Payne (2001) gave participants a computerized task in which they first see a face and then a picture of either a gun or a tool. The task was to press one button if it was a tool and a different one if it was a gun. Unknown to the participants while they were doing the study, the faces served as a “prime” (something that starts you thinking a particular way) and half the time were of a black person and half the time of a white person. Table 2-8 shows the means and standard deviations for reaction times (time to decide if the picture is of a gun or a tool) after either a black or white prime. (In Experiment 2, participants were told to decide as fast as possible.) Explain the results to a person who has never had a course in statistics. (Be sure to explain some specific numbers as well as the general principle of the mean and standard deviation.)

Question

Payne (2001) gave participants a computerized task in which they first see a face and then a picture of either a gun or a tool. The task was to press one button if it was a tool and a different one if it was a gun. Unknown to the participants while they were doing the study, the faces served as a “prime” (something that starts you thinking a particular way) and half the time were of a black person and half the time of a white person. Table 2-8 shows the means and standard deviations for reaction times (time to decide if the picture is of a gun or a tool) after either a black or white prime. (In Experiment 2, participants were told to decide as fast as possible.) Explain the results to a person who has never had a course in statistics. (Be sure to explain some specific numbers as well as the general principle of the mean and standard deviation.)

Answer 1

I hope my answer to your previous question helps.

If the reaction times differ significantly with the primes, what does that suggest about our racial biases?

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