Social Competence as a Determinant of the Avoidance of Categorization in Forming Interpersonal Impressions

This study investigated the hypothesis that females who are high in scale rated social competence would show evidence of less reliance on categorical stereotypes in a person description measure than low competence scale scorers. It was further predicted that the attention of high competents would be directed towards specific behavioral occurrences instead of stereotypes Accordingly, it was predicted that high competents would retain more of the specific behaviors observed while judging another person than low competents. Results indicate support for both hypotheses when one of the two stimulus persons who were judged by subjects is considered alone. The results generally do not hold when both stimulus persons are considered together. Factors in both the experimental design and in the differing portrayals of the experimental role by stimulus persons and correspondence with theoretical positions such as Baron’s (1988) dual mode theory are considered.