Honors Projects
Abstract
This study examines the implicit associations between the term ‘Caucasian’ and scientific ideals. The racist and pseudoscientific history of the word ‘Caucasian’ invalidates its credibility and insinuates persistent racist ideologies that continue to manifest today. The term ‘Caucasian’ seems to be popularly thought of as a more exact, specific, and scientific term than that of ‘White’. This paper includes a review of the literature about the White race and the term ‘Caucasian’, how this term originated, and the pseudoscience that created it in the 18th century. The experiment includes a control condition, and an experimental condition that primes the idea of science. The implicit associations of the term were measured among a cohort of students at Bowling Green State University. Deception was used to detract from the focal point, which is the participant’s racial demographic response, in order to invoke a raw depiction of individual understandings of the ‘Caucasian’ race.
Department
Ethnic Studies
Major
Psychology
First Advisor
Dr. Timothy Messer-Kruse
First Advisor Department
Ethnic Studies
Second Advisor
Dr. Anne K Gordon
Second Advisor Department
Psychology
Publication Date
Winter 12-7-2024
Repository Citation
Cain, Erin; Messer-Kruse, Tim; and Gordon, Anne K. Dr., "Examining the Implicit Association between the ‘Caucasian’ Race and Scientific Ideals" (2024). Honors Projects. 1031.
https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/honorsprojects/1031