Activity 2.5

·         I took the Light Skin versus Dark Skin IAT. I felt anxious before starting because I did not know what to expect. My anxiety turned to frustrations once I got further into the different levels, and my frustration turned into a heavy, confused feeling once I got my results.  Speed played a factor in my frustration because I am used to having time to think before I respond. I was baffled about my results because they did not coincide with what I believe to be my thoughts and feelings toward skin tone. Overall, I believed this IAT was interesting, and the clips of Gladwell’s book helped me process what was going on with the test and how I was feeling as a result of my IAT results.

·         Since I took the IAT on skin tone, I decided to watch the Dateline NBC clip on race. This clip was interesting because it showed me that even individuals who work closely with race relations had the same experience that I did.  Furthermore, I found it interesting how the reactions of individuals who preferred their own race over the other differed according to race. For example, African Americans who had an automatic preference with African Americans, they felt a sense of pride. However, some European Americans felt bad when they preferred their own race. When considering associations, I believed that the white people’s reactions were linked to previous experiences and environmental factors (e.g. the idea of being racist against blacks).

·         James states, “now if the child had no memory, then the process would not be educative” (p. 21). I believe this statement speaks to the process of learning and the relationship between association and memory. In the text, James spoke on the necessity of reactions, in that if no reaction occurs during learning, knowledge is not really being acquired.  When reactions occur during learning, associations are formed and stored in a person’s memory. Furthermore, from taking the IAT and the clips of Gladwell’s text, I concluded that learning occurs conciously and subconsciously. Earlier experiences and the environment influences what a person acquires through learning. Therefore, the associations made consciously and subconsciously are stored within a person’s memory and  made available for that person to recall in future situations. The ability to use connections made previously in order to  make a decision on how to act in present or future situations explains the process of learning.