Research Project
2047023
The purpose of this proposed research program is to examine a series of factors which relate to judgments of age and the decision to request identification for the purchase of alcohol. Experiment 1 will examine directly the degree to which decisions to request identification are guided by usage of the representativeness heuristic. In a randomized experiment, store clerks will be presented with matched (and mismatched) person-product profiles of hypothetical shoppers and asked to assess the target individual. Experiment 2 will examine two factors which have been linked (theoretically and empirically) to the usage and resilience of social prototypes in human judgment. Specifically, store clerks will be asked to rate various person-product prototypes under conditions of increased time pressure and with escalating consequences for errors (i.e., accountability). The theoretical rationale for the proposed work is derived from classic studies in social-cognitive psychology illustrating usage of the representativeness heuristic and schematic decision making. It is noted that prototype matching reflects a special case of representativeness based decision making. Prototype matching is a documented cognitive process in which a connection is made between a "type" of person (or set of attributes) and in this case the products they might purchase. The "normative" match (or mismatch) serves to categorize the shopper thereby affecting the perceived age and likelihood that the individual will be asked to provide identification for the purchase of alcohol. It is assumed that any attempt towards reducing tee incidence of alcohol abuse among young adults should ultimately examine how these individuals obtain alcohol. Consequently, a multiplist theory-based examination of a community and nationally recognized gate-keeping mechanism is proposed. In keeping with federal directives, this proposal is addressed towards delaying alcohol use among young adults, and reducing the prevalence (and subsequent alcohol-related problems) of alcohol use by testing a decision making process thought to prevent youthful access to alcohol.
