When death is not a problem: Regulating implicit negative affect under mortality salience

Terror management theory assumes that death arouses existential anxiety in humans which is suppressed in focal attention. Whereas most studies provide indirect evidence for negative affect under mortality salience by showing cultural worldview defenses and self‐esteem strivings, there is only little direct evidence for implicit negative affect under mortality salience. In the present study, we assume that this implicit affective reaction towards death depends on people's ability to self‐regulate negative affect as assessed by the personality dimension of action versus state orientation. Consistent with our expectations, action‐oriented participants judged artificial words to express less negative affect under mortality salience compared to control conditions whereas state‐oriented participants showed the reversed pattern.     

Gender differences in implicit gender self‐categorization lead to stronger gender self‐stereotyping by women than by men

It was hypothesized that, in natural group contexts, low‐status in‐group membership would be highly accessible, whereas membership to high‐status groups would not. Therefore, gender group membership was predicted to be more accessible for women than for men. It was further hypothesized that the high accessibility of gender group membership would lead to stronger self‐stereotyping for women than for men. To measure the accessibility of gender group membership, participants performed a Gender Self‐Categorization Implicit Association Test (Studies 1 and 2), measuring the strength of automatic associations between the self and the gender in‐group. Participants also performed a Self‐Stereotyping Implicit Association Test (Study 2), assessing the strength of automatic associations between the self and the stereotypical traits of the in‐group. As expected, implicit gender self‐categorization and implicit gender self‐stereotyping were stronger for women than for men. Importantly, implicit gender self‐categorization mediated the relation between gender and self‐stereotyping. Therefore, implicit gender self‐categorization was the mechanism underlying stronger implicit self‐stereotyping by women. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

大学生性别自我概念的结构

同时运用外显的自陈式量表和自行设计的内隐联想测验来研究大学生的性别自我概念 ,结果表明 :(1)运用内隐联想测验来测量内隐性别自我概念是可靠、有效、敏感的 ;(2 )在性别自我概念的内隐层面上 ,性别差异十分显著 ;在性别自我概念的外显层面上 ,除了女性正性量表外 ,其他量表上均未表现出显著的差异。 (3)性别自我概念是一个双重的结构 :包括一个内隐的性别自我概念和一个外显的性别自我概念 ,前者是一个一维的未分化的结构 ,后者是一个两维的结构 ,并且二者相对独立     

The implicit sociometer effect and the moderating role of relational self‐construal

The present study examined how negative feedback influenced implicit self‐evaluations and how individuals' level of relational self‐construal (RelSC) moderated these relationships. One hundred Chinese university students completed the relational‐interdependent self‐construal scale and were randomly assigned into one of three conditions (social exclusion, personal failure, or control). After receiving the manipulation, participants completed two Brief Implicit Association Tests (BIATs) that measured their implicit self‐liking and self‐competence. The results indicated that people with a highly RelSC typically had higher implicit self‐liking, but they decreased their implicit self‐liking more than those with a low RelSC after experiencing social exclusion. However, RelSC did not influence the effect of personal failure on implicit self‐liking. In addition, RelSC was not associated with implicit self‐competence in any situation.     

Understanding and using the implicit association test: V. measuring semantic aspects of trait self‐concepts

Implicit Association Tests (IATs) often reveal strong associations of self with positive rather than negative attributes. This poses a problem in using the IAT to measure associations involving traits with either positive or negative evaluative content. In two studies, we employed non‐bipolar but evaluatively balanced Big Five traits as attribute contrasts and explored correlations of IATs with positive (e.g. sociable vs. conscientious) or negative (e.g. reserved vs. chaotic) attributes. Results showed (a) satisfactory internal consistencies for all IATs, (b) explicit–explicit and implicit–implicit correlations that were moderate to high and comparable in strength after both were corrected for attenuation and (c) better model fit for latent variable models that linked the implicit and explicit measures to distinct latent factors rather to the same factor. Together, the results suggest that IATs can validly assess the semantic aspect of trait self‐concepts and that implicit and explicit self‐representations are, although correlated, also distinct constructs. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Recovering from negative events by boosting implicit positive affect

Upregulation of implicit positive affect (PA) can act as a mechanism to deal with negative affect. Two studies tracked temporal changes in positive and negative affect (NA) assessed by self-report and the Implicit Positive and Negative Affect Test (IPANAT; Quirin, Kazén, & Kuhl, 2009). Study 1 observed the predicted increases in implicit PA after exposure to a threat-related film clip, which correlated positively with the speed of recognising a happy face among an angry crowd. Study 2 replicated increases in implicit PA after exposition to the same film clip, and showed that such increases were enhanced by priming self-referential stimuli. The findings are discussed against the background of personality systems interaction (PSI) theory (Kuhl, 2000, 2001), which emphasises the role of the implicit self in affect regulation.     

The influence of violent and nonviolent computer games on implicit measures of aggressiveness

We examined the causal relationship between playing violent video games and increases in aggressiveness by using implicit measures of aggressiveness, which have become important for accurately predicting impulsive behavioral tendencies. Ninety‐six adults were randomly assigned to play one of three versions of a computer game that differed only with regard to game content (violent, peaceful, or abstract game), or to work on a reading task. In the games the environmental context, mouse gestures, and physiological arousal—as indicated by heart rate and skin conductance—were kept constant. In the violent game soldiers had to be shot, in the peaceful game sunflowers had to be watered, and the abstract game simply required clicking colored triangles. Five minutes of play did not alter trait aggressiveness, yet an Implicit Association Test detected a change in implicit aggressive self‐concept. Playing a violent game produced a significant increase in implicit aggressive self‐concept relative to playing a peaceful game. The well‐controlled study closes a gap in the research on the causality of the link between violence exposure in computer games and aggressiveness with specific regard to implicit measures. We discuss the significance of importing recent social–cognitive theory into aggression research and stress the need for further development of aggression‐related implicit measures. Aggr. Behav. 36:1–13, 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

The road to the unconscious self not taken: Discrepancies between self‐ and observer‐inferences about implicit dispositions from nonverbal behavioural cues

To what extent can individuals gain insight into their own or another person's implicit dispositions' We investigated whether self‐perceivers versus neutral observers can detect implicit dispositions from nonverbal behavioural cues contained in video feedback (cue validity) and whether these cues are in turn used as a valid basis for explicit dispositional inferences (cue utilization). Across three studies in the domains of extraversion and anxiety we consistently obtained reliable cue validity and cue utilization for neutral observers but not for self‐perceivers. An additional measure of state inferences in Study 3 showed that one reason for the lack of mediation in self‐perceivers is their reluctance to use their state inferences as a basis for more general trait inferences. We conclude that people have a ‘blind spot’ with respect to the nonverbal behavioural manifestations of their unconscious selves, even though neutral observers may readily detect and utilize this information for dispositional inferences. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Reliability of implicit self‐esteem measures revisited

This study investigated the internal consistencies and temporal stabilities of different implicit self‐esteem measures. Participants (N = 101) responded twice—with a time lag of 4 weeks—to five different tasks: the Implicit Association Test (IAT), the Brief Implicit Association Test (BIAT), the Affective Priming Task (APT), the Identification‐Extrinsic Affective Simon Task (ID‐EAST) and the Name‐Letter Task (NLT). As expected, the highest reliability coefficients were obtained for the self‐esteem IAT. Importantly, the internal consistencies and the temporal stabilities of the APT, the ID‐EAST, and the NLT were substantially improved by using material, structural, and analytic innovations. In particular, the use of the adaptive response‐window procedure for the APT, the computation of error scores for the ID‐EAST, and the computation of a double corrected scoring algorithm for the NLT yielded reliability coefficients comparable to those of the established IAT. Implications for the indirect assessment of self‐esteem are discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

内隐自尊的研究趋势及测量方法

内隐自尊是社会认知研究的新领域。本文主要回顾了内隐自尊研究的趋势及测量方法的进展。内隐自尊的研究趋势主要表现为：内隐与外显自尊研究对照进行;应用性研究初步开展;研究方法的不断更新;与其它社会认知结构的关系;与行为的关系等。目前在研究方法上以反应时范式为主,最常用是内隐联想测验,还包括阈上语义启动、阈下语义启动、姓名字母与数字偏爱、Stroop颜色命名任务、内隐自我评价调查和外部情绪性Simon任务等。     

自我的内隐社会认知研究

自我的内隐社会认知研究具备坚实的理论基础,又有严格的实证研究方法,可以促进自我理论的深入发展。目前,内隐社会认知的自我研究已经成为自我研究的新生力量。文章最后对该取向的意义和趋势作了展望。     

Working memory moderates the effect of the integrative process of implicit and explicit autonomous motivation on academic achievement

In previous research, autonomous motivation (AM) has been found to be associated with school achievement, but the relation has been largely heterogeneous across studies. AM has typically been assessed with explicit measures such as self‐report questionnaires. Recent self‐determination theory (SDT) research has suggested that converging implicit and explicit measures can be taken to characterize the integrative process in SDT. Drawing from dual‐process theories, we contended that explicit AM is likely to promote school achievement when it is part of an integrated cognitive system that combines easily accessible mental representations (i.e., implicit AM) and efficient executive functioning. A sample of 272 university students completed a questionnaire and a lexical decision task to assess their explicit and implicit AM, respectively, and they also completed working memory capacity measures. Grades were obtained at the end of the semester to examine the short‐term prospective effect of implicit and explicit AM, working memory, and their interaction. Results of moderation analyses have provided support for a synergistic interaction in which the association between explicit AM and academic achievement was positive and significant only for individuals with high level of implicit AM. Moreover, working memory was moderating the synergistic effect of explicit and implicit AM. Explicit AM was positively associated with academic achievement for students with average‐to‐high levels of working memory capacity, but only if their motivation operated synergistically with high implicit AM. The integrative process thus seems to hold better proprieties for achievement than the sole effect of explicit AM. Implications for SDT are outlined.     

Discrepancies Between Implicit and Explicit Self‐concepts of Intelligence Predict Performance on Tests of Intelligence

Three studies investigated the correspondence between implicit and explicit self‐concepts of intelligence and how that correspondence is related to performance on different intelligence tests. Configurations of these two self‐concepts were found to be consistently related to performance on intelligence tests in all three studies. For individuals who self‐reported high intelligence (high explicit self‐concept), a negative implicit self‐concept (measured with the Implicit Association Test) led to a decrease in performance on intelligence tests. For participants whose self‐report indicated a low self‐concept of intelligence, positive automatic associations between the self and intelligence had a similar effect. In line with a stress hypothesis, the results indicate that any discrepant configuration of self‐concepts will impair performance. Importantly, the prediction of performance on intelligence tests by the self‐concept of intelligence was shown to be independent of self‐esteem (Study 3). Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The explicit and implicit dance in psychoanalytic change

How the implicit/non-declarative and explicit/declarative cognitive domains interact is centrally important in the consideration of effecting change within the psychoanalytic arena. Stern et al. (1998) declare that long-lasting change occurs in the domain of implicit relational knowledge. In the view of this author, the implicit and explicit domains are intricately intertwined in an interactive dance within a psychoanalytic process. The author views that a spirit of inquiry (Lichtenberg, Lachmann & Fosshage 2002) serves as the foundation of the psychoanalytic process. Analyst and patient strive to explore, understand and communicate and, thereby, create a 'spirit' of interaction that contributes, through gradual incremental learning, to new implicit relational knowledge. This spirit, as part of the implicit relational interaction, is a cornerstone of the analytic relationship. The 'inquiry' more directly brings explicit/declarative processing to the foreground in the joint attempt to explore and understand. The spirit of inquiry in the psychoanalytic arena highlights both the autobiographical scenarios of the explicit memory system and the mental models of the implicit memory system as each contributes to a sense of self, other, and self with other. This process facilitates the extrication and suspension of the old models, so that new models based on current relational experience can be gradually integrated into both memory systems for lasting change.     

Power becomes you: The effects of implicit and explicit power on the self

Some power cues are explicit, obvious and salient, while others are implicit, subtle and harder to detect. Drawing from research demonstrating that people assimilate to implicit cues and contrast from explicit ones, we suggest that implicit and explicit power cues have different effects on people. Two laboratory experiments found that when power cues were implicit, people in high power conditions assimilated to stereotypes of power; they had relatively higher independent self construals, and they were more likely to see themselves as autonomous from, rather than connected to, others. The opposite effect emerged when power cues were explicit. These effects were replicated in a third study, where working adults rated their own power at work and the explicitness of power cues in their workplaces. We also found that power and cue explicitness predicted co-worker support, and that this effect was mediated by self construals. These results suggest that the way power is conveyed and expressed can influence important outcomes in organizations.     

内隐自尊探析

作为内隐社会认知领域的一部分,内隐自尊是指人们在对与自我相关或自我分离的客体进行评价时的一种态度表现,而这种态度无法通过内省的方式被意识到。目前,内隐自尊的研究在方法采用间接测量的方式;在研究成果上主要集中于内隐自尊与外显自尊的对照性研究,内隐自尊的应用性研究两方面。本文拟就内隐自尊研究的缘起、研究方法、已有研究成果作尝试性探讨。     

关系自我和集体自我在自我建构中的层级关系

三重自我建构认为,自我包含三个方面：个体自我,关系自我和集体自我。个体自我的核心地位已经得到诸多研究的证实,但关系自我和集体自我的层级关系还缺乏定论。越重要的自我,与积极信息的联系越紧密,以达到维持自尊、抵御自我威胁的目的。因此,采用内隐联想范式（IAT）验证对两种自我的积极联想,并对比两者积极联想程度以确定其层级关系。结果发现,相比非自我信息,被试对关系自我和集体自我均存在内隐的积极联想,从内隐的层面证实了关系自我和集体自我的存在。相比关系自我,被试对集体自我存在更强的积极联结,自我建构中的集体自我在内隐层面占据更为重要的位置。     

内隐自尊效应及内隐自尊与外显自尊的关系

研究运用内隐联想测验对内隐自尊进行了研究和测量,同时还运用结构方程建模对外显自尊和内隐自尊的结构关系进行了研究,结果表明：(1)东方文化下内隐自尊是存在的,个体无意识中对自我持有一种积极的评价,但强度不如西方个体。(2)内隐自尊与外显自尊是相对独立的两个不同的结构,二者间仅存在低的正相关。     

内隐自我正面偏见的机制及可变性

自我正面偏见是指对大多数个体来说, 其自我相关信息与正性情绪效价联系紧密, 个体倾向于把正面结果或特质归因于自我内部稳定的人格特征, 而认为负面结果或特质与自己的人格特征不相关。本项目从自我正面偏见的文化相对论与文化普遍论之争出发, 采用行为和认知神经科学技术, 试图证实集体主义文化下自我正面偏见的存在, 并对照外显自我正面偏见, 考察内隐层面上的自我正面偏见及其可变性, 探索抑郁个体的内隐自我相关信息加工的改善, 了解其大脑神经基础, 揭示内隐自我正面偏见的性质与特征, 验证和完善自我相关信息与情绪信息的功能加工层次模型。研究结果不仅有助于从内隐层面上了解自我与情绪的复杂关系, 而且还将对其神经基础做出重要探索, 更深入地解读中国人的自我的本质。