Identity cues: Evidence from and for intra-individual perspectives on positive and negative stereotyping

Traditional stereotyping research has adopted an intergroup perspective: Comparisons are made between ways in which targets belonging to different social groups are stereotyped. We adopt an intra-individual perspective and examine how a single target, belonging to multiple social groups, is stereotyped differently based on identity cues. Participants interacted with a partner (a research confederate) in a series of e-mail exchanges. The partner used e-mail addresses that subtly cued either the partner's gender identity, the partner's ethnic identity, or neither identity. This subtle identity cue led participants to stereotype their partners in very different ways, biasing recall in directions consistent with the positive and negative stereotypes associated with the different identities cued. Applications of the findings to the problems that stereotypes create are discussed.