Cultural Variance or Cultural Uniformity? Spontaneous Trait Inferences in Different Groups of Chinese Germans

This study examined spontaneous trait inferences (STIs) among different groups of Chinese-German participants compared to monocultural Germans. We employed a false recognition paradigm and implemented a cultural priming manipulation by varying language and facial stimuli. Results document significant STI effects in all groups, with no systematic differences between German and Chinese-German participants. Surprisingly, STI effects were stronger in Chinese-language conditions for Chinese-German participants, suggesting a cultural contrast rather than assimilation effect. We observed no significant relationships of STI effects with measures of participants’ independent and interdependent self-construal nor person vs. situation attributions. These findings further challenge prior assumptions about the influence of individualism-collectivism on STIs. We discuss whether the relative robustness of STIs across cultural groups implies that they may function as a cognitive universal underscoring the need for future research into specific cultural and contextual factors shaping STIs in impression formation.