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Communicating Stereotype-Relevant Information: Is Factual Information Subject to the Same Communication Biases as Fictional Information?
Ruth L. Goodman1,
Thomas L. Webb2*,
and
Andrew J. Stewart1
1 The University of Manchester
2 University of Sheffield
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: t.webb{at}sheffield.ac.uk.
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Abstract |
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Factual information is more frequently read and discussed than fictional information. However, research on the role of communication in shaping stereotypes has focused almost exclusively on fictional narratives. In Experiments 1 and 2 a newspaper article containing information about heroin users was communicated along chains of 4 people. No stereotype-consistency bias was observed. Instead, a greater proportion of stereotype-inconsistent information was communicated than was stereotype-consistent or -neutral information. Three further experiments investigated explanations for the difference between the communication of fictional and factual information. Experiment 3 ruled out the possibility that participants’ beliefs about the validity of the information could influence the way that it is communicated. Experiments 4 and 5 divided information into concrete (a specific event or fact) or abstract (opinion). A stereotype-consistency bias emerged only for abstract information. In summary, linguistic abstraction moderates whether stereotype-consistency biases emerge in the communication of stereotype-relevant factual information.
First published on April 30, 2009, doi:10.1177/0146167209334780
Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 2009;35:836.
A more recent version of this article appeared on July 1, 2009
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