An Attitudinal Study of Responses to a Range of Dermatological Conditions Using the Implicit Association Test

Abstract

The Implicit Association Test (IAT) was used to explore implicit attitudes to dermatological conditions. The stimuli employed were photographs representing skin conditions and clear skin. Explicit attitudes were measured using rating scales and questions concerning participants’ experience of dermatitis. Participants ( N= 64) completed the IAT, explicit measures and demographics. The results showed a statistically significant implicit preference for people with clear skin and suggested that people who knew someone with a skin condition may exhibit stereotype inhibition. This concurs with earlier research into disfigurement, and in accord with previous IAT research, correlations between implicit and explicit measures were not significant.