Senior Seminar

1. Helen Heidel
Senior Sem
P6
1. I think that we are oblivious to our unconsciously motivated behavior. I know that
I am not biased towards one group or another, but subconsciously I prefer one
over, which could be a result of social influences such as the media. I don’t think
it is a convenient excuse to justify people’s biases. Black people took the IAT
survey, having no preferences towards the black or white race, yet the result
suggested that they were more biased towards white people, which I believe is a
subconscious act.
2. a. The results did not quite meet my expectations; I don’t have a bias for
heterosexuals over homosexuals. I am pretty sure of it, but the result suggests that I
have a preference towards straight people. I expected my result to be balanced, not
preferring one over the other. But I know that I’m straight, so that could’ve effected
how quickly I categorized the groups. A theory that is applicable to my experience is
the pragmatic theory. To find out if my subconscious was biased, I took the IAT test
instead of pondering it for a long time. After I took the test I found out that my
subconscious is biased.