Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 19, 2026
The Implicit Association Test: Measuring Unconscious Attitudes
Published on: April 30, 2023
Survey-software implicit association tests: A methodological and empirical analysis
Thomas P Carpenter1, Ruth Pogacar2, Chris Pullig3
1Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA, USA. tcarpenter@spu.edu.
Abstract:
The implicit association test (IAT) is widely used in psychology. Unfortunately, the IAT cannot be run within online surveys, requiring researchers who conduct online surveys to rely on third-party tools. We introduce a novel method for constructing IATs using online survey software (Qualtrics); we then empirically assess its validity. Study 1 (student n = 239) revealed good psychometric properties, expected IAT effects, and expected correlations with explicit measures for survey-software IATs. Study 2 (MTurk n = 818) showed predicted IAT effects across four survey-software IATs (ds = 0.82 [Black-White IAT] to 2.13 [insect-flower IAT]). Study 3 (MTurk n = 270) compared survey-software IATs and IATs run via Inquisit, yielding nearly identical results and intercorrelations that would be expected for identical IATs. Survey-software IATs appear to be reliable and valid, offer numerous advantages, and make IATs accessible for researchers who use survey software to conduct online research. We present all the materials, links to tutorials, and an open-source tool that rapidly automates survey-software IAT construction and analysis.
Related Concept Videos
The Implicit Association Test
One of the core constructs in social psychology is the notion of an attitude toward an object or person. Traditionally, psychologists measured attitudes by simply asking people to self-report their beliefs, opinions, or feelings. This approach has limitations, however, when measuring socially sensitive attitudes, like racial prejudice, because people are often motivated to self-report unprejudiced, egalitarian beliefs (despite...
Surveys
Determining the Empirical Formula
Determining the chemical formula of a compound is at the heart of what chemists do in the laboratory every day. Many tools are available to aid in this determination, but one of the simplest (and most accurate) is the determination of the empirical formula. Why is this useful? Because of the law of conservation of mass, any reaction can be followed gravimetrically, or by change in mass. The empirical...
Introduction to Surveying, Plane Surveying and Geodetic Surveys
Implicit Memories
One key aspect of implicit...
Implicit Differentiation