Reducing racial bias in scientific communication

Research titles with White samples, compared to research titles with samples of color, have been less likely to include the racial identity of the sample. This unequal writing practice has serious ramifications for both the history and future of psychological science, as it solidifies in the permanent scientific record the false notion that research with White samples is more generalizable and valuable than research with samples of color. In the present research, we experimentally tested the extent to which PhD students (63% White students, 27% students of color) engaged in this unequal writing practice, as well as the extent to which this practice might be disrupted by journal policies. In Study 1, PhD students who read about research conducted with a White sample, compared to those who read about the exact same research conducted with a Black sample, were significantly less likely to mention the sample's racial identity when generating research titles, keywords, and summaries. In Study 2, PhD students instructed to mention the racial identity of their samples, and PhD students instructed to not mention the identity of their samples (though to a lesser extent), were less likely to write about the White versus Black samples unequally. Across both studies, we found that PhD students were overall supportive of a policy to make the racial demographics of samples more transparent, believing that it would help to reduce racial biases in the field. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved)

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