Triangulated Racialization Index (TRI): Incremental and Predictive Validity of a Multidimensional Stereotype Measure

Abstract

A new stereotype metric is proposed, computed as the geometric area of a triangle determined by stereotype endorsement in reference to three racialized groups (i.e., Asian, Black, and White) mapped onto a three-dimensional (i.e., body, mind, and self-interest) field. Conceptually, this measure determines the extent to which these racial groups are triangulated in relation to one another; operationally, this is represented by greater distances between vertices in the three-dimensional field. Among a sample of Asian (n = 64), Black (n = 73), and White (n = 165) adults, regression analyses partially supported predictions that the triangulation-based metric would be a stronger predictor of prejudice than single-group referenced stereotypes. Mediation analyses supported the theoretical perspective that triangulation relates to prejudice because people who simultaneously endorse stereotypes of Black and Asian people at extreme ends of bipolar continuums have relatively fixed views about the nature of race (i.e., racial essentialism).