Using the implicit association test to measure self-esteem and self-concept

Best research practices for using the Implicit Association Test

Interest in unintended discrimination that can result from implicit attitudes and stereotypes (implicit biases) has stimulated many research investigations. Much of this research has used the Implicit Association Test (IAT) to measure association strengths that are presumed to underlie implicit biases. It had been more than a decade since the last published treatment of recommended best practices for research using IAT measures. After an initial draft by the first author, and continuing through three subsequent drafts, the 22 authors and 14 commenters contributed extensively to refining the selection and description of recommendation-worthy research practices. Individual judgments of agreement or disagreement were provided by 29 of the 36 authors and commenters. Of the 21 recommended practices for conducting research with IAT measures presented in this article, all but two were endorsed by 90% or more of those who felt knowledgeable enough to express agreement or disagreement; only 4% of the totality of judgments expressed disagreement. For two practices that were retained despite more than two judgments of disagreement (four for one, five for the other), the bases for those disagreements are described in presenting the recommendations. The article additionally provides recommendations for how to report procedures of IAT measures in empirical articles.

Attitudes as propositional representations

Attitudes are mental representations that help to explain why stimuli evoke positive or negative responses. Until recently, attitudes were often thought of as associations in memory. This idea inspired extensive research on evaluative conditioning (EC) and implicit evaluation. However, attitudes can also be seen as propositional representations, which, unlike associations, specify relational information and have a truth value. We review research on EC and implicit evaluation that tested the basic tenets of the propositional perspective on attitudes. In line with this perspective, studies show that both phenomena are moderated by relational and truth information. We discuss implications for the prediction and influencing of seemingly irrational behavior such as excessive alcohol intake and implicit racial bias.

Effects of a virtual gender swap on social and temporal decision-making

Mounting evidence has demonstrated that embodied virtual reality, during which physical bodies are replaced with virtual surrogates, can strongly alter cognition and behavior even when the virtual body radically differs from one's own. One particular emergent area of interest is the investigation of how virtual gender swaps can influence choice behaviors. Economic decision-making paradigms have repeatedly shown that women tend to display more prosocial sharing choices than men. To examine whether a virtual gender swap can alter gender-specific differences in prosociality, 48 men and 51 women embodied either a same- or different-gender avatar in immersive virtual reality. In a between-subjects design, we differentiated between specifically social and non-social decision-making by means of a virtually administered interpersonal and intertemporal discounting task, respectively. We hypothesized that a virtual gender swap would elicit social behaviors that stereotypically align with the gender of the avatar. To relate potential effects to changes in self-perception, we also measured implicit and explicit identification with gendered (or gender-typical) traits prior to and following the virtual experience, and used questionnaires that assessed the strength of the illusion. Contrary to our hypothesis, our results show that participants made less prosocial decisions (i.e., became more selfish) in different-gender avatars, independent of their own biological sex. Moreover, women embodying a male avatar in particular were more sensitive to temptations of immediate rewards. Lastly, the manipulation had no effects on implicit and explicit identification with gendered traits. To conclude, while we showed that a virtual gender swap indeed alters decision-making, gender-based expectancies cannot account for all the task-specific interpersonal and intertemporal changes following the virtual gender swap.

Implicit and Explicit Self-Identification as a Drug User in People Who Used Heroin and Methamphetamine

Implicit and explicit self-identification as a drug user specific to the substance used (e.g., viewing oneself as a drinker) have been examined, as they relate to that drug use. However, studies have rarely explored whether identifying as a "drug user" differs implicitly and explicitly for people who use different drugs and how this identification relates to drug-use behaviors or abstinence. This study examined implicit and explicit self-identification as a "drug user" and their associations with drug-use behaviors and abstinence in people who used heroin (PWUH) and people who used methamphetamine (PWUM). Forty PWUH and 35 PWUM in a rehabilitation facility completed the single category implicit association test (SC-IAT), which evaluated implicit associations of a "drug user" with "self," and a measure of explicit self-identification as a "drug user." Prior drug-use behaviors and current abstinence duration of the participants were assessed. PWUH demonstrated stronger implicit "self + drug user" associations and higher levels of explicit self-identification as a "drug user" than PWUM. A higher frequency of drug use was associated with higher levels of explicit drug-user self-identity, and longer abstinence duration was positively related to stronger implicit "self + drug user" associations in PWUH. The drug type of heroin (vs. methamphetamine) participants used was associated with a higher frequency of use, which, in turn, predicted higher levels of explicit drug-user self-identity. Given that the PWUH group differs from the PWUM group in terms of implicit and explicit self-identification as "drug users," it would be more appropriate to address drug-user self-identity of individuals according to the substance they use rather than as a collective group.

Intellectual humility: an old problem in a new psychological perspective

Though having been emphasised by philosophers and theologians for centuries, it is only in the last few years that the concept of intellectual humility has been explicitly defined and studied by empirical psychology. However, it has been long enough to recognise the prominent role that being intellectually humble plays for humane functioning, both at an intra- and inter-individual level. Having started with a broader philosophical and historical context, the present paper discusses the psychological conceptualisations of intellectual humility. Then the recent empirical studies are reviewed, including four strands of research referring to personality traits, cognitive functioning, social relations and religiosity. After presenting selected results, the prospects of psychological research on intellectual humility are discussed, including the limitations and challenges of measurement techniques as well as possible directions for future studies.

Testing a new indirect measure of general self-worth: The Self-esteem Questionnaire-based Implicit Association Test

The self-esteem Questionnaire-based Implicit Association Test (SE-qIAT) provides an indirect assessment of general self-worth that is based on the items of the well-validated Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), and the structure of this variant of the IAT enables a clearer interpretation, compared with the conventional self-esteem IAT. Study 1 (N = 224) provided support for the internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and implicit-explicit convergent validity of the SE-qIAT. In Study 2 (N = 305), the correlation of the SE-qIAT with the explicit RSES was replicated, and it was larger than the correlations of the SE-qIAT with other self-reports. As to criterion validity, the SE-qIAT moderated the effect of a mild social threat (being excluded in the Cyberball game) on participants' performance in a subsequent anagram task, and this effect was incremental to the explicit self-esteem assessment. In Study 3 (N = 334), the SE-qIAT correlated positively with the self-esteem IAT and negatively with a measure of depression. The two implicit tasks correlated uniquely with each other, above and beyond the variance they each shared with the explicit RSES. Taken together, these findings provide initial support for the reliability and validity of the SE-qIAT.

Visuospatial perspective shifting and relational self-association in dispositional shame and guilt

Although dispositional shame and guilt have been distinguished by perceptions of the self and behavioral responses, the underlying information processing patterns remain unclear. We hypothesized that an ability to contemplate alternatives to perceptions of the current environment, i.e., flexibility in perspective shifting, may be essential to both dispositions. Dispositional shame may additionally relate to negative relational knowledge that involves a self-representation of being rejected. One hundred and six community participants rated the two dispositions, and had their flexibility in perspective shifting and internalized self-association with rejection assessed. Regression analysis indicated that a lower cost of perspective shifting was observed with dispositional guilt and shame. Yet, unlike a direct association with perspective shifting for dispositional guilt, it was an interaction between perspective shifting and negative relational knowledge that accounted for dispositional shame. The association of dispositional shame with perspective shifting was contingent upon the tendency to pair the self with rejection.

Reducing Implicit Cognitive Biases Through the Performing Arts

The aim of the present research was to test whether involvement in a 14-days training program in the performing arts could reduce implicit biases. We asked healthy participants to complete an Implicit Association Test (IAT) to assess biased attitudes to physical illness in two separate sessions, before and after the training program. Two separate control groups matched by age, gender and educational level completed the two IAT sessions, separated by same number of days, without being involved in the training program. Results showed that participants who were involved in the training program reduced their implicit bias toward illness measured through IAT in the second session. This reduction in IAT measures was not observed in the control samples, despite the two IAT measures being matched in temporal delay with the experimental group. These findings suggest that an interventional program based on the performing arts could be effective in reducing levels of implicit biases among the general population.

Stability and Change in Diffusion Model Parameters over Two Years

In recent years, mathematical models of decision making, such as the diffusion model, have been endorsed in individual differences research. These models can disentangle different components of the decision process, like processing speed, speed–accuracy trade-offs, and duration of non-decisional processes. The diffusion model estimates individual parameters of cognitive process components, thus allowing the study of individual differences. These parameters are often assumed to show trait-like properties, that is, within-person stability across tasks and time. However, the assumption of temporal stability has so far been insufficiently investigated. With this work, we explore stability and change in diffusion model parameters by following over 270 participants across a time period of two years. We analysed four different aspects of stability and change: rank-order stability, mean-level change, individual differences in change, and profile stability. Diffusion model parameters showed strong rank-order stability and mean-level changes in processing speed and speed–accuracy trade-offs that could be attributed to practice effects. At the same time, people differed little in these patterns across time. In addition, profiles of individual diffusion model parameters proved to be stable over time. We discuss implications of these findings for the use of the diffusion model in individual differences research.

A Deeper Look at Autonomous Vehicle Ethics: An Integrative Ethical Decision-Making Framework to Explain Moral Pluralism

The autonomous vehicle (AV) is one of the first commercialized AI-embedded robots to make autonomous decisions. Despite technological advancements, unavoidable AV accidents that result in life-and-death consequences cannot be completely eliminated. The emerging social concern of how an AV should make ethical decisions during unavoidable accidents is referred to as the moral dilemma of AV, which has promoted heated discussions among various stakeholders. However, there are research gaps in explainable AV ethical decision-making processes that predict how AVs' moral behaviors are made that are acceptable from the AV users' perspectives. This study addresses the key question: What factors affect ethical behavioral intentions in the AV moral dilemma? To answer this question, this study draws theories from multidisciplinary research fields to propose the "Integrative ethical decision-making framework for the AV moral dilemma." The framework includes four interdependent ethical decision-making stages: AV moral dilemma issue framing, intuitive moral reasoning, rational moral reasoning, and ethical behavioral intention making. Further, the framework includes variables (e.g., perceived moral intensity, individual factors, and personal moral philosophies) that influence the ethical decision-making process. For instance, the framework explains that AV users from Eastern cultures will tend to endorse a situationist ethics position (high idealism and high relativism), which views that ethical decisions are relative to context, compared to AV users from Western cultures. This proposition is derived from the link between individual factors and personal moral philosophy. Moreover, the framework proposes a dual-process theory, which explains that both intuitive and rational moral reasoning are integral processes of ethical decision-making during the AV moral dilemma. Further, this framework describes that ethical behavioral intentions that lead to decisions in the AV moral dilemma are not fixed, but are based on how an individual perceives the seriousness of the situation, which is shaped by their personal moral philosophy. This framework provides a step-by-step explanation of how pluralistic ethical decision-making occurs, reducing the abstractness of AV moral reasoning processes.

Beyond Smiles: Static Expressions in Maxillary Protrusion and Associated Positivity

Smiles play an important role in social perception. However, it is unclear whether a similar role is played by static facial features associated with smiles (e.g., stretched mouth and visible teeth). In dental science, maxillary dental protrusions increase the baring of the teeth and thus produce partial facial features of a smile even when the individual is not choosing to smile, whereas mandibular dental protrusions do not. We conducted three experiments to assess whether individuals ascribe positive evaluations to these facial features, which are not genuine emotional expressions. In Experiment 1, participants viewed facial photographs of maxillary and mandibular protrusions and indicated the smiling and emotional status of the faces. The results showed that, while no difference was observed in participants’ perception of the presence of a smile across both types of dental protrusion, participants felt more positive to faces with maxillary than mandibular protrusions. In Experiment 2, participants completed an Implicit Association Test (IAT) test measuring implicit attitudes toward faces with maxillary vs. mandibular protrusions. The results showed that participants had more positive attitude toward faces with maxillary than mandibular protrusions. In Experiment 3, individuals with either maxillary or mandibular protrusions completed the same IAT test to assess whether any preference would be affected by in-group/out-group preferences. The results showed both groups had more positive attitudes toward faces with maxillary protrusion, indicating that this preference is independent of the group effect. These findings suggest that facial features associated with smiles are viewed positively in social situations. We discuss this in terms of the social-function account.

Invalid Claims About the Validity of Implicit Association Tests by Prisoners of the Implicit Social-Cognition Paradigm

In a prior publication, I used structural equation modeling of multimethod data to examine the construct validity of Implicit Association Tests. The results showed no evidence that IATs measure implicit constructs (e.g., implicit self-esteem, implicit racial bias). This critique of IATs elicited several responses by implicit social-cognition researchers, who tried to defend the validity and usefulness of IATs. I carefully examine these arguments and show that they lack validity. IAT proponents consistently ignore or misrepresent facts that challenge the validity of IATs as measures of individual differences in implicit cognitions. One response suggests that IATs can be useful even if they merely measure the same constructs as self-report measures, but I find no support for the claim that IATs have practically significant incremental predictive validity. In conclusions, IATs are widely used without psychometric evidence of construct or predictive validity.

Brain responses of dysphoric and control participants during a self-esteem implicit association test

Previous studies have reported lowered implicit self-esteem at the behavioral level among depressed individuals. However, brain responses related to the lowered implicit self-esteem have not been investigated in people with depression. Here, event-related potentials were measured in 28 dysphoric participants (individuals with elevated amounts of depressive symptoms) and 30 control participants during performance of an implicit association task (IAT) suggested to reflect implicit self-esteem. Despite equivalent behavioral performance, differences in brain responses were observed between the dysphoric and the control groups in late positive component (LPC) within 400-1,000 ms poststimulus latency. For the dysphoric group, self-negativity mapping stimuli (me with negative word pairing and not-me with positive word pairing) induced significantly larger LPC amplitude as compared to self-positivity mapping stimuli (me with positive pairing and not-me with negative pairing), whereas the control group showed the opposite pattern. These results suggest a more efficient categorization toward implicit self-is-negative association, possibly reflecting lower implicit self-esteem among the dysphoric participants, in comparison to the controls. These results demonstrate the need for further investigation into the functional significance of LPC modulation during IAT and determination of whether LPC can be used as a neural marker of depressive-related implicit self-esteem.

The self-esteem implicit association test is valid: Evidence from brain activity

A distinct challenge of implicit self-esteem research is the dubious validity of measures for implicit self-esteem. We conducted two event-related potential (ERP) studies to examine whether implicit self-esteem measured by the Implicit Association Test (IAT) actually reflects the automatic self-evaluation. We adopted the regular IAT and the Go/No-go Association Task (GNAT), respectively, to measure implicit self-esteem in two studies. We focused on the P300 that reflects the stimulus evaluation process. Study 1 revealed that participants responded faster to self pairing with good than to self pairing with bad whereas self pairing with bad elicited a delayed P300 compared with self pairing with good. Study 2 replicated these findings and further highlighted that the index of implicit self-esteem based on reaction time is correlated with that based on P300 latency. Our results suggest that implicit self-esteem assessed by the IAT measures automatic self-evaluation, thus providing neural evidence for the validity of implicit self-esteem.

Explicit and Implicit Measures of Identity Diffusion in Adolescent Girls With Borderline Personality Disorder

The present study is the first to examine both the implicit and explicit self-concept of identity diffusion in a sample of adolescent patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). A clinical sample of adolescent girls with diagnosed BPD (N = 30; M age = 15.9 years) and a sample of girls with a healthy personality development (N = 33; M age = 16.6 years) completed an implicit association test (IAT) that was adjusted to identity diffusion, the core of BPD. Common domains of child and adolescent psychopathology and core components of BPD were assessed using self-reports on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), the Borderline Personality Features Scale for Children-11 (BPFSC-11) and the Assessment of Identity Development in Adolescence (AIDA). BPD patients scored significantly higher on explicit measures of borderline pathology than girls with a healthy personality development. A crucial finding for this study was that girls with BPD had a significantly lower implicit preference for stability than their counterparts in the control group. Moreover, explicit measures of borderline personality pathology were significantly correlated with an implicit measure of identity diffusion, the core of BPD. However, when looking at the predictive ability of implicit and explicit measures, only explicit identity diffusion was significantly associated with borderline features. Our data suggests that adolescent girls with BPD differ from healthy individuals not only in their conscious representation but also in their implicit representation of the self with regard to BPD related characteristics, which further advances the need for the identification of at-risk adolescents.

Self-Schemas and Self-Esteem Discrepancies in Subclinical Paranoia: The Essential Role of Depressive Symptoms

Background : Self-concepts are being intensively investigated in relation to paranoia, but research has shown some contradictory findings. Studying subclinical phenomena in a non-clinical population should allow for a clearer understanding given that clinical confounding factors are avoided. We explored self-esteem, self-schemas, and implicit/explicit self-esteem discrepancies in three non-clinical groups with different psychopathological traits and a control group. Methods: Participants with elevated trait-paranoia (n = 41), depressive symptoms (n = 34), a combination of both traits (n = 32), and a control group (n = 71) were assessed on implicit and explicit self-esteem, self-schemas, depression, and paranoia. A dimensional approach with the total sample (n = 208) was also used to complement the information provided by the group approach. Results: All groups presented similar and positive levels of implicit self-esteem. Trait-paranoia participants had similar levels of explicit self-esteem and self-schemas compared with the control group. However, the group with a combination of trait-paranoia and depressive symptoms showed the lowest levels of positive self-schemas and self-esteem. Furthermore, this group and the control group displayed implicit/explicit self-esteem discrepancies, although in opposite directions and with different implications. The dimensional approach revealed associations of trait-paranoia and depressive symptoms with poor explicit self-esteem and self-schemas but not with implicit self-esteem. Conclusions: Trait-paranoia participants showed different self-representations depending on whether depressive symptoms were present or not. The interaction between subclinical neurotic and psychotic traits entailed a detrimental self-representation that might increase the risk for psychopathology.

What Can Neuromarketing Tell Us about Food Packaging?

Packaging is a powerful tool for brands, which can not only catch consumers' attention but also influence their purchase decisions. The application of neuromarketing techniques to the study of food packaging has recently gained considerable popularity both in academia and practice, but there are still some concerns about the methods and metrics commercially offered and the interpretation of their findings. This represents the motivation of this investigation, whose objective is twofold: (1) to analyze the methodologies and measurements commonly used in neuromarketing commercial research on packaging, and (2) to examine the extent to which the results of food packaging studies applying neuromarketing techniques can be reproduced under similar methodologies. Obtained results shed light on the application of neuromarketing techniques in the evaluation of food packaging and reveal that neuromarketing and declarative methodologies are complementary, and its combination may strengthen the studies' results. Additionally, this study highlights the importance of having a framework that improves the validity and reliability of neuromarketing studies to eradicate mistrust toward the discipline and provide brands with valuable insights into food packing design.

Understanding and using the implicit association test: V. measuring semantic aspects of trait self‐concepts

Implicit Association Tests (IATs) often reveal strong associations of self with positive rather than negative attributes. This poses a problem in using the IAT to measure associations involving traits with either positive or negative evaluative content. In two studies, we employed non‐bipolar but evaluatively balanced Big Five traits as attribute contrasts and explored correlations of IATs with positive (e.g. sociable vs. conscientious) or negative (e.g. reserved vs. chaotic) attributes. Results showed (a) satisfactory internal consistencies for all IATs, (b) explicit–explicit and implicit–implicit correlations that were moderate to high and comparable in strength after both were corrected for attenuation and (c) better model fit for latent variable models that linked the implicit and explicit measures to distinct latent factors rather to the same factor. Together, the results suggest that IATs can validly assess the semantic aspect of trait self‐concepts and that implicit and explicit self‐representations are, although correlated, also distinct constructs. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Self‐esteem: a behavioural genetic perspective

Self‐esteem, the affective or evaluative appraisal of one's self, is linked with adaptive personality functioning: high self‐esteem is associated with psychological health benefits (e.g. subjective well‐being, absence of depression and anxiety), effective coping with illness, and satisfactory social relationships. Although several pathways have been hypothesized to effect within‐family transmission of self‐esteem (e.g. parenting style, family relationship patterns), we focus in this article on genetic influences. Genetic studies on both global and domain‐specific self‐esteem and on both level and stability of self‐esteem converge in showing that (i) genetic influences on self‐esteem are substantial, (ii) shared environmental influences are minimal, and (iii) non‐shared environmental influences explain the largest amount of variance in self‐esteem. We advocate that understanding of current issues in self‐esteem research will be enriched by including behavioural genetic approaches. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Reliability of Implicit Self–Esteem Measures Revisited

This study investigated the internal consistencies and temporal stabilities of different implicit self–esteem measures. Participants ( N = 101) responded twice—with a time lag of 4 weeks—to five different tasks: the Implicit Association Test (IAT), the Brief Implicit Association Test (BIAT), the Affective Priming Task (APT), the Identification–Extrinsic Affective Simon Task (ID–EAST) and the Name–Letter Task (NLT). As expected, the highest reliability coefficients were obtained for the self–esteem IAT. Importantly, the internal consistencies and the temporal stabilities of the APT, the ID–EAST, and the NLT were substantially improved by using material, structural, and analytic innovations. In particular, the use of the adaptive response–window procedure for the APT, the computation of error scores for the ID–EAST, and the computation of a double corrected scoring algorithm for the NLT yielded reliability coefficients comparable to those of the established IAT. Implications for the indirect assessment of self–esteem are discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Does the Implicit Association Test for assessing anxiety measure trait and state variance?

The stability of the Implicit Association Test for assessing anxiety (IAT‐Anxiety) is lower than its internal consistency, indicating that the IAT‐Anxiety measures both stable and occasion‐specific variance. This suggests that the IAT‐Anxiety may be not only a valid measure of trait anxiety but also one of state anxiety. To test this assumption, two studies were conducted in which state anxiety was experimentally induced by a public speaking task. However, both studies showed that the IAT‐Anxiety score did not change when a state of anxiety was induced. Thus, it seems that occasion‐specific factors other than variations in state anxiety lead to occasion‐specific variance in the IAT‐Anxiety score. Implications for the indirect assessment of personality dispositions with the IAT are discussed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

High implicit self‐esteem is not necessarily advantageous: discrepancies between explicit and implicit self‐esteem and their relationship with anger expression and psychological health

Two studies investigated how discrepancies between implicit and explicit self‐esteem are related to mental and physical health. We found that, compared to congruent self‐esteem, discrepant self‐esteem was related to more anger suppression, a more depressive attributional style, more nervousness, and more days of impaired health. The result applies not only to fragile (high explicit, low implicit) self‐esteem, but also to damaged (low explicit, high implicit) self‐esteem. These findings show that high implicit self‐esteem is not necessarily advantageous. In individuals with low explicit self‐esteem having high implicit self‐esteem was related to more health problems than having low implicit self‐esteem. Taken together the results suggest that discrepancies between implicit and explicit SE are detrimental to mental and physical health. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Carroll S. Implicit individual differences: relationships between implicit self‐esteem, gender identity, and gender attitudes

The study examined whether the magnitude of same‐sex‐favouring implicit gender bias depends on individual differences in self‐esteem and gender identity as theorized by Greenwald et al. The Implicit Association Test (IAT) was used to measure implicit self‐esteem, gender identity, and gender attitudes. Explicit self‐esteem and gender identity were measured with questionnaires. The IAT revealed a strong automatic preference for female words in 34 female undergraduates but, surprisingly, no significant gender bias in 32 males. Individual levels of this gender bias were predicted in both sexes by IAT‐derived implicit measures of self‐esteem and gender identity, as well as by their interaction. Neither declared gender identity nor explicit self‐esteem added to the prediction. The results are discussed in terms of balanced identity design and the potential influence of method effects on the findings. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Comparing IAT and TAT measures of power versus intimacy motivation

We assessed implicit orientations towards power versus intimacy using the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) and the Implicit Associations Test (IAT). In addition, we assessed explicit orientations using self‐report measures of dominance versus nurturance motives and extrinsic versus intrinsic values. Further, we assessed the rated self‐concordance and importance of power versus intimacy idiographic goals. The six measures formed four factors: motives/values, goals, IAT and TAT. We also assessed a variety of outcomes ranging from well‐being to choice in a social dilemma. All six predictors correlated with at least some outcomes, with the values measure being strongest predictor of the predominantly self‐report outcomes. We suggest that there is value in simultaneously considering old school and new school approaches to assessing implicit motives. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Assessment of multiple implicit self‐concept dimensions using the Extrinsic Affective Simon Task (EAST)

This study explored the psychometric properties of the Extrinsic Affective Simon Task (EAST; De Houwer, 2003a) as adapted for the measurement of the implicit self‐concept of personality. The EAST was adapted to allow the simultaneous assessment of the three traits shyness, anxiousness, and angriness. In order to test the EAST's psychometric properties, 100 participants completed a trait EAST, Implicit Association Tests (IATs), and direct self‐ratings. The EAST showed low internal consistencies and correlated neither with the IATs nor with the direct measures. The main problem of the EAST, namely its low reliability, is discussed, and general conclusions regarding the indirect assessment of the personality self‐concept by EASTs are derived. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Why do Westerners self‐enhance more than East Asians?

Much research finds that Westerners self‐enhance more than East Asians, with the exception of studies using the implicit associations test for self‐esteem (IATSE). We contrasted Japanese and Canadians on a new measure of self‐enhancement under low‐ and high‐attentional load to assess whether cultural differences vary across controlled and automatic processes. Participants also completed measures of relational mobility and the IATSE. Results indicated that Japanese and Asian‐Canadians were more self‐critical than Euro‐Canadians, both under high‐ and low‐attentional load. This cultural difference was partially mediated by relational mobility. The IATSE showed no cultural differences, but this measure did not positively correlate with any of the other measures in the study, suggesting that it is not a valid measure of ‘true’ self‐feelings. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Is Paranoia a Defence against or an Expression of Low Self–Esteem?

Paranoia has been hypothesized to be negatively correlated with self–esteem. However, hypotheses differ about how low self–esteem might produce paranoia. The paranoia as defense model views paranoia as a defensive reaction against low self–esteem. In contrast, the paranoia as expression model views paranoia in part as a reflection of low self–esteem. In the current study, paranoia was negatively associated with global explicit self–esteem, self–competence, self–liking and self–serving attributional style, but unassociated with implicit self–esteem as measured with the Implicit Association Test. In contrast, facets of narcissism, which also have been hypothesized to be associated with defensive self–processing, were associated with defensiveness. Overall, these results suggest that paranoia is better represented by the expression model. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Convergence between GNAT‐assessed implicit and explicit personality

Two studies investigated the characteristics and correlates of implicit personality measures provided by the Go/No‐Go Association Task (GNAT), a variant of the Implicit Association Test (IAT). Extraversion was assessed in Study 1, and all Big‐Five factors in Study 2. Of interest were the convergent validity of the measures with explicit personality and their reliability. The results demonstrate that the GNAT metric (d') is reliable, and has convergent validity, only when systematic variance in the GNAT indices is controlled. We also provide preliminary evidence for the predictive utility of GNAT indices of implicit extraversion and neuroticism by examining their ability to predict reaction times. The results suggest that this task provides a promising method for assessing implicit personality. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

How to find what's in a name: Scrutinizing the optimality of five scoring algorithms for the name‐letter task

Although the name‐letter task (NLT) has become an increasingly popular technique to measure implicit self‐esteem (ISE), researchers have relied on different algorithms to compute NLT scores and the psychometric properties of these differently computed scores have never been thoroughly investigated. Based on 18 independent samples, including 2690 participants, the current research examined the optimality of five scoring algorithms based on the following criteria: reliability; variability in reliability estimates across samples; types of systematic error variance controlled for; systematic production of outliers and shape of the distribution of scores. Overall, an ipsatized version of the original algorithm exhibited the most optimal psychometric properties, which is recommended for future research using the NLT. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Personality and lexical decision times for evaluative words

We studied personality influences on accessibility of pleasant and unpleasant stimuli in a sample of 129 students. Self‐reports and reports by knowledgeable informants on extraversion, neuroticism, approach temperament and avoidance temperament were combined with a go/no‐go lexical decision task that included pleasant, unpleasant and neutral words, and two response modes, manual and vocal. The data were analysed using multilevel modelling. Extraversion and approach temperament predicted faster identification of pleasant words than of neutral and of unpleasant words. Vocal responses took longer than manual responses, but mode of response did not interact with the valence of the words. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Discrepant negative self-associations as a risk factor for depressive deterioration after outpatient psychotherapy

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

This paper examines the discrepancy between implicit and explicit negative self-associations (NSA) after cognitive psychotherapy for depression as a predictor of long-term outcome.

METHODS

One hundred and twenty patients completed an Implicit-Association Test relating the self with depressive attributes and a self-report questionnaire with identical item content, at the end of time-limited outpatient depression psychotherapy. At post-treatment and at 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-up, patients completed the BDI-II. We used different strategies to operationalized implicit and explicit NSA discrepancies and three-level Hierarchical linear models to analyze the effects.

RESULTS

We found significant interactive effects of discrepancy between implicit and explicit NSA and the direction of the discrepancy on long-term outcome. In patients with a greater explicit than implicit NSA (a damaged self-esteem pattern) a greater absolute discrepancy was associated with worse long-term outcome in terms of BDI scores at the end of follow-up and rate of change during follow-up. Consistently, with an alternative method, we found that damaged self-esteem discrepancies were associated with worse estimated BDI-II scores at the end of follow-up.

LIMITATIONS

The inclusion in the sample of only treatment completers limits the generalizability of the results. Furthermore, the follow-up period captured only the first 12 months after treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results support the notion that a discrepancy between implicit and explicit negative self-associations may pose a risk factor for deterioration after psychotherapy for depression.

In Search of Narcissus

Narcissism, a trait reflecting egocentric exceptionalism and social selfishness, has captured scholarly interest due to its intricate composition and social implications. The construct is polyhedric, comprising several key forms: grandiose versus vulnerable, agentic versus communal, admirative versus rivalrous, collective versus individual. These forms can be integrated into structural models that add predictive power or process models that add explanatory power. The narcissistic nucleus is argued, and partly shown, to be brittle in the face of self-threat. The nucleus may derive from being overvalued, or inconsistently socialised, by parents. Narcissism entails intrapersonal benefits, as it can confer psychological health, buffer against adversity, and facilitate performance. But it can also be an interpersonal and societal liability, partly remediable with narcissism-reduction interventions.

The Gender Violence - Implicit Association Test to measure attitudes toward intimate partner violence against women

Attitudes play a central role in intimate partner violence against women and are related to its origin, to the responses of women who suffer violence, and to the settings where it occurs. In fact, these attitudes are recognized as one of the risk factors linked to violent perpetration and to public, professional, and victim responses to this type of violence. However, even though available research generally shows a broad rejection of this violence, it remains a serious social and health problem that has reached epidemic proportions. This suggests that the information available about these attitudes (obtained through explicit and direct measures, i.e., self-reports) may be distorted or influenced by factors such as social desirability. In this context, the overall objective of our research project is to provide multi-method measures (explicit and implicit) of attitudes toward intimate partner violence against women, and the main goal of this paper is to propose an instrument for the implicit measurement of these attitudes. In this regard, the Implicit Association Test (IAT) is the most common procedure used, providing a superior predictive validity compared to explicit measures for socially sensitive topics. We will present an exploratory study that describes its adaptation for our purposes, and the development of the Gender Violence - Implicit Association Test (GV-IAT) to use among Spanish-speaking populations, and discuss the strengths and limitations of this proposal.

Affective compatibility with the self modulates the self-prioritisation effect

The "self" shapes the way in which we process the world around us. It makes sense then, that self-related information is reliably prioritised over non self-related information in cognition. How might other factors such as self-compatibility shape the way self-relevant information is prioritised? The present work asks whether affective consistency between the self and arbitrarily self-associated stimuli influences the degree to which self-prioritisation can be observed. To this end, participants were asked to associate themselves with either a positive or a negative concept and to then indicate if a given stimulus (Experiment 1: Emotional faces; Experiment 2: Luminance cues) and an identity label matched. If affective consistency is key to self-prioritisation, negative constructs should dampen self-prioritisation and positive constructs should boost self-prioritisation because the self is universally construed as positive. Indeed, the results of the two experiments indicate that participants who made the negative association had more difficulty confirming whether the stimulus and the label matched than those who made the positive association. The implications of this finding are discussed in terms of "self" theories that span various levels of information processing. The data reveal that self-referential information processing goes beyond a default elevation of priority to the self.

Twenty-Five Years of Research Using Implicit Measures

The year 2020 marks the 25th anniversary of two seminal publications that have set the foundation for an exponentially growing body of research using implicit measures: Fazio, Jackson, Dunton, and Williams's (1995) work using evaluative priming to measure racial attitudes, and Greenwald and Banaji's (1995) review of implicit social cognition research that served as the basis for the development of the Implicit Association Test (IAT). The current article provides an overview of (1) two conceptual roots that continue to shape interpretations of implicit measures; (2) conflicting interpretations of the term implicit; (3) different kinds of dissociations between implicit and explicit measures; (4) theoretical developments inspired by these dissociations; and (5) research that used implicit measures to address domain-specific and applied questions. We conclude with a discussion of challenges and open questions that remain to be addressed, offering guidance for the next generation of research using implicit measures.

Implicit mechanisms of body image alterations: The covert attention exposure effect

Visual exposure to extreme-sized bodies elicits explicit self-body image variations. Several features of such modulation remain to be clarified. In this study we explored whether this effect: (i) acts on implicit mechanisms in modifying one's body-size perception, (ii) is body-exposure-specific also at the implicit level, and (iii) is modulated by interoceptive sensibility. We assigned a covert attention task to 100 women, exposing them to extreme-sized bodies (thin and fat) or extreme-sized objects (thin and fat bottles). Before and after the attentional exposure, we tested the association between the "self/others" and "thin/fat" concepts using an Implicit Association Test. We also collected a measure of interoceptive sensibility by means of a self-report questionnaire. Results showed that participants exposed to fat bodies implicitly presented a stronger association between the "self" and "thin" concepts. This association was significantly weaker in the group exposed to thin bodies. This effect was absent after exposure to thin and fat bottles. Notably, participants with a higher tolerance of negative bodily interoceptive signals were less susceptible to the malleability of body image exerted by the exposure attentional task. Our findings shed new light on the relationship between the perception of internal (e.g., visceral) and external (e.g., visual) signals in the representation of our body.

Explicit and implicit self-esteem in youth with autism spectrum disorders

Although the link between self-esteem and psychopathology has been well established, studies on self-esteem in individuals with autism spectrum disorder are lacking. In this study, we aimed to (1) compare explicit and implicit self-esteem of youth with autism spectrum disorder to typically developing peers and to (2) explore relationships of implicit-, explicit-, and discrepant self-esteem measures with co-occurring internalizing and externalizing problems in youth with autism spectrum disorder. For this purpose, 25 individuals with autism spectrum disorder and 24 individuals as age- and intelligence quotient–matched controls aged 8–16 years participated in this study. Results showed lower explicit self-esteem in autism spectrum disorder compared to typically developing youth and no differences in implicit self-esteem between groups. In youth with autism spectrum disorder, low explicit self-esteem was related to co-occurring depression symptoms, whereas lower implicit self-esteem was related to externalizing symptoms. These results show that youth with autism spectrum disorder are at risk for developing low explicit self-esteem, which appears to be related to often co-occurring internalizing symptoms. This emphasizes the need to focus more on self-esteem in assessment and treatment of youth with autism spectrum disorder.

Cultural modulation of early attentional responses to positive self-information: An ERP investigation of self-enhancement

Westerners show a strong tendency to view themselves in a positive light (i.e., self-enhancement), but this tendency is substantially weaker among East Asians. At present, however, it remains inconclusive whether this cultural difference reflects genuine variation in spontaneous engagement in this motivational tendency or is driven by individuals' deliberate efforts to present oneself in culturally acceptable ways. In the present research, we sought to address this issue by examining whether culture modulates early attentional bias to self-name, presented in the context of positive (vs. negative) situations. Both European American and Asian American participants (N = 64) read a series of scenarios depicting either a positive or a negative life situation and were subsequently presented with their name or names of famous people or strangers. European Americans showed greater P2, an ERP component of early attentional arousal, when the self-name was primed with positive (vs. negative) situations. In contrast, Asian Americans' P2 in response to the self-name was not moderated by situation primes. Moreover, the degree to which P2 was enhanced in positive (vs. negative) situations was negatively correlated with Asian cultural values. These results demonstrate that cultural variation in self-enhancement may reflect genuine beliefs about the self, manifested automatically at an early stage of attentional processing.

Comparing Implicit and Explicit Attitudes Toward Intimate Partner Violence Against Women

Intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) is an epidemic social and public health problem. Research has consistently found evidence for a complex etiology of IPVAW resulting from the interaction of many factors, among which gender-related norms and attitudes are among the main drivers of this violence. Public attitudes toward IPVAW are especially important because attitudes rejecting, condoning, or fostering such behavior are social factors that contribute to a climate of tolerance or refusal that can shape the social environment in which such violence takes place. Given the importance of these attitudes, the availability of reliable, valid, and concise measures is critical for both research and intervention purposes. The evidence shows a probable bias of direct or explicit assessment measures of IPVAW attitudes, and it has been suggested that they should be complemented by indirect or implicit measures. In this context, the main aim of this paper was to examine how implicit and explicit attitudes toward IPVAW differ among a Spanish population. An opportunity sample of 693 students took part in this study. Two direct or explicit measures (the Inventory of Distorted Thoughts about Women and Violence, IPDMV, and the Inventory of Beliefs about Intimate Partner Violence, IBIPV) and one indirect or implicit measure [the Gender Violence Implicit Association Test (GV-IAT), a personalized form of the Implicit Association Test (IAT)] were applied. The results obtained show that the psychometric characteristics of the implicit measure used (GV-IAT) are acceptable. Additionally, we obtained significant differences by gender, IPVAW knowledge, IPVAW involvement, and political opinion when we measured IPVAW attitudes by implicit measures. However, when we measured these attitudes by explicit measures, we only obtained significant differences by gender and political opinion. Finally, the results highlight the important differences between the levels of strong IPVAW rejection measured with explicit and implicit measures, confirming the traditional discrepancy between explicit and implicit measures of attitudes. In summary, the results obtained provide additional support for the idea that GV-IAT constitutes a promising assessment tool to complement explicit measures for attitudes toward IPVAW.

A comprehensive analysis of the psychometric properties of the contingencies of self-worth scale (CSWS)

The Contingencies of Self-Worth Scale (CSWS) is a widely used personality self-report questionnaire developed for measuring the domains in which self-esteem is sustained by successes and achievements as well as threatened by obstacles and failures. Two studies (Nstudy1 = 453, Nstudy2 = 293) aimed to further refine our knowledge of its psychometric properties. Results attested that, at the first-order level, the originally hypothesized seven-factor model proved to be the best-fitting one, but the inclusion of a method factor significantly improved the fit to the data. At the second-order level, the model with two higher-order variables representing private sphere and public sphere of CSW fit better than alternative models. Finally, there was evidence that first- and second-order domains had a good degree of construct and discriminant validity. Overall, these studies provided a step forward in refining the psychometric structure of the CSWS.