The Impact of Minority Status on the Cross-Race Effect: A Critical Review

Abstract

Dilhan Töredi - ORCID: 0000-0001-8420-1245 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8420-1245Jamal K. Mansour - ORCID: 0000-0001-7162-8493 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7162-8493Sian Jones - ORCID: 0000-0002-2399-1017 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2399-1017Users who receive access to an article through a repository are reminded that the article is protected by copyright and reuse is restricted to non-commercial and no derivative uses. Users may also download and save a local copy of an article accessed in an institutional repository for the user's personal reference. For permission to reuse an article, please follow our Process for Requesting Permission.Meta-analyses have consistently demonstrated the robustness of the cross-race effect (CRE; i.e., better recognition of same-race faces compared to different-race faces). These analyses have unveiled variations in the dependent variables associated with the CRE across combinations of participant and target races (Lee & Penrod, 2022; Meissner & Brigham, 2001). However, the underlying factors driving these variations remain poorly understood. We posit that although the CRE is robust, its generalizability may be contingent on the specific racial groups compared, particularly when contrasting majority and minority racial groups. In this comprehensive review, we delve into the dynamics of the CRE across distinct racial groups and explore how minority status may influence research outcomes. We considered the manuscripts included in the latest meta-analyses of the CRE with a spotlight on minority status. We suggest that minority-race status may explain why many studies considering non-White participants do not show a CRE. The CRE might not be as robust as it appears to be because much of the research on the effect has focused on majority-race participants and minority-race faces. Going forward, researchers should consider incorporating measures relevant to the minority effect, fully crossing participant and target races, and studying a greater variety of races.pubpu