Stereotype threat impairs the feeling of learning

The present study examined stereotype threat impairments on stigmatized learners’ ability to develop conscious awareness of what they have learned, even when learning has taken place. To test this, participants completed a task where learning is initially implicit but the “feeling of learning” develops with greater experience. Participants were female undergraduates who completed an implicit category learning task under threat or control conditions. Across 192 trials, participants made a category choice, rated their confidence in the choice, and received feedback. Although participants in both conditions showed equivalent levels of implicit learning, those under threat were delayed in becoming confident that learning had taken place. This inaccurate awareness of learning had consequences for post-task perceptions of performance and judgments of ability on future tasks. Discussion centers on the role of stereotype threat in hindering awareness of one’s abilities and the impact that might have on decision-making and motivation. Arts, Faculty ofPsychology, Department ofGraduat