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  Kristin Pauker

Visiting Researcher kpauker@stanford.edu

Stanford University
Psychology Department
Building 420, Jordan Hall
Stanford, CA 94305

Curriculum Vitae

 

About me
My research examines the malleability of person perception across context and time, and the effects of such malleability on cognition and behavior. Particularly, I study how the racial categorization process, both in its development in early childhood and in its application once fully formed, is influenced by culture, motivation and situational cues. While much research focuses on social cognition only after racial categorization has already occurred, malleability at the stage of racial categorization itself has been overlooked due to a historically narrow focus on perceptually obvious groups. As ambiguous social categories become more prevalent, a more nuanced understanding of how individuals' social categorization processes may be biased, as well as the potential consequences of such biased perceptions, will be required. Thus, my research focuses on how we perceive and treat racially ambiguous individuals. Additionally, as racial categories blur, educating children about race will only become more complicated—curricular choices must be informed by thoughtful research. And given that these children will grow up in an increasingly interconnected global economy, such research must expand beyond the confines of the United States. I therefore also seek to facilitate a greater understanding of how varying socio-cultural environments impact children's understanding of race. To investigate this malleability in person perception across context and time I have used a variety of methodological approaches, including eye-tracking, reaction-time, and traditional behavioral measures, in a variety of populations, including children, adults, biracial individuals, and individuals in Chile and Hawaii. My research has been supported by a Jacob K. Javits fellowship through the Department of Education. Overall, my research interests can be divided into two main lines of inquiry: I. Racial ambiguity, and II. Development of race-related knowledge.


I. Racial ambiguity
Multiracial identities create a conundrum for perceivers accustomed to classifying people as "own" or "other" race. Ambiguous racial category cues may be associated with multiple racial groups, allowing for motivational factors to more readily exert their influence on the process of categorization. My work has demonstrated that both White and Black perceivers have difficulty remembering racially ambiguous targets and that group-level motivation can augment or diminish memory for ambiguous faces (Pauker et al., 2009, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology). For multiracial individuals, however, the motivation to include racially ambiguous targets into the in-group may be chronically accessible. My work has also explored whether those who think of race in a more flexible manner, like biracial individuals, can remember multiple groups of faces well (Pauker & Ambady, 2009, Journal of Social Issues).


II. Development of race-related knowledge
Given that racial group membership is a cue to which adults readily attend, children must learn at some point that race is a relevant social categorization. What shapes the emergence of race as a socially relevant category? Not only are racial categorizations and the consequences of these categorizations malleable, the categorization process itself also changes with development. At five years of age, noticing someone's race may merely mean noticing someone looks different from you, while at ten years of age, noticing someone's race may activate a host of stereotypes, as well as norms that expressing these stereotypes may elicit social sanction. My work has explored when children acquire and use racial stereotypes and what triggers the onset of racial stereotyping. I have also demonstrated that children as young as 10 begin to respond to pervasive norms of political correctness and avoid talking about race (Apfelbaum, Pauker et al., 2008, Developmental Psychology. Additionally, socio-cultural environments should directly impact the way race motivates behavior. I have explored children's acquisition of stereotypes and their tendency to talk about race in several environments (Hawaii and Chile) with different racial norms than the U.S. It is my hope that examining the process of race-related knowledge accumulation and its contextual malleability will provide insights that may facilitate positive changes in perceptions of race.

Recent Publications

  • Pauker, K., Weisbuch, M., Ambady, N., Sommers, S. R., Adams, R. B. Jr., & Ivcevic, Z. (2009). Not so Black and White: Memory for ambiguous group members. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 96, 795-810. [PDF]

  • Pauker, K., & Ambady, N. (2009) Multiracial faces: How categorization affects memory at the boundaries of race. Journal of Social Issues, 65, 69-86. [PDF]

  • Pauker, K., Rule, N. O., & Ambady, N. (in press). Ambiguity and social perception. In E. Balcetis and G. D. Lassiter (Eds.), The Social Psychology of Visual Perception.

  • Apfelbaum, E. P., Pauker, K., Ambady, N., Sommers, S. R., & Norton, M. I. (2008). Learning (not) to talk about race: When older children underperform in social categorization. Developmental Psychology, 44, 1513-1518. [PDF]

       Press:

            http://www.apa.org/releases/colorblind1008.html

            http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2008/1007/2

            http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081006092518.htm

Recent Talks

  • Apfelbaum, E. P., Pauker, K., Ambady, N., Sommers, S. R., & Norton, M. I. (2009, February). Learning (Not) to Talk About Race: An Anomaly in Socio-Cognitive Development. In E. Apfelbaum & K. Pauker (co-chairs), Social-Developmental Intersections in Intergroup Processes and Relations. Paper presented at the Tenth Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Tampa, FL.

  • Pauker, K., & Ambady, N. (2008, February). What are you: When ambiguity in appearance may lead to enhanced social processing. In D. Peery (chair), What are you? Emerging empirical perspectives on multiracialism. Symposium conducted at the Ninth Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Albuquerque, NM.

  • Pauker, K. (2006, January). The Development of Stereotype Content. Talk presented at the Development of Intergroup Relations Pre-conference, Seventh Annual Meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Palm Springs, CA.