Own-Ethnicity Bias in the Recognition of Black, East Asian, Hispanic, and White Faces

• Published in: Basic and applied social psychology Vol. 31; no. 2; pp. 128 - 135
• Main Author: Gross, Thomas F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia, PA Taylor & Francis Group 01.04.2009; Taylor & Francis; Psychology Press
• Subjects: American people; Attitudes; Bias; Biological and medical sciences; Comparative analysis; East Asia; Ethnicity; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Hispanic people; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Racial discrimination; Recognition; Social attribution, perception and cognition; Social psychology; Young adults; Human; Recognition memory; Asiatic; Social perception; Social group; Memory; Diversity; Cognition; Social belonging; Latinamerican; Ethnic group; Young adult; Caucasoid; Face; Social identity; African American; Cognitive bias
• ISSN: 0197-3533; 1532-4834
• DOI: 10.1080/01973530902880381

Black, East Asian, Hispanic, and White young adult Americans were asked to view and later recognize ethnic faces (Black, East Asian, Hispanic, and White) of children and young adults in a study of own-ethnicity and own-age bias. Own-ethnicity and own-age biases were found. Hispanics recognized Hispanic and White faces better than Asian and Black faces, Blacks recognized Black and White faces better than Asian and Hispanic faces, Asians recognized Asian faces better than Black faces and marginally better than White and Hispanic faces, and Whites recognized White faces better than those of other ethnicities. Results are discussed with respect to contact and facial encoding hypotheses.