Award Date

8-1-2020

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Psychology

First Committee Member

David Copeland

Second Committee Member

Rachael Robnett

Third Committee Member

Murray Millar

Fourth Committee Member

Andrew Spivak

Number of Pages

153

Abstract

Stereotype-consistency bias refers to the idea that people tend to remember stereotypical information about others better than non-stereotypical information (Fyock & Stangor, 1994). Limited research has examined how people may use stereotype-consistency bias when recalling information about LGBT characters in narratives (Bellezza & Bower, 1981; Clark & Woll, 1981; McGann & Goodwin, 2007; Snyder & Uranowitz, 1978). This line of research suggests that, instead of genuinely remembering stereotypical information better, participants tended to guess stereotypical answers to questions they do not know. In contrast to those studies, the experiment I conducted for this thesis suggests that heterosexual young adults tend to engage in stereotype inhibition, avoiding the use of gay and lesbian stereotypes. This may be due to a cohort effect, but future research is needed to determine the relevance of cognitive load and explicit homophobia. This information can be used for understanding how stereotyping occurs and developing interventions to reduce stereotype use.

Keywords

Memory; Prejudice; Recall; Stereotype consistency bias; Stereotypes; Stereotyping

Disciplines

Cognitive Psychology | Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Studies | Psychiatric and Mental Health | Social Psychology

File Format

pdf

File Size

1100 KB

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

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