Research practice overwhelmingly assumes attitudes operate consciously

Evidence

The authors’ 1989 census included not only studies that obviously dealt with attitudes (as indicated by title or abstract), but also ones that more incidentally included measures of evaluation toward the self, others, or social objects, for example in studies of person perception and in-group bias. Each of the 47 studies found to include an attitude measure was judged for presence of both direct and indirect attitude measures. All 47 (100%) used at least one direct measure of attitude, and only 6 (13%) used some form of indirect measure. An important class of attitudes discussed in this article is self-esteem. It is not necessary to conduct a census of publications to assert with confidence that self-esteem is generally assessed with direct measures (see Wylie, 1974, 1979). In summary, the observed high level of reliance on direct measures of attitudes indicates a widespread (even if not widely stated) assumption that attitudes operate primarily in a conscious mode. — Anthony G. Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji, Implicit Social Cognition, 78

Categorization

• DEFINE: Establishes the contrast between direct and indirect attitude measures that frames the whole implicit/explicit distinction.
• XREF: Directly relevant to the reading purpose: it frames whether published attitude studies ever probe the implicit channel as opposed to professed/conscious self-report. — connects to: Scientists lose objectivity when the subject of study is their own perception — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 2061; Attitude changes in experiments are genuine, not mere compliance — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 3256; Authoritarian research experimentally distinguishes sincere belief from pandering to the majority — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 1415 (+8 more)

Broader Connections

• Implicit attitudes are past-experience traces not introspectively identified by the actor. #contradicts (0.95) — Anthony G. Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji, Implicit Social Cognition, 80
• Attitudes often form instantly without any introspectively accessible basis #contradicts (0.92) — Anthony G. Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji, Implicit Social Cognition, 106
• Dissociation between implicit and explicit measures validates the implicit attitude construct. #contradicts (0.88) — Anthony G. Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji, Implicit Social Cognition, 84
• Attitude changes in experiments are genuine, not mere compliance #complicates (0.85) — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 3256
• People deploy selective perception and motivated reasoning routinely when faced with evidence #expands (0.82) — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 144
• Authoritarian research experimentally distinguishes sincere belief from pandering to the majority #exemplifies (0.80) — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 1415
• Attitudes predict behavior even without attentional focus #complicates (0.80) — Anthony G. Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji, Implicit Social Cognition, 79
• Scientists lose objectivity when the subject of study is their own perception #responds-to (0.78) — Eric J. Heller, Why You Hear What You Hear- An…, 2061
• Implicit biases can be consciously overridden through deliberate attention #complicates (0.76) — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 1362
• Attitudes only strongly predict behavior under conditions of strong activation and perceived relevance #qualifies (0.74) — Anthony G. Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji, Implicit Social Cognition, 55
• Scientific methods exist precisely to counteract researchers’ inevitable personal biases #complicates (0.72) — Holm Gero Hümmler, Ulrike Schiesser, Fact and Prejudice, 753