Implicit Association Test Racial Bias Scores and Discriminatory Behavior: A Pre-Registered Replication and Individual Differences Meta-Analysis

This study investigates predictive validity of Implicit Association Test racial bias D-scores for discriminatory behavior outcomes in a pre-registered replication and individual differences meta-analysis within the context of social psychology and individual differences research, an area of growing scientific importance given its implications for implicit bias training program evaluation, personnel selection research, and psychological measurement validity discourse. Using pre-registered replication of 8 key IAT-behavior relationships across 4 laboratories with random-effects meta-analysis pooling with prior studies (k=124 effect sizes), we examine implicit racial associations measured by IAT D-score predicting spontaneous behavioral outcomes via automatic attitude activation when controlled deliberative processing is reduced or time-pressured in 2,184 participants across 4 laboratories completing Race IAT plus 8 behavioral outcome measures (hiring simulation, seating distance, resume evaluation, cooperation game, interview time, eye contact, policy support, recommendation letter) drawn from 4 university psychology laboratories (East Coast, Midwest, West Coast, and online) using standardized IAT protocol and behavioral paradigms. Results indicate that pooled r=0.14 (95% CI 0.09-0.19) across 8 behavioral outcomes in replication, consistent with updated meta-analytic mean r=0.16 (k=124), with explicit prejudice marginally outperforming IAT in 6 of 8 paradigms (p = 0.004), with r=0.14 IAT-behavior correlation; explicit prejudice r=0.18 in same paradigms as the primary quantitative benchmark. Concordance between primary and confirmatory measurement approaches exceeded 93%, validating the analytical framework. These findings contribute empirically to social psychology and individual differences research and carry actionable implications for the design of programs and policies targeting implicit bias training program evaluation, personnel selection research, and psychological measurement validity discourse.