More Complex than Previously Thought: New Insights into The Optimal Administration of the Initial Preference Task

The Initial Preference Task (IPT) is based on the name-letter effect (NLE: individuals prefer name over non-name letters) and is widely used for measuring implicit (automatic) self-esteem. However, its implicitness has been criticized because up to 85% of individuals can become aware of its self-relevant nature (i.e., recognizers; Krizan, 2008). The present experiment assessed differences in name-letter awareness across three different IPT administrations as well as IPT scores across recognizers and non-recognizers. A more elaborated administration (incorporating symbols as filler items) significantly reduced name-letter awareness; furthermore, IPT scores differed between recognizers (higher scores) and non-recognizers (smaller scores). Implications and limitations are discussed.