc
Psychol
2003,
39:68-74.
19.
Cheryan
S,
Plaut
VC,
Davies
PG,
Steele
CM:
Ambient
belonging:
how
stereotypical
cues
impact
gender
participation
in
computer
science.
J
Pers
Soc
Psychol
2009,
97:1045-1060.
20.
LaCosse
J,
Sekaquaptewa
D,
Bennett
J:
STEM
stereotypic
attribution
bias
among
women
in
an
unwelcoming
science
setting.
Psychol
Women
Quart,
in
press.
http://dx.doi.org/10.
1177/0361684316630965.
21.
Sue
DW
(Ed):
Microaggressions
and
Marginality:
Manifestation,
Dynamics,
and
Impact.
John
Wiley
&
Sons;
2010.
22.
Sekaquaptewa
D:
Calling
for
a
change
in
the
STEM
climate.
Observer
2014,
27.
23.
Hamilton
DL,
Trolier
TK:
Stereotypes
and
stereotyping.
An
overview
of
the
cognitive
approach.
In
Prejudice,
Discrimination,
and
Racism.
Edited
by
Dovidio
JF,
Gaertner
SL.
Academic
Press;
1986:127-163.
24.
Thompson
M,
Sekaquaptewa
D:
When
being
different
is
detrimental:
solo
status
and
the
performance
of
women
and
racial
minorities.
Anal
Soc
Issues
Public
Policy
2002,
2:183-203.
25.
Smith
JL,
Brown
ER,
Thoman
DB,
Deemer
ED:
Losing
its
expected
communal
value:
how
stereotype
threat
undermines
women’s
identity
as
research
scientists.
Soc
Psychol
Educ
2015,
18:443-466.
26.
Burgess
DJ,
Warren
J,
Phelan
S,
Dovidio
J,
Van
Ryn
M:
Stereotype
threat
and
health
disparities:
what
medical
educators
and
future
physicians
need
to
know.
J
Gen
Intern
Med
2010,
25:169-177.
27.
Krendl
A,
Gainsburg
I,
Ambady
N:
The
effects
of
stereotypes
and
observer
pressure
on
athletic
performance.
J
Sport
Exerc
Psychol
2012,
34:3-15.
28.
Stone
J,
Lynch
CI,
Sjomeling
M,
Darley
JM:
Stereotype
threat
effects
on
Black
and
White
athletic
performance.
J
Pers
Soc
Psychol
1999,
77:1213-1227.
29.
Yeung
NCJ,
von
Hippel
C:
Stereotype
threat
increases
the
likelihood
that
female
drivers
in
a
simulator
run
over
jaywalkers.
Accid
Anal
Prev
2008,
40:667-674.
30.
Lambert
AE,
Watson
JM,
Stefanucci
JK,
Ward
N,
Bakdash
JZ,
Strayer
DL:
Stereotype
threat
impairs
older
adult
driving.
Appl
Cogn
Psychol
2016,
30:22-28.
31.
Gupta
VK,
Goktan
AB,
Gunay
G:
Gender
differences
in
evaluation
of
new
business
opportunity:
a
stereotype
threat
perspective.
J
Bus
Venturing
2014,
29:273-288.
32.
von
Hippel
C,
Sekaquaptewa
D,
McFarlane
M:
Stereotype
threat
among
women
in
finance:
negative
effects
on
identity,
workplace
well-being,
and
recruiting.
Psychol
Women
Quart
2015,
39:405-414.
33.

Kalokerinos
EK,
von
Hippel
C,
Zacher
H:
Is
stereotype
threat
a
useful
construct
for
organizational
psychology
research
and
practice?
Ind
Organ
Psychol-US
2014,
7:381-402.
The
authors
propose
that
stereotype
threat
may
be
an
important
but
understudied
phenomenon
in
organizational
contexts.
34.
Goff
PA,
Steele
CM,
Davies
PG:
The
space
between
us:
stereotype
threat
and
distance
in
interracial
contexts.
J
Pers
Soc
Psychol
2008,
94:91-107.
35.

Schmader
T,
Hall
WM,
Croft
A:
Stereotype
threat
in
intergroup
relations.
In
APA
Handbook
of
Personality
and
Social
Psychology:
Vol.
2.
Group
Processes..
Edited
by
Mikulincer
M,
Shaver
PR.
APA;
2015.
This
chapter
provides
a
review
of
the
parameters
and
mechanisms
of
stereotype
threat,
and
interventions
to
reduce
it,
with
a
focus
on
inter-
group
relations.
36.
Tatum
TJD,
Sekaquaptewa
D:
Teachers
and
learners.
Roles
adopted
by
African
Americans
and
Whites
during
interracial
discussions
about
race.
Group
Process
Intergr
Relat
2009,
12:579-590.
37.
Najdowski
CJ,
Bottoms
BL,
Goff
PA:
Stereotype
threat
and
racial
differences
in
citizens’
experiences
of
police
encounters.
Law
Hum
Behav
2015,
39:463-477.
38.
Richeson
JA,
Shelton
JN:
Negotiating
interracial
interactions:
costs,
consequences,
and
possibilities.
Curr
Dir
Psychol
Sci
2007,
16:316-320.
39.
Quinn
DM,
Spencer
SJ:
The
interference
of
stereotype
threat
with
women’s
generation
of
mathematical
problem-solving
strategies.
J
Soc
Issues
2001,
57:55-71.
40.
Danaher
K,
Crandall
CS:
Stereotype
threat
in
applied
settings
re-examined.
J
Appl
Soc
Psychol
2008,
38:1639-1655.
41.

Dasgupta
N,
Scircle
MM,
Hunsinger
M:
Female
peers
in
small
work
groups
enhance
women’s
motivation,
verbal
participation,
and
career
aspirations
in
engineering.
Proc
Natl
Acad
Sci
2015,
112:4498-4933.
This
paper
describes
studies
of
how
peer
role
models
affect
participation
of
women
in
engineering
teams
of
varying
gender
compositions.
42.
Dasgupta
N:
Ingroup
experts
and
peers
as
social
vaccines
who
inoculate
the
self-concept:
the
stereotypes
inoculation
model.
Psycholo
Inq
2011,
22:231-246.
43.
Cohen
GL,
Garcia
J,
Apfel
N,
Master
A:
Reducing
the
racial
achievement
gap:
a
social–psychological
intervention.
Science
2006,
313:1307-1310.
44.
Martens
A,
Johns
M,
Greenberg
J,
Schimel
J:
Combating
stereotype
threat:
the
effect
of
self-affirmation
on
women’s
intellectual
performance.
J
Exp
Soc
Psychol
2006,
42:236-243.
45.
Aronson
J,
Fried
CB,
Good
C:
Reducing
the
effects
of
stereotype
threat
on
African
American
college
students
by
shaping
theories
of
intelligence.
J
Exp
Soc
Psychol
2002,
38:113-125.
46.
Good
C,
Aronson
J,
Inzlicht
M:
Improving
adolescents’
standardized
test
performance:
an
intervention
to
reduce
the
effects
of
stereotype
threat.
J
Appl
Dev
Psychol
2003,
24:645-662.
47.
Dweck
C:
Mindset
The
New
Psychology
of
Success.
Random
House;
2006.
48.
Steele
CM:
Whistling
Vivaldi
and
other
Clues
to
how
Stereotypes
Affect
Us
(issues
of
our
time).
W.W.
Norton
&
Company;
2011.
A
broader
view
of
stereotype
threat
Lewis
and
Sekaquaptewa
43
www.sciencedirect.com
Current
Opinion
in
Psychology
2016,
11:40–43
... This argument was developed from my consideration of a large body of research on social disparities -particularly disparities in education and health outcomes (for recent reviews, see Lewis & Oyserman, 2016;Lewis & Sekaquaptewa, 2016;. This body of research has revealed two key findings. ...
... The second key finding is that when disparitiesrelevant individual differences do emerge, they are often a function of contextual factors (Lewis & Oyserman, 2016;. For example, prior research suggests that racial-ethnic and gender differences in motivation to pursue and persist on education and health related tasks are often a function of whether minority people are in situations in which stereotypes about people like them are activated Lewis & Sekaquaptewa, 2016;Oyserman, Fryberg, & Yoder, 2007). Contextually activated stereotypes and stigmas have downstream consequences for people's motivation and goal pursuit strategies (Lewis & Sekaquaptewa, 2016;Oyserman & Fisher, in press). ...
... For example, prior research suggests that racial-ethnic and gender differences in motivation to pursue and persist on education and health related tasks are often a function of whether minority people are in situations in which stereotypes about people like them are activated Lewis & Sekaquaptewa, 2016;Oyserman, Fryberg, & Yoder, 2007). Contextually activated stereotypes and stigmas have downstream consequences for people's motivation and goal pursuit strategies (Lewis & Sekaquaptewa, 2016;Oyserman & Fisher, in press). ...
Motivation in Context: How Social Contexts Moderate Aspiration-Attainment Gaps
Thesis
  • Jan 2017
This dissertation examines how and why social contexts moderate gaps between people’s aspirations and attainment. The broader aim is to understand how contexts moderate the motivational and goal pursuit processes that contribute to social disparities. I examine these processes across 10 studies drawn from three empirical papers. First, I present eight experiments documenting how and why different ways of framing goal-relevant information influences people’s motivation and behavior such as when they begin saving for future events and how much unhealthy food they consume (“When Does the Future Begin? Time Metrics Matter, Connecting Present and Future Selves”: Lewis & Oyserman, 2015; “Seeing More and Eating Less: Effects of Information Granularity on the Perception and Regulation of Food Consumption: Lewis & Earl, in press). Second, I present a field experiment documenting that the stereotypes that are activated in public health clinics can undermine African American patients’ willingness to pay attention to stigmatizing health information (“African American Patients’ Attention to Health Information is Influenced by In-Group Peers in Health Clinics”: Lewis, Kougias, & Earl, 2017). Third, I present a national survey documenting that people’s interpretations of experienced difficulty (an important motivational construct) are influenced by their positions in the social hierarchy – indexed by the interaction between their race and level of education (“No pain, no gain? Social demographic correlates and identity consequences of interpreting experienced difficulty as importance”: Aelenei, Lewis, & Oyserman, 2017). Together, the 10 studies in this dissertation converge to suggest that if we wish to understand and address social disparities, researchers and practitioners must consider the interplay between social context and identity, and how it influences motivation and goal pursuit processes.
... The negative impact of gender isolation has been further examined through the lens of solo status, a field within social psychology that systematically examines situations in which an individual is the sole representative of a particular social category within a group (i.e., the only woman in an all-male group) [56]. Research in this field has consistently demonstrated that such circumstances elicit performance detriments due to stereotype threat, a psychosocial phenomenon in which a person feels they are at risk of conforming to stereotypes about their social group [56]. ...
... The negative impact of gender isolation has been further examined through the lens of solo status, a field within social psychology that systematically examines situations in which an individual is the sole representative of a particular social category within a group (i.e., the only woman in an all-male group) [56]. Research in this field has consistently demonstrated that such circumstances elicit performance detriments due to stereotype threat, a psychosocial phenomenon in which a person feels they are at risk of conforming to stereotypes about their social group [56]. These situations also stimulate attribution bias and can negatively affect how women in male predominated fields are evaluated, and this in turn can impact female recruitment and retention [57]. ...
Women’s Mental Health in the U.S. Military — Where Are We Now? A Review of Recent Research
Article
Full-text available
Purpose of Review The field of women’s mental health has grown in the military healthcare system, which has begun to acknowledge and address the sex-specific differences in mental health for service women. The purpose of this review is to examine recent research in active duty populations addressing perinatal mental health, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and gender isolation. Recent Findings Within the examined literature focused on active duty populations, analyses by sex and gender continue to exist as notable gaps, and a majority of studies reviewed either do not aim to examine sex or gender-based differences, and/or do not analyze data with an eye towards these paradigms. Within perinatal mental health, the lack of studies led to an inability to make any notable conclusions. PTSD was the area with the most robust publications focused on active duty women, studies of major depression showed significant occupational impact, and the area of gender isolation continues to grow as a promising field with practical implications. Summary We discuss current promising research and advance ideas for future research trajectories that will provide clinicians, policy makers, and scientists with more data to support improved mental healthcare for both military women and men.
... Consistent with much of the work on stereotype threat in psychology and elsewhere (Spencer, Steele, and Quinn 1999;Steele and Aronson 1995;Steele, Spencer, and Aronson 2002;Lewis Jr and Sekaquaptewa 2016), Cohen and Garcia examine this phenomenon by focusing on individuals' responses to the threat of group members performing poorly on intellectual tasks. ...
... The authors find that African American students reported lower levels of self-esteem, had depressed GPAs, and lower feelings of self-efficacy when they perceived (or were experimentally manipulated to perceive) that judgments would be made about their racial group based on the performance of other Black students. And though these authors restrict their analyses to the academic realm, there is no reason to believe that these collective threats emerge only in this domain (Lewis Jr and Sekaquaptewa 2016). ...
Policing Norms: Punishment and the Politics of Respectability Among Black Americans
Thesis
  • Jan 2019
Parting company with much of the existing literature that examines White attitudes toward punitive social policies perceived to target Black Americans, this dissertation explores the conditions under which Blacks are willing to support these same policies. Bringing to bear insights from multiple disciplines, the dissertation examines the role that respectability—or a concern about in-group behavior and comportment—plays in affecting Black Americans’ willingness to support policies that have adverse consequences for members of their racial group. Chapter 1 serves as an introduction to the dissertation and sets up the motivating puzzle that guides the remainder of the project. In Chapter 2, I more carefully define the politics of respectability and situate this work alongside existing scholarship in history, psychology, and political science. In this chapter, I also outline the theoretical framework that links the politics of respectability to punitiveness. In Chapter 3, I introduce a measure of respectability, the Respectability Politics Scale, and examine the distribution of the measure and its demographic, social, and psychological correlates. In Chapter 4, I examine the degree to which the Respectability Politics Scale provides explanatory leverage above and beyond existing constructs. Results indicate that respectability, as captured by the RPS, is strongly associated with Black attitudes toward a range of punitive outcomes, though results also suggest a need to further refine the measure developed in Chapter 3. Chapter 5 leverages a study conducted on Amazon’s Mechanical Turk that varies the racial identity of teenagers who create a disturbance in a movie theater. Analyses from this study help further inform our thinking about the role that emotional and instrumental consideration play in affecting individuals’ support for punishment that implicates members of the group. I find, for example, that Black respondents’ perceptions of costs for people like the teenagers corresponds with punishment when the teenagers are Black, but not when the teenagers are described as White. In the final chapter, I conclude by highlighting the findings of the dissertation and remarking on the importance of this work for advancing our understanding of the role of identity in our thinking about American politics and the politics of punishment, in particular.
... This is because racial stereotypes regarding professions mostly occupied by Blacks hinder the social ascension of this group in Brazil, keeping them in low-status professions. To this end, considering that the STT is not limited to testing only performance (Lewis & Sekaquaptewa, 2016), we equated occupational choice (high status × low status) to the assessment of intellectual ability used by Steele and Aronson (1995). In their experiment, they assessed academic performance according to SAT scores. ...
The Professional Choices of Black Adolescents in Brazil: Effects of Stereotype Threats
Article
  • Apr 2022
This article investigates the effect of stereotype threats (STs) on black adolescents’ choice for low- or high-status professions, through two controlled studies. Study 1 analyzed the perception of social status and racial compositions of different professions, enabling the creation of the variable used in the second study. Study 1 included 253 high school students from Aracaju, Brazil, 63% female, aged between 15 and 21 years (M = 17.30; SD = 0.975). The analysis revealed a perception of professional racial segregation, with white people seen as occupying high-status professions, while black people were seen as occupying low-status ones. Study 2 had a quasi-experimental design and investigated the effect of STs on the professional choices of black adolescents. It included 265 high school students, 64% female, aged between 15 and 24 years (M = 17.49; SD = 1.14), from the same city. The analyses found that black students under ST chose fewer high-status professions in comparison to black students in the no threat group. This allowed us to infer that in addition to performance, STs affect black people’s choices regarding their future professions.
... Of course, interpersonal bias is still responsible for numerous harms. Exposure to such bias harms marginalized group members in nearly every domain, including physical health (Onyeador et al., 2020;van Ryn et al., 2011), emotional well-being (Brown et al., 2000), education (Lewis & Sekaquaptewa, 2016), and interpersonal relationships (Trail, Goff, Bradbury, & Karney, 2012). However, when laws sanction the extreme behavioral consequences of personal bias, the biases themselves become somewhat less consequential. ...
Integrating Social and Moral Psychology to Reduce Inequality
Article
Full-text available
Lewis (2021) poses an important question: Is it possible to achieve equality, and if so, how? This question is at the root of social psychology, which originated in scholars' desire to understand and prevent atrocities such as the Holocaust (e.g., Allport, 1954; Milgram, 1974). Since that time, the field has become increasingly concerned with questions about basic cognitive processes, with some scholars (e.g., Baumeister, Vohs, & Funder, 2007; Cialdini, 2009; Swencionis & Goff, 2017) noting that the field could benefit from greater engagement with the world beyond the lab. It is thus especially gladdening to see scholarship bringing together these different parts of the field by using advances in basic science to speak to some of humanity's most pernicious problems, as Lewis (2021) does. It is also heartening to see the target article make explicit connections to moral psychology—for instance, by pointing out that to some people, pursuing equality could mean "giving good things to bad people." Moral psychology and social psychological work on intergroup relations are conceptually linked: if we perceive inequality to be immoral, then knowledge about increasing moral behavior should inform efforts toward equality, and knowledge about increasing equality should inform interventions designed to increase moral behavior. However, currently, the two literatures are quite distinct. We are therefore gratified that the target article draws on concepts from both areas. Here, we elaborate on what moral psychology can teach about inequality and highlight additional ways that work on moral psychology and intergroup bias can join together to inform equality-promoting interventions.
... A. Lewis & Sekaquaptewa, 2016) In part, this lack of exploration of other areas where stereotype threat may occur is because it has not been embedded in a theory which can account for production and re-negotiation of social knowledge such as social representations theory. For stereotype threat effects to manifest, we must first recognise how stereotypes develop and create methods for describing contemporary widely held stereotypes. ...
They think I’m a scrounger: a social-psychological examination of the effects of stigmatisation in unemployment
Thesis
Full-text available
  • Sep 2020
Unemployment is an under-researched category in social psychology. Where unemployment has been studied, research often invokes individual-level antecedents and consequences of unemployment. Therefore, societal and social influences on the experience of unemployment require further exploration. This thesis aims to fill this gap in the literature on unemployment by taking a social-psychological approach to the study of unemployment. In particular, focusing on how unemployed people come to be stigmatised and the effects of this stigmatisation on self and other. The thesis shows how stigmatisation manifests in public discourse and affects social identification, cognitive performance and the evaluations of others. The thesis does this by using a triangulated mixed-methods approach across seven studies in three empirical chapters, which draw upon social representations theory, social identity theory, stereotype threat and the stereotype content model. The results of these studies show that negative discourses in the public sphere have risen over the last two decades. At the same time, public attitudes towards unemployed people have become harsher. Such societally held discourse affect how unemployed people identify with unemployment and perceive that they are identified, with significant ramifications for self-esteem, well-being and cognitive performance. In addition, societally held representations of the unemployed affect how they are evaluated by others, negatively impacting their employment prospects. The thesis draws together several theories in social psychology to provide a more nuanced explanation of the effects of stigmatisation in permeable social groups. In particular, the thesis suggests a dialogical, rather than linear, approach to the social psychology of stigmatisation
... Black students often confront widely shared beliefs of lower competency in US educational settings (Steele, 1997;Steele et al., 2002). Such negative stereotypes may predispose Black students to a range of stressors that adversely affect their well-being and undermine their academic performance (Lewis & Sekaquaptewa, 2016). However, when Black students are led to affirm their values and strengths, they can be buffered from some of the harm of racial stressors (Sherman & Cohen, 2006;Steele, 1988). ...
Testing a self-affirmation intervention for improving the psychosocial health of Black and White medical students in the United States
Article
Full-text available
  • May 2021
Self‐affirmation interventions have been shown to mitigate the negative psychological effects of stereotype threat on Black students in secondary and undergraduate education. However, there is currently limited research testing whether Black students in medical schools may also experience the negative influences of stereotype threat. Until now, it has been unclear whether Black (vs. White) students experience a lower sense of belonging in medical school and whether they can benefit from self‐affirmation interventions during medical training. With a longitudinal field experiment, we tested (a) whether Black (vs. White) medical students in the US experience decrements in psychological well‐being (i.e., fatigue, depression, anxiety), sense of belonging, perceived residency competitiveness, and residency goal stability; and (b) the extent to which a self‐affirmation intervention would ameliorate any observed disparities in these outcomes for Black students. With a sample of 234 Black and 182 White medical students across 50 schools in the United States, we found that Black students tended to report more fatigue and less belonging than White students; however, the self‐affirmation intervention did not significantly influence students’ fatigue, depression, anxiety, or belonging. Unexpectedly, Black students in the self‐affirmation (vs. control) condition reported lower perceived competitiveness for residency. White students’ perceived competitiveness for residency was unaffected by the intervention. Exploratory analyses revealed that Black (vs. White) students were less likely to indicate stable residency goals over time, which may be an indication of threat; however, this racial gap was eliminated with the intervention. We discuss the plausible reasons for these findings and provide recommendations for future work in this area.
Why interracial police-civilian interpersonal interactions can go poorly: police officer stereotype threat
Article
A Sociological Examination of Parenting Practices and Gifted Education
Article
  • Oct 2021
This literature review uses a socio-cultural lens to explore how income, race, culture, and parenting practices interact to cause, complicate, and further exacerbate the gap in gifted student identification. The article reframes the aforementioned factors using Annette Lareau’s work on concerted cultivation and natural growth models as a theoretical explanation. The authors recommend the following to address gifted education enrollment inequity: enhanced preparation and training of gifted student identification for educators, education about culturally relevant teaching practices, and improvements to the curricula in schools serving minority and low-income students.
Ist Wissen wirklich die halbe Miete? Überprüfung der Effektivität einer Aufklärung über Stereotype Threat zur Reduktion von Geschlechtsunterschieden in Mathematik.
Article
  • Jul 2021
Based on stereotype threat theory this study explored potential negative effects of an intervention. Stereotype threat is defined as a performance drop people experience when they face negative expectations about their groups’ performance. Teaching women about this phenomenon was explored as one intervention against stereotype threat in mathematics with mixed results. Therefore, a teaching intervention on stereotype threat was compared to a threat and control group. Due to the implicit nature of stereotype threat we assumed gender differences favoring boys in mathematical performance, expectations and cognitive load in the stereotype threat and intervention group compared to the control group. The intervention/manipulation was conducted via instruction: The intervention group was taught about stereotype threat, the stereotype threat group was informed about boys’ mathematical superiority, while the control group received information on the relation between attitudes and mathematical performance. The sample consisted of N = 83 adolescents (M = 14.86; SD = 0.54). As expected, significant performance differences favoring boys revealed after threat and intervention, but not in the control group. Furthermore, girls reported lower performance expectations after intervention, while their cognitive load was higher under stereotype threat.
STEM Stereotypic Attribution Bias Among Women in an Unwelcoming Science Setting
Article
Full-text available
  • Mar 2016
Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) stereotypic attribution bias (SSAB) is the tendency to spontaneously generate external attributions for men’s setbacks in STEM fields and to spontaneously make internal attributions for women’s setbacks in STEM fields. Among samples of undergraduate STEM students, STEM settings perceived as unwelcoming to women through self-report (Study 1) and a manipulation (Study 2) were shown to predict SSAB. Among undergraduate women, experiencing the negative treatment of other women in a science setting predicted SSAB, which was negatively correlated with feelings of belonging in STEM (Study 1) and with intentions to continue in STEM after graduation (Studies 1 and 2). Research materials (i.e., data, measures, materials, etc.) used in both studies will be made available upon request to either of first two authors. The results of our studies suggest that those interested in increasing retention of women in STEM majors should develop strategies designed to reduce internal attributions for women’s setbacks among women facing negative STEM environments and cultivate a more positive climate for women in STEM fields.
Stereotype Threat Among Women in Finance
Article
Full-text available
  • Mar 2015
Because women are in the minority in masculine fields like finance and banking, women in these fields may experience stereotype threat or the concern about being negatively stereotyped in their workplace. Research demonstrates that stereotype threat among women in management and accounting leads to negative job attitudes and intentions to quit via its effects on identity separation, or the perception that one’s gender identity is incompatible with one’s work identity. The current work extends this research to related outcomes among women in finance. In this study, 512 women working in finance completed a survey about their work environment, their well-being at work, and whether they would recommend the field of finance to younger women. Results showed that, to the extent women experienced stereotype threat in their work environment, they reported diminished well-being at work and were less likely to recommend their field to other women, and these outcomes were mediated by identity separation. Recruitment and retention of women into fields where they have been historically underrepresented is key to achieving the “critical mass” of women necessary to reduce perceptions of tokenism as well as stereotyping and devaluing of women. The current work sheds light on psychological factors that affect these outcomes.
When white men can't do math, necessary and sufficient factors in stereotype threat
Article
  • Jan 1998
Stereotype Threat
Chapter
  • May 2015
Research has documented that subtle reminders of negative stereotypes can reduce performance for those who are targeted by them. This phenomenon has been labeled stereotype threat and was originally proposed as a novel explanation for racial and gender gaps in certain types of intellectual performance. Two decades of research on stereotype threat has expanded to explain performance differences for a number of different groups across a variety of domains. The most recent research on stereotype threat has both mapped out the sequence of cognitive and affective mechanisms that underlie the phenomena and tested the effectiveness of various interventions that allow people to perform up to their potential. Future work is needed to examine possible cultural variation in stereotype threat, study the dynamic processes of how the phenomenon unfolds over time, and move to inform public policies in workplaces and schools.
Stereotype threat in intergroup relations
Article
  • Jan 2014
Stereotype Threat Impairs Older Adult Driving
Article
Stereotypes can harm human performance, especially when activated in individuals with diminished working memory capacity (WMC). Performance implications for the stereotype of poor driving in older adults were investigated. Using a sample of older adults, WMC (the ability to maintain task goals and ignore distractions) and driving performance [brake reaction time (RT), following distance, and crashes] were assessed, the latter using a high-fidelity simulator. Elderly participants under stereotype threat with reduced WMC exhibited slower brake RTs and longer following distances compared with a control condition that was not threatened. This driving profile was characteristic of cognitive distraction. Stereotype threat has clear consequences for human performance in a common real-world task—driving—that is critical to public safety. Furthermore, these findings suggest caution in how the media and public policy communicate information about older adult driving.Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success
Book
  • Jan 2006
The interference of stereotype threat with women's generaton of mathematical problem-solving strategies
Article
  • Mar 2001
At the highest levels of math achievement, gender differences in favor of men persist on standardized math tests. We hypothesize that stereotype threat depresses women's math performance through interfering with their ability to formulate problem-solving strategies. In Study 1, women underperformed in comparison to men on a word problem test, however, women and men performed equally when the word problems were converted into their numerical equivalents. In Study 2, men and women worked on difficult problems, either in a high- or reduced-stereo-type-threat condition. Problem-solving strategies were coded. When stereo-type threat was high, women were less able to formulate problem-solving strategies than when stereotype threat was reduced. The effect of stereotype threat on cognitive resources and the implications for gender differences in mathematical testing are discussed.
A threat in the air - How stereotypes shape intellectual identity and performance
Article
  • Jun 1997
A general theory of domain identification is used to describe achievement barriers still faced by women in advanced quantitative areas and by African Americans in school. The theory assumes that sustained school success requires identification with school and its subdomains; that societal pressures on these groups (e.g., economic disadvantage, gender roles) can frustrate this identification; and that in school domains where these groups are negatively stereotyped, those who have become domain identified face the further barrier of stereotype threat, the threat that others' judgments or their own actions will negatively stereotype them in the domain. Research shows that this threat dramatically depresses the standardized test performance of women and African Americans who are in the academic vanguard of their groups (offering a new interpretation of group differences in standardized test performance), that it causes disidentification with school, and that practices that reduce this threat can reduce these negative effects.
Stereotype Threat and Racial Differences in Citizens' Experiences of Police Encounters
Article
We conducted 2 studies to investigate how cultural stereotypes that depict Blacks as criminals affect the way Blacks experience encounters with police officers, expecting that such encounters induce Blacks to feel stereotype threat (i.e., concern about being judged and treated unfairly by police because of the stereotype). In Study 1, we asked Black and White participants to report how they feel when interacting with police officers in general. As predicted, Blacks, but not Whites, reported concern that police officers stereotype them as criminals simply because of their race. In addition, this effect was found for Black men but not Black women. In Study 2, we asked Black and White men to imagine a specific police encounter and assessed potential downstream consequences of stereotype threat. Consistent with Study 1, Black but not White men anticipated feeling stereotype threat in the hypothetical police encounter. Further, racial differences in anticipated threat translated into racial differences in anticipated anxiety, self-regulatory efforts, and behavior that is commonly perceived as suspicious by police officers. By demonstrating that Blacks might expect to be judged and treated unfairly by police because of the negative stereotype of Black criminality, this research extends stereotype threat theory to the new domain of criminal justice encounters. It also has practical implications for understanding how the stereotype could ironically contribute to bias-based policing and racial disparities in the justice system. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).