Retrain the Brain: Situational Attribution for Lasting Bias Reduction
Disciplines
Social Psychology
Abstract (300 words maximum)
Implicit biases, unconscious associations linking social groups to traits, can shape decisions in hiring, policing, and healthcare. While previous interventions to reduce implicit bias have shown short-lived effects, Situational Attribution Training (SAT) has been demonstrated to decrease automatic stereotyping by encouraging situational attributions for stereotype-consistent behaviors (Stewart et al., 2010; Stewart et al., 2022). This study expands on prior research by investigating whether multiple, short SAT sessions lead to longer-lasting and more generalized reductions in implicit biases toward both African Americans and Arab Muslim Americans. Participants are randomly assigned to either SAT for African American stereotypes, SAT for Arab Muslim American stereotypes, or a grammar-based control condition. Training consists of repeated sessions over five weeks, preceded and followed by assessments of implicit biases using the Person Categorization Task, explicit bias measures, and a resume hiring task. We anticipate that repeated SAT will result in sustained reductions in implicit bias that generalize to new stereotypic traits and influence participants’ evaluations of job candidates. These findings will highlight the importance of extended, structured bias-reduction interventions and inform future strategies to promote equity in real-world decision-making.
Academic department under which the project should be listed
RCHSS - Psychological Science
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
Dr. Tracie Stewart
Additional Faculty
Ordene Edwards, Psychological Science, oedward4@kennesaw.edu
Tim Martin, Psychological Science, tmarti61@kennesaw.edu
Jennifer Willard, Psychological Science, jwillar3@kennesaw.edu
Retrain the Brain: Situational Attribution for Lasting Bias Reduction
Implicit biases, unconscious associations linking social groups to traits, can shape decisions in hiring, policing, and healthcare. While previous interventions to reduce implicit bias have shown short-lived effects, Situational Attribution Training (SAT) has been demonstrated to decrease automatic stereotyping by encouraging situational attributions for stereotype-consistent behaviors (Stewart et al., 2010; Stewart et al., 2022). This study expands on prior research by investigating whether multiple, short SAT sessions lead to longer-lasting and more generalized reductions in implicit biases toward both African Americans and Arab Muslim Americans. Participants are randomly assigned to either SAT for African American stereotypes, SAT for Arab Muslim American stereotypes, or a grammar-based control condition. Training consists of repeated sessions over five weeks, preceded and followed by assessments of implicit biases using the Person Categorization Task, explicit bias measures, and a resume hiring task. We anticipate that repeated SAT will result in sustained reductions in implicit bias that generalize to new stereotypic traits and influence participants’ evaluations of job candidates. These findings will highlight the importance of extended, structured bias-reduction interventions and inform future strategies to promote equity in real-world decision-making.