'They all look alike to me': prejudice and cross-race face recognition

Br J Psychol. 2001 Nov;92(Pt 4):567-77. doi: 10.1348/000712601162347.

Abstract

We investigated whether prejudice level influences the size of the other-race effect (poorer recognition of other-race compared with own-race faces). Previous studies, using self-report measures of prejudice, failed to find a relationship between prejudice and the other-race effect. We used an implicit prejudice measure, developed by Fazio, Jackson, Dunton, and Williams (1995), to determine whether implicit prejudice influences the size of the other-race effect. A self-report measure of prejudice, Walker's (1994) Attitudes to Asians Scale, was also included to replicate previous results. A group of 30 high prejudice and 30 low prejudice Caucasian participants, as determined by the self-report measure, were run through a procedure which assesses implicit prejudice and recognition performance at the same time. Neither implicit nor self-reported prejudice level influenced the size of the other-race effect. Unexpectedly, implicit and self-report prejudice influenced (in opposite ways) recognition of own-race faces. The implications of these results for understanding the other-race effect are discussed.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Asian People / genetics
  • Face / anatomy & histology*
  • Facial Expression
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Judgment
  • Male
  • Pattern Recognition, Visual*
  • Prejudice*
  • Race Relations / psychology*
  • Racial Groups
  • Reaction Time
  • Stereotyping*
  • White People / genetics