Emergence of internal and external motivations to respond without prejudice in White children

Abstract

This research examined White U.S. children’s internal and external motivations to respond without prejudice (IMS and EMS). Study 1 examined the psychometric properties of IMS and EMS scales adapted from Plant and Devine (1998) in a predominately White sample of children (N = 123, ages 7–12, M_age = 9.50, SD = 1.66). Among children aged 8 and older, both scales were reliable and correlated with theoretically relevant constructs. Study 2 examined whether IMS and EMS mediate the inverse relation between age and explicit prejudice in a sample of White children (N = 145, ages 8–10, M_age = 8.98, SD = 0.82). When ethnic labeling was present, EMS mediated the inverse relation between age and explicit ethnic bias. When ethnic labeling was absent, IMS mediated the inverse relation between age and explicit ethnic bias. Results indicate IMS and EMS emerge in childhood and bear implications for theories of ethnic attitude development.