Department of Psychology, New York University.
Department of Psychology, Rutgers University.
J Pers Soc Psychol. 2016 Jan;110(1):76-95. doi: 10.1037/pspi0000040.
Does government stability shift the way White and Black Americans represent and make voting decisions about political candidates? Participants judged how representative lightened, darkened, and unaltered photographs were of a racially ambiguous candidate ostensibly running for political office (Studies 1-3). When the governmental system was presented as stable, White participants who shared (vs. did not share) the candidate's political beliefs rated a lightened photo as more representative of the candidate, and Black participants who shared (vs. did not share) the candidate's political beliefs rated a darkened photo as more representative (Studies 1-3). However, under conditions of instability, both Whites and Blacks who shared (vs. did not share) the candidate's political beliefs rated a lightened photo as more representative (Study 3). Representations of (Studies 2 and 3) and actual differences in (Studies 4a and 4b) skin tone predicted intentions to vote for candidates, as a function of government stability and participants' race. Further evidence suggested that system stability shifted the motivations that guided voting decisions (Study 4a and 4b). When the system was stable, the motivation to enhance one's group predicted greater intentions to vote for lighter skinned candidates among Whites, and greater intentions to vote for darker skinned candidates among Blacks. When the system was unstable, however, lacking confidence in the sociopolitical system predicted intentions to vote for lighter skinned candidates among both Whites and Blacks. Implications for political leadership and social perception are discussed.
政府的稳定程度是否会影响白人和黑人美国人对政治候选人的代表性和投票决策？参与者判断经过提亮、变暗和未修改的照片在多大程度上代表了一个表面上为竞选公职的种族模糊的候选人（研究 1-3）。当政府制度被认为是稳定的时，与候选人政治信仰一致（不一致）的白人参与者会认为提亮后的照片更能代表候选人，而与候选人政治信仰一致（不一致）的黑人参与者则认为变暗后的照片更能代表候选人（研究 1-3）。然而，在不稳定的情况下，与候选人政治信仰一致（不一致）的白人和黑人都认为提亮后的照片更能代表候选人（研究 3）。代表性（研究 2 和 3）和实际肤色差异（研究 4a 和 4b）预测了投票意向，这取决于政府的稳定程度和参与者的种族。进一步的证据表明，系统的稳定性改变了指导投票决策的动机（研究 4a 和 4b）。当系统稳定时，增强自己群体的动机预测了白人中更倾向于投票给肤色较浅的候选人，而黑人中更倾向于投票给肤色较深的候选人。然而，当系统不稳定时，对社会政治制度的信心不足则预测了白人和黑人都更倾向于投票给肤色较浅的候选人。讨论了对政治领导和社会认知的影响。
