Mixed discriminatory judgments of individuals’ warmth and competence related abilities

Although several studies have demonstrated that stereotypes can be mixed in terms of warmth and competence (e.g., cold but competent), the possibility of mixed discrimination has received very little attention so far. To this end, the present study investigated mixed discriminatory judgments of individuals. In two studies, the participants judged the empathic (warmth) and the cognitive (competence) ability of individuals who differed only in whether they belonged to a group typically stereotyped as warm but incompetent, or cold but competent. Study 1 compared Greeks with Germans (nationality) and Study 2 preschool-teachers with lawyers (occupation). In both studies, the judgments were discriminatory in a mixed pattern consistent with the groups’ stereotype content.