No elephant in the room: The incremental validity of implicit self-esteem measures.

OBJECTIVE: Correlational research aiming to validate measures and the construct of implicit self-esteem (ISE) has produced heterogeneous results in the past. We argue that this might be caused by two underappreciated obstacles: the situational malleability of and the construct irrelevant variance in conventional ISE measures. In this study, we aim to address these problems. METHODS: To this end, we applied process and latent state-trait modeling to Implicit Association Test and Name Letter Task data collected on four occasions across six weeks in a preregistered online study (initial N = 360, final N = 302). We investigated the relation of supposed trait ISE parameters with trait explicit self-esteem (ESE) and a set of criteria. RESULTS: Results indicated no latent trait correlation among the different supposed indicators of ISE, small latent trait correlations of indicators of ISE and ESE, and little incremental validity of the supposed ISE measures in predicting potential criterion measures over and above ESE. CONCLUSIONS: These findings align with previous critical evaluations regarding the supposed measures of ISE and the conceptual validity of ISE as an association and call for a more careful terminology in the field.

Implicit learning of two artificial grammars.

This study investigated the implicit learning of two artificial systems. Two finite-state grammars were implemented with the same tone set (leading to short melodies) and played by the same timbre in exposure and test phases. The grammars were presented in separate exposure phases, and potentially acquired knowledge was tested with two experimental tasks: a grammar categorization task (Experiment 1) and a grammatical error detection task (Experiment 2). Results showed that participants were able to categorize new items as belonging to one or the other grammar (Experiment 1) and detect grammatical errors in new sequences of each grammar (Experiment 2). Our findings suggest the capacity of intra-modal learning of regularities in the auditory modality and based on stimuli that share the same perceptual properties.

Implicit attitudes toward eating stimuli differentiate eating disorder and non-eating disorder groups and predict eating disorder behaviors.

OBJECTIVE: The current study tested whether people with and without eating disorders (EDs) varied in their implicit attitudes toward ED-relevant stimuli. Additionally, the study tested whether implicit evaluations of ED-relevant stimuli predicted ED symptoms and behaviors over a 4-week interval. METHOD: Participants were people without EDs (N = 85) and people seeking treatment for EDs (N = 92). All participants completed self-report questionnaires and a version of the affect misattribution procedure (AMP) at baseline. The AMP indexed implicit evaluations of average body stimuli, eating stimuli, and ED-symptom stimuli. Participants with EDs completed weekly follow-up measures of ED symptoms and behaviors for 4 weeks. RESULTS: Contrary to predictions, the anorexia nervosa (AN) group did not differ from the no ED group on implicit attitudes toward ED-symptom stimuli, and the bulimia nervosa (BN) group had less positive implicit attitudes toward ED-symptom stimuli relative to the no ED group. In line with predictions, people with AN and BN had more negative implicit attitudes toward average body and eating stimuli relative to the no ED group. In addition, among the ED group more negative implicit attitudes toward eating stimuli predicted ED symptoms and behaviors 4 weeks later, over and above baseline ED symptoms and behaviors. DISCUSSION: Taken together, implicit evaluations of eating stimuli differentiated people with AN and BN from people without EDs and longitudinally predicted ED symptoms and behaviors. Interventions that increase implicit liking of eating-related stimuli may reduce ED behaviors.

Implicit and Explicit Associations with Erotic Stimuli in Women with and Without Sexual Problems.

Conceptual models of sexual functioning have suggested a major role for implicit cognitive processing in sexual functioning. The present study aimed to investigate implicit and explicit cognition in sexual functioning in women. Gynecological patients with (N = 38) and without self-reported sexual problems (N = 41) were compared. Participants performed two Single-Target Implicit Association Tests (ST-IAT), measuring the implicit association of visual erotic stimuli with attributes representing, respectively, valence and motivation. Participants also rated the erotic pictures that were shown in the ST-IATs on the dimensions of valence, attractiveness, and sexual excitement, to assess their explicit associations with these erotic stimuli. Participants completed the Female Sexual Functioning Index and the Female Sexual Distress Scale for continuous measures of sexual functioning, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale to assess depressive symptoms. Compared to nonsymptomatic women, women with sexual problems were found to show more negative implicit associations of erotic stimuli with wanting (implicit sexual motivation). Across both groups, stronger implicit associations of erotic stimuli with wanting predicted higher level of sexual functioning. More positive explicit ratings of erotic stimuli predicted lower level of sexual distress across both groups.

Gender cognition in transgender children.

A visible and growing cohort of transgender children in North America live according to their expressed gender rather than their natal sex, yet scientific research has largely ignored this population. In the current study, we adopted methodological advances from social-cognition research to investigate whether 5- to 12-year-old prepubescent transgender children (N = 32), who were presenting themselves according to their gender identity in everyday life, showed patterns of gender cognition more consistent with their expressed gender or their natal sex, or instead appeared to be confused about their gender identity. Using implicit and explicit measures, we found that transgender children showed a clear pattern: They viewed themselves in terms of their expressed gender and showed preferences for their expressed gender, with response patterns mirroring those of two cisgender (nontransgender) control groups. These results provide evidence that, early in development, transgender youth are statistically indistinguishable from cisgender children of the same gender identity.

Implicit and Explicit Associations with Erotic Stimuli in Sexually Functional and Dysfunctional Men.

INTRODUCTION: Although conceptual models of sexual functioning have suggested a major role for implicit cognitive processing in sexual functioning, this has thus far, only been investigated in women. AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the role of implicit cognition in sexual functioning in men. METHODS: Men with (N = 29) and without sexual dysfunction (N = 31) were compared. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Participants performed two single-target implicit association tests (ST-IAT), measuring the implicit association of visual erotic stimuli with attributes representing, respectively, valence ('liking') and motivation ('wanting'). Participants also rated the erotic pictures that were shown in the ST-IAT on the dimensions of valence, attractiveness, and sexual excitement to assess their explicit associations with these erotic stimuli. Participants completed the International Index of Erectile Functioning for a continuous measure of sexual functioning. RESULTS: Unexpectedly, compared with sexually functional men, sexually dysfunctional men were found to show stronger implicit associations of erotic stimuli with positive valence than with negative valence. Level of sexual functioning, however, was not predicted by explicit nor implicit associations. Level of sexual distress was predicted by explicit valence ratings, with positive ratings predicting higher levels of sexual distress. CONCLUSIONS: Men with and without sexual dysfunction differed significantly with regard to implicit liking. Research recommendations and implications are discussed.

Deferred feedback sharply dissociates implicit and explicit category learning.

The controversy over multiple category-learning systems is reminiscent of the controversy over multiple memory systems. Researchers continue to seek paradigms to sharply dissociate explicit category-learning processes (featuring category rules that can be verbalized) from implicit category-learning processes (featuring learned stimulus-response associations that lie outside declarative cognition). We contribute a new dissociative paradigm, adapting the technique of deferred-rearranged reinforcement from comparative psychology. Participants learned matched category tasks that had either a one-dimensional, rule-based solution or a multidimensional, information-integration solution. They received feedback either immediately or after each block of trials, with the feedback organized such that positive outcomes were grouped and negative outcomes were grouped (deferred-rearranged reinforcement). Deferred reinforcement qualitatively eliminated implicit, information-integration category learning. It left intact explicit, rule-based category learning. Moreover, implicit-category learners facing deferred-rearranged reinforcement turned by default and information-processing necessity to rule-based strategies that poorly suited their nominal category task. The results represent one of the strongest explicit-implicit dissociations yet seen in the categorization literature.

Effects of Mass Shootings on Mental Illness Stigma in the United States.

Although the vast majority of people with mental illness (PWMI) are not violent, Americans tend to think they are more dangerous than the general population. Because negative media portrayals may contribute to stigma, we used time-series analyses to examine changes in the public's perceived dangerousness of PWMI around six mass shootings whose perpetrators were reported to have a mental illness. From 2011 to 2019, 38,094 U.S. participants completed an online study assessing implicit and explicit perceived dangerousness of PWMI. There were large, upward spikes in perceived dangerousness the week of the Sandy Hook mass shooting that were relatively short-lived. However, there was not a consistent pattern of effects for other events analyzed, and any other spikes observed were smaller. Effects tended to be larger for explicit versus implicit perceived dangerousness. Sandy Hook seemed to temporarily worsen perceived dangerousness of PWMI, but this pattern was not observed for other mass shootings.

Self-Awareness and Stereotypes: Accurate Prediction of Implicit Gender Stereotyping.

Research showing that people can predict the patterns of their implicit evaluations toward social groups has raised questions concerning how widely these findings extend to other domains, such as semantic implicit stereotyping. In a preregistered laboratory study, participants were asked to predict their scores on five implicit gender stereotyping Implicit Associations Tests (IATs). Within-subjects correlations between IAT score predictions and IAT scores showed high levels of accuracy. Although part of the IAT score patterns could be predicted from shared knowledge, own predictions significantly outperformed predictions of random others and normative patterns, suggesting self-awareness beyond reliance on shared knowledge. In line with dual-process models emphasizing that different information is captured by implicit as opposed to explicit measures, predictions explained correlations between implicit and traditional explicit stereotyping measures, and led to acknowledgment of bias. Discussion focuses on understanding conscious awareness of semantic automatic processes and conceptualizations of the cognitions underlying implicit measures.

Implicit-explicit discrepancies regarding racial attitudes among U.S. Whites.

Work on implicit attitude measures has become increasingly rich and nuanced, with much theoretical development emanating from investigations of the correspondence between implicit and explicit attitude measures. However, various facets of implicit-explicit discrepancies (IEDs) remain underexplored - particularly, how prevalent the potentially distinct categories of IEDs are. Existing models speak mainly to discrepancies that occur because explicit attitudes are less prejudiced than implicit attitudes and tends to assume other possible categories are trivial. Using data from two large samples, this study provides a descriptive analysis of the different ways IEDs exist regarding racial attitudes among U.S. Whites. Results suggest IEDs exist largely in line with traditional theories, but there is substantial variation yet to be understood. These results were robust across a variety of measures, although decision-making in the construction of measures can be consequential. Future research should consider this variation in theory development regarding implicit versus explicit attitude measures.

The role of causal structure in implicit evaluation.

Causal relationships, unlike mere co-occurrence, allow humans to obtain rewards and avoid punishments by intervening on their environment. Accordingly, explicit (controlled) evaluations of stimuli encountered in the environment are known to be sensitive to causal relationships above and beyond mere co-occurrence. In this project, we conduct stringent tests of whether implicit (automatic) evaluation also reflects causal relationships and begin to probe the representational mechanisms underlying such sensitivity. Participants (N = 4836) observed causal events during which two stimuli were equally contingent with positive or negative outcomes but only one of them was causally responsible for these outcomes. Across 6 studies, varying in design and amount of verbal scaffolding provided, differences in causal status consistently guided not only explicit measures of evaluation (Likert and slider scales; Bayes Factor meta-analysis: Cohen's d = 0.28, BF10 > 1046) but also their implicit counterparts (Implicit Association Tests; Bayes Factor meta-analysis: Cohen's d = 0.22, BF10 > 1029). However, unlike their explicit counterparts, implicit evaluations were not sensitive to causal relationships that had to be flexibly derived by combining disparate past experiences. Taken together, these studies suggest that implicit evaluations are sensitive to causal information. Such sensitivity seems to be mediated via precompiled, causally informed value representations rather than online computations over a causal model.

The IRAP as a Measure of Implicit Cognition: A Case of Frankenstein's Monster.

The implicit relational assessment procedure (IRAP) was initially developed as a way to assess the strength and probability of natural verbal relations, as defined within relational frame theory (RFT), and was conceptually rooted within the behavior-analytic tradition. However, the IRAP quickly became employed primarily as a measure of implicit cognition, more in line with mainstream psychology than behavior analysis. In doing so, research using the IRAP increasingly employed ill-defined mainstream psychological terms, focused on correlational analyses with traditional psychometry, and thus emphasized prediction over the prediction-and-influence of behavior. Although perhaps beneficial to the study of implicit cognition, this approach could be argued to have limited the IRAP's utility in behavior analyses of human language and cognition. In the current article we will reflect on this suggestion, on the IRAPs place and current use in the field of behavior analysis, and on its potential future within behavioral psychology in light of recent conceptual and empirical advances in RFT. In doing so, it is hoped that the measure may be refined into a better understood, more precise, functional-analytic tool.

Pharmacological compounds targeting emotional cognition in alcohol use disorder: A systematic review.

Non-emotional (e.g., executive functions) and emotional cognitive (e.g., facial emotion recognition) impairments are a well-known aspect of alcohol use disorder (AUD). These deficits may impede on treatment outcomes, increase the risk of relapse, and lead to socio-occupational disabilities. Previous systematic reviews have examined the effectiveness of cognitive enhancing pharmacological agents (CEPAs) targeting non-emotional, but not emotional, cognition in AUD. Our aim was to systematically review the effectiveness of CEPAs targeting emotional cognition in subclinical and clinical AUD populations. A qualitative synthesis of controlled trials was conducted, and the studies were assessed for risk of bias. Eight studies were eligible (15 ≤ ns ≤ 143), and they all had a moderate risk of bias. Modafinil and nalmefene were the most examined agents, with the findings suggesting a potential beneficial effect of the agents on implicit emotional domains (i.e., reward processing). Methodological shortcomings and heterogeneous findings across the studies do not allow inferences about the effectiveness of these compounds in AUD. Future studies should examine CEPAs targeting emotional cognition in more detail.

Individualized Web-Based Attention Training With Evidence-Based Counseling to Address HIV Treatment Adherence and Psychological Distress: Exploratory Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of mood, trauma, and stressor-related disorders is disproportionately higher among people living with HIV than among individuals without the virus. Poor adherence to HIV treatment and heightened psychological distress have been linked to symptoms associated with these disorders. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this exploratory pilot study was to develop and implement an intervention that combined individualized web-based attention training with evidence-based counseling to promote HIV treatment adherence and reduce psychological distress among people living with HIV. The study targeted African American and Latino young men who have sex with men, two population groups in the US that continue to experience disparities in HIV treatment outcomes. METHODS: Study participants with elevated symptoms of depression and suboptimal adherence to antiretroviral therapy were recruited primarily through referrals from Los Angeles health and social service providers as well as postings on social media. Participants enrolled in the 4-week intervention received weekly counseling for adherence and daily access to web-based attention training via their personal mobile devices or computers. RESULTS: Of the 14 participants who began the intervention, 12 (86%) completed all sessions and study procedures. Using a pretest-posttest design, findings indicate significant improvements in adherence, depressive symptoms, and attention processing. Overall, the proportion of participants reporting low adherence to antiretroviral therapy declined from 42% at baseline to 25% at intervention completion (P=.02, phi=0.68). Mean depressive symptoms measured by the 9 item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) showed a substantial reduction of 36% (P=.002, Cohen d=1.2). In addition, participants' attentional processing speeds for all types of stimuli pairings presented during attention training improved significantly (P=.01 and P=.02) and were accompanied by large effect sizes ranging from 0.78 to 1.0. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings support the feasibility of web-based attention training combined with counseling to improve antiretroviral therapy adherence among patients with psychological distress. Future research should include a larger sample, a control group, and longer-term follow-up.

Political ideology and diurnal associations A dual-process motivated social cognition account.

Social scientists have begun to uncover links between sleep and political attitudes and behaviors. This registered report considers how diurnal morning-night associations relate to political ideology using data from the Attitudes, Identities, and Individual Differences Study, a large-scale online data collection effort. Measures encompass perceived cultural attitudes and social pressures regarding diurnal preferences and explicit and implicit measures of both morning-night attitudes and morning-night self-concepts. Together, the analyses demonstrate a relationship between morning orientation and conservatism for explicit morning-night self-concepts and, to a lesser extent, explicit morning-night attitudes. This relationship is not present for implicit associations, and associations with perceived cultural attitudes and social pressure are also largely absent. This study reinforces the notion that morningness and eveningness as explicit identities are associated with political ideology.

Shifting perceptions of social class: Race-based shifts in class-related occupations.

Based on social expectations associating White and Black racial categories with higher and lower ends of the social hierarchy, respectively, the criteria used in interpersonal judgments of social class categorizations should differ between White and Black targets, with Black targets needing objectively lower criteria than White targets to achieve a particular subjective level of social class. In an analysis of the occupations assigned to Working- and Middle-Class targets, respondents assigned occupations of higher financial and educational attainment, higher social status, more influence, and greater desirability to a White target than to a comparably described Black target. Despite this pattern, however, respondents judged the occupations assigned to a Black target as lower in prestige than those they assigned to a White target. The results are discussed in the context of interracial perceptions of social standing and motivations for societal change.

Can the Implicit Association Test Serve as a Valid Measure of Automatic Cognition? A Response to Schimmack (2021).

Much of human thought, feeling, and behavior unfolds automatically. Indirect measures of cognition capture such processes by observing responding under corresponding conditions (e.g., lack of intention or control). The Implicit Association Test (IAT) is one such measure. The IAT indexes the strength of association between categories such as "planes" and "trains" and attributes such as "fast" and "slow" by comparing response latencies across two sorting tasks (planes-fast/trains-slow vs. trains-fast/planes-slow). Relying on a reanalysis of multitrait-multimethod (MTMM) studies, Schimmack (this issue, p. 396) argues that the IAT and direct measures of cognition, for example, Likert scales, can serve as indicators of the same latent construct, thereby purportedly undermining the validity of the IAT as a measure of individual differences in automatic cognition. Here we note the compatibility of Schimmack's empirical findings with a range of existing theoretical perspectives and the importance of considering evidence beyond MTMM approaches to establishing construct validity. Depending on the nature of the study, different standards of validity may apply to each use of the IAT; however, the evidence presented by Schimmack is easily reconcilable with the potential of the IAT to serve as a valid measure of automatic processes in human cognition, including in individual-difference contexts.

A Process Dissociation Model of Implicit Rapid Revision in Response to Diagnostic Revelations.

Previous research has demonstrated that implicit evaluations can be reversed with exposure to a single impression-inconsistent behavior. But what exactly is changing when perceivers encounter diagnostic revelations about someone? One possibility is that rapid changes are occurring in the extent to which perceivers view the person positively or negatively. Another possibility is that they override the expression of initial evaluations through control-oriented processes. We conducted three studies (one preregistered) that used multinomial process trees to distinguish between these possibilities. We find consistent support across two different implicit measures that diagnostic behaviors result in rapid changes in evaluative processes. We obtained only inconsistent evidence for effects on more control-oriented processes. These findings thus help to reveal the cognitive processes underlying rapid implicit revision. Implications for theoretical perspectives on implicit attitudes are discussed.

Implicit and Explicit Self-Identification as a Drug User in People Who Used Heroin and Methamphetamine.

Implicit and explicit self-identification as a drug user specific to the substance used (e.g., viewing oneself as a drinker) have been examined, as they relate to that drug use. However, studies have rarely explored whether identifying as a "drug user" differs implicitly and explicitly for people who use different drugs and how this identification relates to drug-use behaviors or abstinence. This study examined implicit and explicit self-identification as a "drug user" and their associations with drug-use behaviors and abstinence in people who used heroin (PWUH) and people who used methamphetamine (PWUM). Forty PWUH and 35 PWUM in a rehabilitation facility completed the single category implicit association test (SC-IAT), which evaluated implicit associations of a "drug user" with "self," and a measure of explicit self-identification as a "drug user." Prior drug-use behaviors and current abstinence duration of the participants were assessed. PWUH demonstrated stronger implicit "self + drug user" associations and higher levels of explicit self-identification as a "drug user" than PWUM. A higher frequency of drug use was associated with higher levels of explicit drug-user self-identity, and longer abstinence duration was positively related to stronger implicit "self + drug user" associations in PWUH. The drug type of heroin (vs. methamphetamine) participants used was associated with a higher frequency of use, which, in turn, predicted higher levels of explicit drug-user self-identity. Given that the PWUH group differs from the PWUM group in terms of implicit and explicit self-identification as "drug users," it would be more appropriate to address drug-user self-identity of individuals according to the substance they use rather than as a collective group.

Assessing implicit and explicit dementia stigma in young adults and care-workers.

This aim of this study was to assess implicit and self-reported stigma towards people with dementia in young adults with no contact or experience (n = 23), and in care-workers (n = 17 professional dementia care-workers). Data were analysed to determine whether stigma was related to self-reported levels of depression, anxiety, stress and professional burnout. Forty participants completed the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure and Dementia Attitudes Scale. The Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale and Maslach Burnout Inventory were used to measure depression, anxiety, stress and professional burnout. The young adult group showed statistically significant levels of dementia stigma (on the two "dementia" trial-types, p = .027 and p = .030). Statistical analyses showed more dementia-positive attitudes in care-workers compared to young adults on the Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure and the Dementia Attitudes Scale (both p's=.021). Spearman's Rho correlations tests showed that for the care-givers, higher levels of burn-out were associated with more negative attitudes towards people with dementia on both of the Dementia Attitudes Scale subscales (social comfort p<.001 and dementia knowledge p=.005). The results support prior research showing that experience with a stigmatised group can lower stigma and demonstrate the importance of providing a supportive work environment to mitigate burnout.