Which Candidate Do You Really
Like
Campaign 2000
The 2000 presidential campaign rolls on. Candidates are using all sorts of tactics to get your vote. Who do you want to be the next president? Are you sure? Researchers at Yale University and the University of Washington have developed an intriguing psychological test that purports to measure your "unconscious candidate preference." Does it really matter who you unconsciously prefer for president? Is it likely that you are going to find yourself in the voting booth voting unconsciously for a candidate that you don't consciously favor? I doubt it.
During the primaries the researchers' tentative findings suggested that voters unconsciously preferred Al Gore and George W. Bush, in spite of the fact that they reported consciously preferring Bill Bradley and John McCain. You can try this test at the Web site and test your own unconscious candidate preference. I tried it the day before I voted in Virginia's Republican primary. I have never thought of myself as a Republican, but I have been intrigued by the candidacy of John McCain. The Implicit Association Test (IAT) purports to tell you how you really feel. It told me that I really like George Bush. It told me this the day before I voted for John McCain. Is this of any value? Did it matter that a test said that I prefer George Bush when I voted the very next day for John McCain?
It's a fascinating test - in my opinion - but it might not be a valid predictor of voting behavior. It is available as a Java applet online, and I do recommend that you try it. Like many psychological tests it is best to take it without knowing too much about how it works. For that reason I won't spoil it by telling you the theory behind the test. If you really want to know how it works, I have provided a link at the end of this article.
The test's authors find it intriguing that most people seem to unconsciously prefer a candidate other than the one that they report a conscious preference for. There are several possible explanations for this fact. They prefer to believe that their test taps into unconscious preferences of which the subject is unaware. Their results can also be explained by theorizing that their test does not measure what it claims to measure. If people consistently report a preference that differs from the test result, then the test result must be questioned at some point. Is it really a valid measure of unconscious preferences? The theory behind it makes sense, but the results so far leave me skeptical.
- IAT home page
- Take one of several versions of the IAP - Be sure to read the disclaimer
- Political Candidates IAT FAQ
- This general FAQ tells you more about how the test works - Do not read before you take the test if you want valid results
- What do you think?