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Missing context from experimental studies amplifies, rather than negates, racial bias in the real world

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 May 2022

Leland Jasperse
Affiliation:
Department of English Language and Literature, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL60637, USA, ljasperse@uchicago.edu
Benjamin S. Stillerman
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY10003, USA, ben.stillerman@gmail.com
David M. Amodio
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY10003, USA, ben.stillerman@gmail.com Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, 1001NKAmsterdam, Netherlands. david.amodio@nyu.edu, amodiolab.org

Abstract

We agree with Cesario's premise but reject his conclusion: Although experimental studies of racial stereotyping, weapons perception, and shoot decisions typically exclude real-world contextual factors and thus have limited relevance to race disparities (e.g., in policing), these excluded factors comprise systemic, institutional, and individual-level biases that are more likely to amplify racial disparities than negate them.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

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