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With the increase in the usage of millisecond reaction time based testing this article critically evaluates the thinking behind reaction time testing, concluding that stronger definitions of what is being measured are needed and more clarity in the terminology surrounding the conscious / unconscious distinction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Are implicit and explicit biases related to ASD identification and/or stigma? College students (N = 493) completed two IATs assessing implicit stigma and racial biases. They evaluated vignettes depicting a child with ASD or conduct disorder (CD) paired with a photo of a Black or White child. CD was more implicitly and explicitly stigmatized than ASD. Accurately identifying ASD was associated with reduced explicit stigma; identifying CD led to more stigma. Participants who identified as White implicitly associated the White child with ASD and the Black child with CD. A trend in the reverse direction was observed among Black participants. Implicit and explicit biases were unrelated. Findings highlight a need for trainings to ameliorate biases favoring one's in-group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Attachment theory predicts that patients who are not securely attached may benefit less from psychological treatment. However, evidence on the predictive role of attachment in the effectiveness of treatment for depression is limited. Methods: Explicit attachment styles, levels of attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance, as well as implicit relational self-esteem and implicit relational anxiety were assessed in 67 patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) receiving Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). ANOVA and hierarchical regression analyses were performed to investigate the predictive power of explicit and implicit attachment measures on treatment outcome. Results: Explicit attachment avoidance at pre-treatment significantly predicted reduction of depressive symptoms following treatment. Reductions in attachment anxiety and avoidance from pre- to post-treatment predicted better treatment outcomes. Neither one of the implicit measures, nor change in these measures from pre- tot post-treatment significantly predicted treatment outcome. Conclusions: Our findings show that attachment avoidance as well as reductions in avoidant and anxious attachment predict symptom reduction after psychological treatment for depression. Future research should use larger sample sizes to further examine the role of attachment orientation as moderator and mediator of treatment outcome. Trial registration: clinicaltrials.gov; NCT01517503. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Having an identity as a ‘drinker’ has been linked to increased alcohol-related harm, self-reported consumption and self-reported intention to engage in risky drinking behavior. These effects have been observed when identities have been measured using explicit measures (e.g. via questionnaires) and implicitly (e.g. using Implicit Association Tests [IATs] adapted to measure identity). Little research has used actual behavioral measures to measure alcohol consumption in-the-moment, nor compared the effects of implicit and explicit identities directly. Methods: Participants' (n = 40) implicit and explicit identities associated with being a drinker were measured. Attitudes towards one's own drinking were measured explicitly. Participants completed a Pouring Taste Preference Task [PTPT] involving the consumption and rating of non-alcoholic wine. This provided a behavioral measure of intention (pouring), a behavioral measure of consumption and a measure of the implementation of intention into behavior. Results: Results showed an interactive effect of implicit and explicit identities on attitudes and behavior. Explicit identities predicted attitudes towards drinking, but not behavior. Neither identity predicted the amount poured. Implicit identities predicted the amount consumed. A greater proportion of wine poured was predicted by higher implicit identities when explicit identities were absent. Conclusion: These results suggest that explicit identities may be associated more with those beliefs about drinking that one is aware of than behavioral intention. In addition, explicit identities may not predict behavioral enactment well. Implicit identity shows effects on actual behavior and not behavioral intention. Together this highlights the differential influence of reflective (explicit) and impulsive (implicit) identity in-the-moment behavior.

While the study of political attitudes has incorporated implicit processes in its theoretical models, the predominant approach to candidate‐trait perception focuses exclusively on explicit processes. Our novel, dual‐process approach to candidate perception sees voters as holding both conscious, explicit impressions of candidate traits and automatic, implicit candidate‐trait associations that cannot be measured using traditional self‐report techniques. We examine implicit candidate‐trait associations for the first time using data from a three‐wave online panel conducted in the last month of the 2012 U.S. presidential election. First, we demonstrate that implicit candidate‐trait associations exist. Second, we show that implicit associations of warmth and competence with the candidates predict explicit candidate evaluations, economic evaluations, and vote choice, above and beyond conventional political science controls and explicit trait perceptions. Finally, we find that these effects are strongest among nonpartisans and partisans with conflicted feelings about their party's nominee. We suggest future directions for implicit political cognition research, including trait perception. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research to date have begun to provide evidence that indicate that doing things, or having experiences, is more strongly related with psychological well-being than having material goods. However, most studies have used self-report measures to assess materialism, while implicit measures seem to provide an objective and less biased approach. In the present study we aimed the implicit assessment of the materialism, and the study of the links between psychological well-being and materialism. To reach these aims, a sample of 327 Spanish consumers, aged from 18 to 65 years old filled in some self-report measures, i.e. Pemberton Happiness Index, Major Depression Inventory and the reduced version of Material Values Scale. Furthermore, the same participants completed an Implicit Association Test developed in order to assess implicit materialism. A reliable and valid implicit measure of materialism has been developed. Both explicitly and implicitly measures of materialism were modestly associated, whereas only explicit measures of materialism were associated with self-reported happiness and depression. Specifically, increased happiness and less depressive symptoms were observed in those participants with lower explicit materialism. Our conclusions agree with other previous studies, concluding greater psychological well-being as a consequence of the consumption of experiences, compared to consumption of materialistic goods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aggression and violence have a large impact on society. Researchers have highlighted the need to incorporate impulsive processes into models of aggression. The current research is the first to investigate the role of self-control, measured by both explicit questionnaires and an implicit association test, on trait aggression. Results indicated that higher levels of implicit self-control were associated with lower levels of anger, and physical and verbal aggression, but not hostility while higher levels of explicit self-control were related to lower levels of all types of aggression. We also investigated the role of gender in the current study and showed that gender was associated with aggressive tendencies, such that males had higher levels of trait aggression on three out of four outcomes, and the relationship between explicit self-control and physical aggression differed according to gender whereby the relationship between these variables was stronger among males. The current findings provide the first indication that both implicit and explicit self-control have roles in aggressive tendencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The visual design of food packages can activate heuristic inferences which in turn shape consumer perception and judgment of salient content. Focusing on two core design elements (typeface and color), this paper demonstrates that visual cues conveying weight (or a lack thereof) influence consumers’ healthiness perceptions, explicitly as well as implicitly. Study 1 reveals that package design elements that differ in weight perception evoke divergent health perceptions of a soft drink. This effect is moderated by consumers’ health promotion focus for typeface, but not for color. Following up on this finding, Study 2 elaborates on the typeface manipulation using an Implicit Association Test to show that the interaction between health promotion focus and typeface weight accounts for implicit associations between sugary foods and healthiness. Together, the two studies provide initial evidence for the influence of design cues differing in heaviness on food healthiness perceptions. The findings add to the literature on health perception and attest to the importance of package design for influencing consumer responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated associations between implicit and explicit self-perceptions of rejection with interpersonal functioning in close relationships. Adolescents ( N = 124) reported their explicit rejection self-perceptions on a questionnaire and completed the Implicit Association Test to assess their implicit rejection self-perceptions. After controlling for implicit self-perceptions, adolescents' explicit rejection self-perceptions were associated with the adolescents self-reporting more negative relationship quality with close friends and self-reporting more negative behaviors with romantic partners. After controlling for explicit self-perceptions, adolescents' implicit rejection self-perceptions were associated with their romantic partners reporting more negative relationship quality with them, and observations of adolescents displaying more negative behaviors with romantic partners. Implicit and explicit rejection self-perceptions uniquely explain individual differences in interpersonal behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Belief in a just world (BJW) is widely held by people who tend to believe that the world is fair and that individuals get what they deserve and deserve what they get. This study investigated the mediating role of communal orientation in the relationship between prosocial behaviour and personal BJW (PBJW) as well as general BJW (GBJW). In Study 1, an online questionnaire was used to measure participants' explicit BJW, prosocial behaviour and communal orientation. The results showed a mediating effect of communal orientation on the relationship between explicit BJW and prosocial behaviour. Considering that BJW is often conceptualised as an implicit construct, in Study 2, the Implicit Association Test (IAT) was used to measure implicit PBJW and GBJW to examine their relationship with actual donation behaviour. The results showed that implicit PBJW and GBJW are indirectly but positively related to prosocial behaviour via communal orientation; thus, to some extent, PBJW and GBJW should have positive social significance. • Just world belief has positive social significance. • Communal orientation mediates the association between just world belief and prosocial behaviour. • We developed an Implicit Association Test that captures implicit just world belief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background and objective: Dual-process theories stress the importance of explicit as well as implicit cognitive processes for the development of somatoform disorders (SFDs). 1 [1] Abbreviations used: SFD = somatoform disorder; IAT = Implicit Association Test; CG = control group. In particular, the self-concept has been demonstrated to be a key factor in SFD. Yet, the self-concept in SFDs has been studied only on an explicit but not on an implicit level. Methods: The present study empirically examined the implicit health-related self-concept in SFDs by using the Implicit Association Test (IAT). Twenty-two patients with SFDs (according to DSM-IV) and 27 healthy control participants (CG) completed an IAT to assess associations of the self with illness- versus health-related words. Results: (a) Patients with an SFD associated themselves more with illness-related words than patients in the CG, (b) this implicit self-concept was connected to self-reported bodily weakness in the SFD group, and (c) both the explicit and implicit health-related self-concepts were significantly related to the number and severity of bodily symptoms. However, the implicit measure had no incremental predictive value for symptom reports over the explicit self-concept measure. Limitations: Due to the small sample size and the failure to match the SFD group and CG on education, further confirming evidence including other clinical control groups is needed. Conclusion: These findings are consistent with existing dual-process models of SFDs and could be of clinical relevance as they bring into focus implicit cognitive processes that may be targeted more directly for an effective treatment of SFDs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The stress-dampening effects of alcohol have been attributed to ‘appraisal disruption’− decreased ability of stimuli to evoke threatening associations in memory. Appraisal disruption could apply to oneself as well as situational stimuli. This question was investigated in undergraduate drinkers (n = 90/Gender) with low or high anxiety sensitivity (AS; n = 90/AS Group), a trait linked with hyper-vigilance to threat. Subjects received alcohol (0.7 g/kg males; 0.63 g/kg females), placebo or soft drink and performed a speech about their appearance. Sequence of drink administration and speech advisory (threat) was manipulated between subjects: Threat before Drink, Threat after Drink, No-Threat Control. The Implicit Association Test measured self-relevant associations based upon time to classify positive and negative attribute words (e.g. Cute, Ugly) paired with self-relevant or non-self-relevant object words (e.g. Me, Them). Alcohol selectively slowed negative self-relevant decisions, regardless of other factors. Relative fluency of negative versus positive decisions (D) correlated inversely with state anxiety and systolic blood pressure immediately before speech performance, and correlated directly with severity of alcohol problems. These findings are consistent with the Appraisal Disruption hypothesis. Preferential impairment of negative self-relevant associations may decrease perceived vulnerability under alcohol and increase risk for alcohol problems in young drinkers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: Following the tenets of the selective accessibility model of assimilation and contrast, three studies observed implicit consumer self-concept assimilation (contrast) to age-based imagery when the discrepancy between the self-concept and advertisement imagery was moderate (extreme). However, these responses were not fully automatic as only consumers who processed user imagery reflectively demonstrated increased accessibility of similarity/dissimilarity information. Impulsive processing of the user imagery instead increased the accessibility of consumer''s pre-existing dominant self-age association. A final experiment revealed that these changes in the active-self mediated response to subsequently advertised products. Taken together, these results support a two-systems model of cognition and suggest that assimilation/contrast responses to advertising and subsequent behavior are influenced by the consumer''s processing strategy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Social attitudes are integral to understanding a wide range of pathological states. The present study adapted the Implicit Association Test, a widely used implicit measure of attitudes, for understanding social attitudes and behavior. In a first study, data from a traditional “Bipolar” IAT and our modified “Unipolar” pleasant and unpleasant IATs were compared in their associations with explicit measures of social attitudes and behavior. In a second study, we examined the relationship between implicit measures of social attitudes and social behavior during a laboratory procedure. Collectively, the present data support the uncoupling of pleasant and unpleasant valences when using implicit measures to understand social attitudes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Researchers are focusing on developing implicit measures of personality to address concerns related to the faking of self-report measures. The present study examined the validity and fakeability of Implicit Association Test (IAT) measures of personality self-concept in a repeated-measures design (N =33). People’s predictions about how they represented themselves on the measures were also assessed. Results indicated that participants were able fake self-report measures when instructed to do so and that they could accurately predict how they represented themselves on these measures. Participants were also able to fake an IAT measure of Extraversion, but were unable to fake an IAT measure of Conscientiousness or predict how they represented themselves on either IAT measure. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Cognitive-motivational accounts of fat food intake propose an association between fat food and action dispositions, which are according to the biphasic emotion theory of Lang [(1995). The emotion probe. Studies of motivation and attention. American Psychologist, 50, 372–385; Lang, P.J., Bradley, M.M., & Cuthbert, M.M. (1997). Motivated attention: Affect, activation and action. In P.J. Lang, R.F. Simons & M.T. Balaban (Eds.). Attention and orienting: Sensory and motivational processes (pp. 97–134). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.] characterized by high levels of arousal. In two experiments, this association was investigated in lean and overweight youngsters. In the first experiment, 29 overweight and 29 lean youngsters conducted two Implicit Association Tasks (IAT; Greenwald, A.G., McGhee, D.E., & Schwartz, J.L. (1998). Measuring individual differences in implicit cognition: The implicit association test. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 1464–1480.). In a positive arousal IAT, implicit associations between fat vs. lean food, and high and low arousal words with a positive valence were assessed. In a negative arousal IAT, high and low arousal words with a negative valence were used. A second experiment was conducted to replicate Experiment 1 in 29 youngsters with severe obesity and 29 lean peers. The results revealed strong implicit associations between fat food and arousal in both the overweight and the control group. No differences were found between the groups, nor between the positive and the negative arousal task. These results are related to cognitive-motivational theories of fat food intake. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: It has been theorized that overweight and obesity are related with a heightened (unhealthy) food preference. Until now both self-reports and indirect attitude measures offer little support for this hypothesis. Using a personalized version of the Implicit Association Task [IAT; Greenwald, A. G., McGhee, D. E., & Schwartz, J. L. (1998). Measuring individual differences in implicit cognition: The Implicit Association Test. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 1464–1480], this study investigated (1) whether overweight youngsters (n =40) implicitly prefer palatable food to an attractive non-food category such as hobbies and (2) whether they implicitly prefer unhealthy palatable food to healthy palatable food, compared to a matched group of lean controls (n =40). Further, it was examined whether these implicit attitudes correlated with self-reported food and hobby attitudes. The results revealed no effect for food versus hobbies. Both groups implicitly preferred healthy to unhealthy food. Positive correlations between implicit and self-reported attitudes were only found for hobbies. Several interpretations of these findings are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We investigated whether youngsters with obesity (n=39) differed from a control group (n=39) in their self-reported attitudes towards and in their implicit identification with physical activity and food. Self-reported attitudes were assessed using a rating scale; implicit identification was assessed using a self-concept Implicit Association Task (IAT). Results revealed a marked group difference on the implicit identification with food: Only youngsters without obesity identified themselves more with non-fat food than with fat food. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study investigated whether the relation between implicit and explicit homonegativity measures is affected by self-presentation concerns, since previous research in this area has been inconclusive. In Experiment 1, 70 high-school students made evaluative ratings of pictures of homosexual and heterosexual couples. Self-presentation was manipulated by either instructing participants that the study concerned attitudes regarding sexual orientation (socially sensitive) or attitudes regarding age (less sensitive). The age-instruction led to increased homonegativity but not to a stronger correlation with an Implicit Association Test (IAT; Greenwald, McGhee & Schwartz, 1998 ) with homo/heterosexual couples. Concerns regarding the construct validity of the present implementation of the IAT were alleviated in Experiment 2, where heterosexual ( n= 30) but not homosexual ( n= 30) participants showed implicit homonegativity. The current findings are problematic for the interpretation of low correspondence between implicit and explicit attitude measures as being primarily an effect of self-presentation concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dual-process models imply that automatic attitudes should be less flexible than their self-reported counterparts; the relevant empirical record, however, is mixed. To advance the debate, the authors conducted 4 experiments investigating how readily automatic preferences for one imagined social group over another could be induced or reversed. Experiments 1 and 2 revealed that automatic preferences, like self-reported ones, could be readily induced by both abstract supposition and concrete learning. In contrast, Experiments 3 and 4 revealed that newly formed automatic preferences, unlike self-reported ones, could not be readily reversed by either abstract supposition or concrete learning. Thus, the relative inflexibility of implicit attitudes appears to entail, not immunity to sophisticated cognition, nor resistance to swift formation, but insensitivity to modification once formed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]