Four goals of affirmative action in higher education are described as
they relate to psychology admissions. Broadly conceived, these goals a
re compensating for past injustice, correcting present inequity, promo
ting intellectual diversity, and enhancing the presence of role models
. It is argued that the four goals differ in their underlying assumpti
ons about the purposes of affirmative action and that these difference
s can result in disparate admission decisions. Data from three experim
ents on decision making in graduate psychology admissions are presente
d to illustrate the analysis. In these studies, academic psychologists
rated the admissibility of hypothetical graduate student applicants w
ho varied on a number of characteristics (e.g., ethnicity, social clas
s, interest in minority research) pertinent to affirmative action. A c
onsistent pattern of ethnic group differences in admissibility ratings
was documented, illustrating that compensation for past injustice can
be interpreted as a salient affirmative action goal in graduate admis
sions decisions. Implications of the analysis for clarifying admission
s decisions guided by affirmative action goals are discussed.