The Effect of Poverty Stereotype Threat on Inhibitory Control in Individuals with Different Household Incomes

This paper studied the impact of poverty stereotype threat on the inhibitory control ability of different household income groups. We conducted three studies to analyze the traits of input stimuli on poverty conception. Study 1 explored the influence of poverty stereotype threat on basic inhibitory control. Studies 2 and 3 analyzed the influence of poverty stereotype threat on inhibitory control when the input stimuli included currency values and monetary conception, and when the input stimuli referred to poverty and affluence conceptions, respectively. The results revealed that inhibitory control ability was worse in the lower-income group but not during the processing of stimuli with currency value. Poverty stereotype threat has a negative effect on those with a lower-household income during poverty-related stimuli processing, and positive effect on those with a higher-household income during affluence-related stimuli processing. Based on the findings, the effect of poverty stereotype threat on inhibitory control is not stable; instead, it varies depending on the traits of the stimuli in the tasks and of the individuals themselves