性别刻板印象表征的形式及神经基础

The Neural Mechanisms of the Form of Gender Stereotype Representation

本实验采用ERP技术,考察性别刻板印象的表征。结果发现,无论启动是上位范畴、子范畴、典型样例还是反例,被试对于刻板印象不一致的表征比一致的表征均诱发了波幅更大的N400,反应时更长。并且,被试对于性别刻板印象的表征存在层级差异。研究结果表明:(1)性别刻板印象的表征存在层级结构;(2)语义启动下,性别刻板印象违背诱发N400效应;(3)性别刻板印象表征存在自上而下的由大脑额叶进行的语义分类加工。

Some studies have revealed that there can be similar hierarchies between stereotype representation and entity category. However, existing research on the manipulation of the stereotype activation has not distinguished between the superior category, the subcategory and the typical exemplar. Besides, more research remains at the behavior level. But the response reflects only information processing of the comprehensive results, not the specific process. The objective of the current research is to explore possible hierarchies by manipulating different activations of gender stereotype. In this study, participants were primed by words from the superior category, the subcategory, the typical exemplar and the counter-stereotypical exemplar, foUowcd by a word which was either consistent or inconsistent with gender stereotypes. Their task was to indicate whether the words were matched, according to the gender stereotypes. Both response times and event-related brain potentials （ERPs） were recorded during the task. Results showed that： （1） stereotype incongruent word pairs were associated with larger N400 ERP amplitudes and slower response times, relative to congruent word pairs. （2） Response times of activating the superior category representation were shorter than the subcatcgory and the typical exemplar. （3） The largest N400 ERP amplitudes wcrc induced by mismatch in the stereotype representations from priming the superior category, subcategory and typical exemplar. These results suggest that there is a hierarchical structure for stereotype representations, which is from the abstract category, subcategory to the typical sample. For gender stereotype, the stereotype representations trend to prcferentiaUy activate the abstract category. Furthermore, under the condition of the semantic activation, the violation of the gender stereotype induces the N400 effect. The gender stereotype representation is the top- down semantic classification processing by the frontal lobe.