The moderating effect of trait mindfulness on implicit racial bias following a brief mindfulness induction: A pilot study

Objective:

This study was designed to explore the interactive effects of state and trait mindfulness in reducing implicit racial bias.

Method:

A 3-factor, quasi-experimental mixed design was employed. The factors were induction type, order of presentation and trait mindfulness. Post-induction implicit racism as well as explicit racism comprised the two dependent variables. Twenty-five older adults completed an Implicit Association Test on two occasions, one week apart.

Results:

The non-significant main effect of induction type (H1) was moderated by trait mindfulness (H2). Specifically, low trait mindful participants showed a significant reduction in implicit racism following the mindfulness induction compared with the control induction. There were no differences in implicit racism between induction conditions among high trait mindful counterparts. Explicit racism did not vary as a function of trait mindfulness (H3) and was independent of implicit racism (H4).

Conclusion:

A combination of state and trait mindfulness is needed to demonstrate a causal reduction in implicit racial bias. Differences between system 1 and system 2 thinking (Kahneman, 2011) are drawn upon to explain the findings.