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Are liberals really dirty? Two failures to replicate Helzer and Pizarro's (2011) study 1, with meta-analysis
1University of Scranton.
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
|June 20, 2020
Summary
Cleanliness cues, like hand sanitizer, may slightly influence political attitudes. However, attempts to replicate previous findings showed minimal effects, suggesting a very small influence overall.
Area of Science:
- Social Psychology
- Political Psychology
Background:
- Previous research suggested environmental cleanliness cues can influence political attitudes.
- Helzer and Pizarro (2011) found participants near hand sanitizer reported more conservative attitudes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To attempt replication of Helzer and Pizarro's (2011) findings on cleanliness cues and political attitudes.
- To conduct a meta-analysis combining original and replication studies.
Main Methods:
- Two direct replication attempts of Study 1 from Helzer and Pizarro (2011).
- A meta-analysis including the original studies, the current replication attempts, and a third failed replication.
Main Results:
- Both replication attempts failed to reproduce the original findings.
- The meta-analysis indicated a very small effect size for cleanliness cues on political attitudes.
Conclusions:
- The influence of cleanliness cues on political attitudes appears to be minimal.
- Replication efforts highlight the importance of verifying initial findings in social psychology.
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