UC Davis

This chapter describes the influence of Jim Uleman's research on spontaneous trait inference on Jeff Sherman's research. Sherman's work on mental representation showed that impressions of individuals and groups of people evolve as information about others accumulates. Whereas impressions are initially based on remembering specific behaviors, abstract trait judgments are eventually formed that are no longer behavior-dependent. Intergroup motives affect this process, such that trait abstraction occurs more quickly when learning about positive ingroups and negative outgroups. The availability of existing group stereotypes renders immediate trait abstractions that are never dependent on remembering behaviors. Sherman's related work on stereotype efficiency demonstrates that, because stereotypes provide ready-made trait inferences for stereotypic behavior, they permit perceivers to shift attention away from that behavior and toward counter-stereotypic behavior (which is difficult to comprehend), resulting in superior memory for that information. This attention shift is particularly evident when perceivers have limited cognitive capacity. At the same time, the relative ease of drawing inferences from stereotypic behavior leads to increases in judgment stereotypicality under these conditions. This latter effect is clearly illustrated by research showing that spontaneous trait inferences occur more readily when behavior is consistent with an existing stereotype.