Measure What You are Trying to Predict: Applying the Correspondence Principle to the Implicit Association Test

The Implicit Association Test (IAT) is nearly synonymous with the implicit attitude construct. At the same time, correlations between the IAT and criterion measures are often remarkably low. Developed within research using explicit measures of attitudes, the correspondence principle posits that measures should better predict criteria when there is a match in terms of the level of generality or specificity at which both are conceptualized (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1977). As such, weak implicit-criterion correlations are to be expected when broad general implicit measures are used to predict highly specific criteria. Research using explicit measures of attitudes consistently supports the correspondence principle, but conceptual correspondence is rarely considered by researchers using implicit measures to predict behavior and other relevant criterion measures. In five experiments (total N = 4650), we provide the first direct evidence demonstrating the relevance of the correspondence principle to the predictive validity of the IAT and Single Target IAT. That said, it is not the case that the IAT always predicts criteria better when correspondence is high. Inconsistency across the pattern of results suggests there is much more that remains to be understood about the relevance of the correspondence principle to the implicit-criterion relationship. Taken together, however, our findings suggest that conceptual correspondence typically increases (and never decreases) the magnitude of implicit-behavior and implicit-explicit relationships. We provide a framework for future research necessary to establish when correspondence is more likely to increase the predictive validity of measures such as the IAT.