Investigation of Implicit Bias Among Caucasian College Students Towards Native Americans

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine implicit biases towards Native Americans. Participants were 55 Caucasian students enrolled in introductory psychology courses at Oklahoma State University. Each participant individually completed a demographic questionnaire, an attitudes survey and the Implicit Association Test (IAT). A univariate analysis of variance on the IAT effect was conducted to determine if negative implicit bias was demonstrated toward Native Americans compared to European Americans. A Pearson's correlation was conducted to test for correlations between the IAT effect and the results of the attitudes survey. Results indicated that Caucasian participants elicited negative implicit bias toward Native Americans when compared to European Americans. Pearson's analysis revealed that there was a positive correlation between the IAT effect and the subscale attitudes towards affirmative action of the attitudes survey. Further studies are needed to examine the extent to which these negative biases may be associated with the expression of racial prejudice and discrimination.