Eye Movements Reveal the Competitive Dynamics of Social Cues During Political Stereotyping

• In Event: New and Innovative Experimental Work in Political Communication

Abstract

An emerging body of work has investigated how voters use stereotypes when faced with multiple social cues (e.g., female Republican vs. male Democrat). Some studies show that political candidates are stereotyped by their party affiliation while others show that gender biases exert a greater influence than party cues. In the current study, we examined the possibility of both cues exerting an influence on political stereotyping but at different stages of information processing. We use an eye movement measure of political stereotyping in order to examine how partisan and gender biases unfold across time as voters evaluate political candidates. We find evidence that gender biases can occur at early stages while partisan bias can occur at later stages of processing. Our results suggest that studies that don’t take into account the dynamic nature of stereotyping might under or overestimate the influence of either cues in shaping political judgments.

Authors

• Jason C. Coronel, The Ohio State U

• Brahm deBuys, The Ohio State U