Previous research on stereotyping has focused on perceptions of and negative consequences for individuals who activate stereotypes based on their membership in one stigmatized group. In contrast, relatively little research has examined stereotyping following categorization of targets into more than one stigmatized group. This dissertation focuses on perceptions of individuals who activate more than one set of stereotypes. In particular, I focused on the combination of stereotypes associated with the older adult age group and the Black racial group - two stereotype sets which contain elements that directly contradict one another. To examine the interaction of these two sets of stereotypes, I examined perceptions of four types of targets: young Black men, young White men, old Black men, and old White men. In Chapter 1, I examine perceptions of anger and happiness on the faces of young and old Black and White men. These perceptions are examined among young (Study 1a) and old (Study 1b) perceivers. In Chapter 2, I attempt to bias these perceptions of facial emotion in line with race or age stereotypes using a categorization priming procedure. The final three studies examine more basic perceptions of these targets of interest. I examine current and projected trait-related perceptions of novel (Chapter 3) and famous (Chapter 4) young and old Black and White men at various points across the lifespan. Finally, in Chapter 5, I directly compare these four targets on a number of traits using a forced-choice comparison task for both current and projected ratings. Overall, the results of this dissertation suggest that race-based and age-based stereotypes combine via a process of selective inhibition. Specifically, old Black and White men are characterized according to the old age stereotypes which most strikingly contrast them against their younger counterparts. Compared with their corresponding young targets, this pattern results in relatively positive evaluations of older Black men, but relatively negative evaluations of older White men.

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Previous research on stereotyping has focused on perceptions of and negative consequences for individuals who activate stereotypes based on their membership in one stigmatized group. In contrast, relatively little research has examined stereotyping following categorization of targets into more than one stigmatized group. This dissertation focuses on perceptions of individuals who activate more than one set of stereotypes. In particular, I focused on the combination of stereotypes associated with the older adult age group and the Black racial group - two stereotype sets which contain elements that directly contradict one another. To examine the interaction of these two sets of stereotypes, I examined perceptions of four types of targets: young Black men, young White men, old Black men, and old White men. In Chapter 1, I examine perceptions of anger and happiness on the faces of young and old Black and White men. These perceptions are examined among young (Study 1a) and old (Study 1b) perceivers. In Chapter 2, I attempt to bias these perceptions of facial emotion in line with race or age stereotypes using a categorization priming procedure. The final three studies examine more basic perceptions of these targets of interest. I examine current and projected trait-related perceptions of novel (Chapter 3) and famous (Chapter 4) young and old Black and White men at various points across the lifespan. Finally, in Chapter 5, I directly compare these four targets on a number of traits using a forced-choice comparison task for both current and projected ratings. Overall, the results of this dissertation suggest that race-based and age-based stereotypes combine via a process of selective inhibition. Specifically, old Black and White men are characterized according to the old age stereotypes which most strikingly contrast them against their younger counterparts. Compared with their corresponding young targets, this pattern results in relatively positive evaluations of older Black men, but relatively negative evaluations of older White men.

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Thesis advisor: Lisa F. Barrett / Thesis advisor: Hiram Brownell / Human voice carries precious information about a person. From a brief vocalization to a spoken sentence, listeners rapidly form perceptual judgments of transient affective states such as happiness, as well as perceptual judgments of the more stable social traits such as trustworthiness. In social interactions, sometimes it is not just what we say – but how we say it – that matters. This dissertation sought to better understand how affective properties in voice influence memory and how they subserve social perception. To these ends, I investigated the effect of affective prosody on memory for speech by manipulating both prosody valence and semantic valence, I explored the fundamental dimensions of social perception from voice, and I discussed the relationship of those social dimensions to affective dimensions of voice. In the first chapter, I examined how prosody valence influences memory for speech that varied in semantic valence. Participants listened to narratives spoken in neutral, positive, and negative prosody and recalled as much as they could of the narrative content. Importantly, the arousal level of the affective prosody was controlled across the different prosody valence conditions. Results showed that prosody valence influenced memory for speech content and the effect depended on the relationship between prosody valence and semantic valence. Specifically, congruence between prosody and semantic valence influenced memory. When people were listening to neutral content, affective prosody (either positive or negative) impaired memory. When listening to positive or negative content, incongruent prosody led to better recall. The present research shows that it is not just what you say, but also how you say it that will influence what people remember of your message. In the second chapter, I explored the fundamental dimensions of social perception from voices compared to faces, using a data-driven approach. Participants were encouraged to freely write down anything that came to mind about the voice they heard or the face they saw. Descriptors were classified into categories and the most frequently occurred social trait categories were selected. A separate group of participants rated the voices and faces on the selected social traits. Principal component analyses revealed that female voices were evaluated mostly on three dimensions: attractiveness, trustworthiness, and dominance; whereas male voices were evaluated mostly on two dimensions: social engagement and trustworthiness. For social evaluation of faces, a similar two-dimensional structure of social engagement and trustworthiness was found for both genders. The gender difference in social perception of voice is discussed with respect to gender stereotypes and the role voice pitch played in perceived attractiveness and dominance. This study indicates that both modality (voice vs. face) and gender impact the fundamental dimensions of social perception. Overall, the findings of this dissertation indicate that the affective quality in our voice not only influence how our speech will be remembered but also relate to how we are being socially perceived by others. It would be wise to pay more attention to our tone of voice if we want to make our speech memorable and leave a good impression. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Psychology.

Encountering stressors, both chronic and acute, is ubiquitous to the human experience. From a layperson perspective, it should not be difficult to perceive whether someone is experiencing emotional stress: People rely on intuition to modify their interpersonal behavior in order to ensure smooth social interactions. From a research perspective, determining whether someone is experiencing an emotion is more complex. The majority of available evidence indicates that dimensions of emotional responding - physiological, psychological, and behavioral - are largely uncorrelated, which suggests potential moderators. This study addressed four specific aims: How are self-report (SR) and physiological experiences of stress associated? How well do people agree in their perceptions of others' stress? What dimensions of stress - psychological or physiological, or both - do people perceive when evaluating others' psychological states? What is the process by which people intuit others' stress? Ninety participants (targets, n = 31 men) provided SR tension, autonomic physiology, and Interleukin-6 (IL-6) data in the context of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Twenty observers across four conditions (n = 5 - 6 per condition) accessed audio (30 s), video (30 s), or audio-video (~13 min and 30 s) variations of recordings made during the TSSTs, and research assistants coded target facial behavior. Among targets endorsing more depression symptoms, SR tension and IL- 6 were inversely correlated, and SR tension and RSA were positively correlated. Among targets endorsing less depression symptoms, SR tension and physiology were uncorrelated. Observers who accessed audio data (3 conditions) evidenced greater agreement than those who viewed silent video. Across all conditions, observer ratings of target (ORT) tension were consistent with SR tension. ORT tension from the ~13 min audio-video condition predicted SR tension 90 min post-TSST after accounting for SR tension assessed immediately post-TSST. Associations among ORT tension and target physiology were variable: ORT from the 30 s audio-only condition (30A) predicted increases in IL-6, ORT from the ~13 min of audio-video condition (13AV) correlated positively with target IL-6 after accounting for SR tension, and ORT from the 30 s audio- video condition (30AV) predicted vagal withdrawal. Visually-observable target behaviors were not correlated with ORT tension, SR tension, or target physiology.

Each time we meet a new person, we draw inferences based on our impressions. The first thing we are likely to notice is a person's face. The face functions as one source of information, which we combine with the spoken word, body language, past experience, and the context of the situation to form judgments. Facial expressions serve as pieces of information we use to understand what another person is thinking, saying, or feeling. While there is strong support for the universality of emotion recognition, the ability to identify and interpret facial expressions varies by individual. Existing scales fail to include the dynamicity of the face. Five studies are proposed to examine the viability of the Facial Expression Intelligence Scale (FEIS) to measure individual ability to identify and interpret facial expressions. Consumer behavior implications are discussed. / Ph. D.

In the present research, I examined individuals' evaluative responses toward traditional representations of environmentalists (e.g., tree-huggers and radical activists) as well as less typical but more mainstream environmentalists. Undergraduate students read about one of three types of environmentalists (i.e., radical activist, tree-hugger, or mainstream environmentalist). Participants then rated the extent to which they liked the individual they read about. Results revealed that participants evaluated the tree-hugger and radical activist less favourably than a typical student. In contrast, participants responded as favourably toward the mainstream environmentalist as they did toward a typical student. These findings indicate that individuals have distinct impressions of different types of environmentalists: Whereas mainstream environmentalists may receive favourable evaluations from individuals, stereotypical environmentalists may elicit negative reactions and even alienate members of the public.

In the present research, I examined individuals' evaluative responses toward traditional representations of environmentalists (e.g., tree-huggers and radical activists) as well as less typical but more mainstream environmentalists. Undergraduate students read about one of three types of environmentalists (i.e., radical activist, tree-hugger, or mainstream environmentalist). Participants then rated the extent to which they liked the individual they read about. Results revealed that participants evaluated the tree-hugger and radical activist less favourably than a typical student. In contrast, participants responded as favourably toward the mainstream environmentalist as they did toward a typical student. These findings indicate that individuals have distinct impressions of different types of environmentalists: Whereas mainstream environmentalists may receive favourable evaluations from individuals, stereotypical environmentalists may elicit negative reactions and even alienate members of the public.

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