What does it mean that my IAT score is labelled slight, moderate, or strong?
Assume that you respond faster when flower pictures and pleasant words are paired on a single key than when insect pictures and pleasant words are paired on a single key. Your score would be described as showing automatic preference for flowers. (In general, a result shows an association between concepts that, when paired, get fast responding.) The labels ‘slight’, ‘moderate’, and ‘strong’ refer to the strength of the association (i.e. how strongly you associate flower pictures with pleasant words). No matter which IAT you took, if a speed difference between different pairings was so great as to be obvious to you, it would likely be labelled a ‘strong’ effect. The ‘moderate’ label also indicates a difference large enough so that you would probably notice it. A ‘slight’ effect is one that is noticeable in statistical analysis, but you may not have been aware of it.
