The Role of Consistency in the Judgment of Stereotype-Relevant Behaviors

Two experiments examined the role that the consistency between a perceiver's stereotype and a target's behavior plays in the judgment of stereotype-relevant behaviors. In Experiment 1, consistency was varied through a manipulation of the objective properties of the behavior and its referent distribution. Ambiguous behaviors were assimilated to the stereotype when they were objectively consistent with the stereotype and were contrasted away from the stereotype when they were objectively inconsistent with the stereotype. In Experiment 2, perceived consistency was manipulated directly while objective consistency was held constant. Behaviors were identified either with members of random groups, with members of extended families, or with single individuals. Consistent with predictions, the tendency to assimilate ambiguous behaviors increased as expected consistency increased. These findings are discussed in light of recent work on contrast and assimilation and stereotyping.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/69052/2/10.1177_0146167290163003.pd