Abstract:
Four studies examined explicit and implicit perceptions of ethnicity and nationhood in New Zealand (NZ). NZ Europeans/Pakeha (the majority group) endorsed a bicultural perspective and explicitly rated both their own ingroup and Maori (the indigenous peoples of NZ) as contributing equally to NZ national identity and culture (Study 1). Contrary to the divergence between explicit and implicit ethnic-national associations observed in the USA, implicit associations in NZ were generally consistent with explicitly stated values. Pakeha and Maori, but not Asian New Zealanders, were both strongly implicitly associated with the national category ‘NZ’ (Studies 1–3), although this general tendency was qualified by weak levels of ingroup favoritism from all three ethnic groups (Study 2). Finally, the small tendency for Pakeha to implicitly associate their ingroup more strongly with NZ was erased by using moderately well-known Pakeha and Maori rugby players as targets (Study 4). These findings contrast with the American¼White implicit associations described by Devos and Banaji (2005), and provide insight into the ways in which socio-cultural realities foster convergence or divergence between explicit and implicit beliefs about equality and the function of ethnicity in nationhood.