Katharina Schmid
Biographic Data
| ID | 167471 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Katharina Schmid |
| GIVEN NAMES | Katharina |
| FAMILY NAME | Schmid |
| SIGNATURE | SCHMID K |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Oxford |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6018-9245 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 35 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 394 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 35 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2009 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 11 |
Addressing climate change with behavioral science: A global intervention tournament in 63 countries
Effectively reducing climate change requires marked, global behavior change. However, it is unclear which strategies are most likely to motivate people to change their climate beliefs and behaviors. Here, we tested 11 expert-crowdsourced interventions on four climate mitigation outcomes: beliefs, policy support, information sharing intention, and an effortful tree-planting behavioral task. Across 59,440 participants from 63 countries, the interve…
Differential effects of positive versus negative contact: The importance of distinguishing valence from intensity
More and more research is considering the effects of both positive and negative intergroup contact on intergroup attitudes. To date, little is known about what factors may differentially influence these effects. We propose that differentiating not only between positive and negative contact (i.e., its valence), but also considering the intensity (i.e., low or high positivity/negativity) of contact valence is critical to understanding contact effec…
Selective exposure bias predicts views on diversity over time
Despite growing diversity, many individuals do not support it, posing a challenge to the successful functioning of societies, institutions, and organizations. We investigated the role of the selective exposure bias on diversity beliefs. In a large-scale nationally representative Spanish sample ( N = 2,297), we conducted a time-lagged experiment with two time points 5 months apart in which we offered participants a monetary incentive to (allegedly…
Does personality matter? Exploring its moderating role on the relationship between neighbourhood ethnic outgroup-size and preferences for Brexit
Prior research has examined the relationship between ethnic outgroup-size at the neighbourhood level and Brexit support, yet there is a lack of understanding on the factors that moderate these effects. This paper critically extends prior debate by focusing on how personality traits moderate not only the extent to which the levels (2011) of ethnic outgroup-size in individuals' residential neighbourhoods but also the increase thereof (2001-2011) ar…
Effects of absolute levels of neighbourhood ethnic diversity vs. changes in neighbourhood diversity on prejudice: Moderation by individual differences in personality
This paper examines drivers of prejudicial attitudes among adults in the UK, focusing on the interaction between ethnic out-group size and personality traits. Leveraging data from the National Child Development Study (NCDS), we use two survey waves carried out in 2000 and 2008, just before and after the EU enlargement policy that drove a wave of immigration in the UK. We test the extent to which personality traits moderate the relationship betwee…
Intergroup contact is reliably associated with reduced prejudice, even in the face of group threat and discrimination
Intergroup contact provides a reliable means of reducing prejudice. Yet, critics suggested that its efficacy is undermined, even eliminated, under certain conditions. Specifically, contact may be ineffective in the face of threat, especially to (historically) advantaged groups, and discrimination, experienced especially by (historically) disadvantaged groups. We considered perceived intergroup threat and perceived discrimination as potential mode…
Mixed Evidence for Interactive Effects of Outgroup Proportions and Intergroup Contact on Racial Bias in the United States
Dominant majority-group members living in areas with larger proportions of outgroup members tend to express more ingroup bias. However, prior research has rarely considered this in tandem with the bias-reducing effects of intergroup contact or tested whether outgroup proportions have similar effects for oppressed minority-group members. In two preregistered studies, we tested whether contact moderates the association between outgroup proportions …
Dynamic contact effects: Individuals’ positive and negative contact history influences intergroup contact effects in a behavioral game
89, 1,513 interactions). As expected, participants showed a clear ingroup bias in expectations and cooperation. Furthermore, the quality of contact history moderated contact effects. Specifically, intergroup contact following a positive history of intergroup contact had a stronger effect on intergroup expectations than contact following a negative history thereof. Findings are discussed in view of the importance of considering the valenced histor…
Pro-diversity beliefs and intergroup relations
Modern societies and organisations are becoming increasingly diverse, leading many to argue that diversity should be valued because it can benefit teams, organisations and societies more widely. Considerable attention in both organisational and social psychological research has been devoted to so-called pro-diversity beliefs (i.e. the idea that diversity has an instrumental value to groups), and the consequences of these for various outcomes. In …
Effects of neighbourhood religious diversity and religious and national identity on neighbourhood trust
This paper examines the relationship between religious diversity, religious and national identity, and neighbourhood trust. Using data from 6,089 individuals in England matched to census-based statistical estimates for 300 local areas, we find that religious diversity is negatively associated with neighbourhood trust. Further analyses tested indirect relationships between religious diversity and neighbourhood trust to examine whether higher level…
Adolescent development of interethnic attitudes following a social intervention to increase intergroup contact: The moderating role of affective forecasting
This longitudinal, quasi-experimental field study investigated affective forecasting as a moderator of positive intergroup contact effects among adolescents. We also examined a novel mediating mechanism that underlies this effect, namely accuracy of perceived outgroup willingness for intergroup contact. Three annual waves of survey data were used from 1,169 adolescents (Mage = 13.88 at Wave 1; 50% girls; 66% White British, 44% Asian British) whos…
Dual identity, bicultural identity integration and social identity complexity among Muslim minority adolescents
Includes supplementary materials for the online appendix
Intergroup contact fosters more inclusive social identities
We examined how people construct their social identities from multiple group memberships—and whether intergroup contact can reduce prejudice by fostering more inclusive social identities. South Indian participants ( N = 351) from diverse caste backgrounds viewed 24 identity cards, each representing a person with whom participants shared none, one, two, or all of three group memberships (caste, religion, nationality). Participants judged each pers…
Prejudice, Contact, and Threat at the Diversity-Segregation Nexus: A Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Analysis of How Ethnic Out-Group Size and Segregation Interrelate for Inter-Group Relations
xtensive research explores how increasing ethnic out-group populations in society affects inter-group attitudes. Drawing on the threat and contact hypotheses, this study develops and tests a framework examining the role of segregation in the out-group size/prejudice relationship. We suggest that whether increasing minority share in a community generates processes of contact and/or perceived threat will depend on how segregated groups are from one…
Indirect contact predicts direct contact: Longitudinal evidence and the mediating role of intergroup anxiety
Although the effects of direct and indirect forms of contact on intergroup relations are well documented, little is known about their longitudinal co-development. Based on the social-psychological literature, we hypothesize that indirect contact predicts future direct contact by reducing intergroup anxiety. Across five longitudinal studies (Study 1: German adults, N = 560; Study 2: German, Dutch, and Swedish school students, N = 6,600; Study 3: N…
Ethnic diversity, ethnic threat, and social cohesion: (Re)-Evaluating the Role of Perceived Out-Group Threat and Prejudice in the Relationship Between Community Ethnic Diversity and Intra-Community Co…
Research frequently demonstrates diverse communities exhibit lower intra-community cohesion. Recent studies suggest there is little evidence perceived ethnic threat plays a role in this relationship. This paper re-examines the roles of ethnic threat and prejudice in the diversity/cohesion relationship. First, we test threat/prejudice as conceptualised in the literature: as mediators of diversity's effect. Second, we test a reformulation of the ro…
Ethnic Diversity, Inter-group Attitudes and Countervailing Pathways of Positive and Negative Inter-group Contact: An Analysis Across Workplaces and Neighbourhoods
This study advances the current literature investigating the relationship between contextual out-group exposure, inter-group attitudes and the role of inter-group contact. Firstly, it introduces the concept of contact-valence into this relationship; that is, whether contact is experienced positively or negatively. Secondly, it presents a comparative analysis of how processes of out-group exposure and frequency of (valenced) contact affect prejudi…
Intergroup Contact and Social Change: Implications of Negative and Positive Contact for Collective Action in Advantaged and Disadvantaged Groups
Previous research has shown that (a) positive intergroup contact with an advantaged group can discourage collective action among disadvantaged-group members and (b) positive intergroup contact can encourage advantaged-group members to take action on behalf of disadvantaged outgroups. Two studies investigated the effects of negative as well as positive intergroup contact. Study 1 ( n = 482) found that negative but not positive contact with heteros…
Developmental Dynamics of Intergroup Contact and Intergroup Attitudes: Long-Term Effects in Adolescence and Early Adulthood
Intergroup contact represents a powerful way to improve intergroup attitudes and to overcome prejudice and discrimination. However, long-term effects of intergroup contact that consider social network dynamics have rarely been studied at a young age. Study 1 validated an optimized social network approach to investigate intergroup contact (N = 6,457; Mage = 14.91 years). Study 2 explored the developmental trajectories of intergroup contact by appl…
Effects of majority members' positive intergroup contact on minority members' support for ingroup rights: Mobilizing or demobilizing effects
While some research suggests that ethnic and cultural diversity hinders societal cohesion, other studies show that it promotes intergroup contact opportunities, which, if exploited, help to overcome intergroup prejudice. Recently, however, intergroup contact theory has been criticized for neglecting the wider social context as well as for ignoring potential demobilizing contact effects for minority members. Using two cross‐sectional general popul…
Diversity and Contact: Immigration and Social Interaction in German Cities
This book analyzes how the socio-demographic and cultural diversity of societies affect the social interactions and attitudes of individuals and groups within them. Focusing on Germany, where in some
Construing multiple ingroups: Assessing social identity inclusiveness and structure in ethnic and religious minority group members
The combination of multiple social identities into a coherent ingroup construal is of immediate relevance in today's complex and diverse societies. This paper proposes a conceptual and operational framework to examine how individuals subjectively construe their ingroup in the context of multiple, cross‐cutting group memberships. The subjective combination of multiple social identities is described in terms of structure (social identity structure)…
Perceived Threat, Social Identification, and Psychological Well‐Being: The Effects of Political Conflict Exposure
Using data drawn from the adult population in Northern Ireland (N = 1,515), this article examines the relationship between perceived intergroup threat and psychological well‐being, taking into consideration the mediating role of social identification and the moderating role of political conflict exposure. Results by and large confirmed our predictions that perceived threat would be directly associated with poorer well‐being but would also exert a…
Making and Unmaking Prejudice: Religious Affiliation Mitigates the Impact of Mortality Salience on Out-Group Attitudes
Research inspired by terror management theory has established that being reminded of the inevitability of death (i.e., 'mortality salience') leads people to express more negative attitudes toward out-groups. We examined the hypothesis that being affiliated with a religion may buffer individuals against this negative impact of mortality salience. Two studies, conducted in two cultures that differ in their emphasis on religiosity (the United Kingdo…
Neighborhood Ethnic Diversity and Trust: The Role of Intergroup Contact and Perceived Threat
This research reported here speaks to a contentious debate concerning the potential negative consequences of diversity for trust. We tested the relationship between neighborhood diversity and out-group, in-group, and neighborhood trust, taking into consideration previously untested indirect effects via intergroup contact and perceived intergroup threat. A large-scale national survey in England sampled White British majority ( N = 868) and ethnic …
Perceived Threat, Social Identification, and Psychological Well‐Being: The Effects of Political Conflict Exposure
Using data drawn from the adult population in Northern Ireland (N = 1,515), this article examines the relationship between perceived intergroup threat and psychological well‐being, taking into consideration the mediating role of social identification and the moderating role of political conflict exposure. Results by and large confirmed our predictions that perceived threat would be directly associated with poorer well‐being but would also exert a…
Secondary transfer effects of intergroup contact: Alternative accounts and underlying processes
Although intergroup contact is one of the most prominent interventions to reduce prejudice, the generalization of contact effects is still a contentious issue. This research further examined the rarely studied secondary transfer effect (STE; Pettigrew, 2009), by which contact with a primary outgroup reduces prejudice toward secondary groups that are not directly involved in the contact. Across 3 cross-sectional studies conducted in Cyprus (N = 1,…
Ethnic diversity, ethnic threat, and social cohesion: (Re)-Evaluating the Role of Perceived Out-Group Threat and Prejudice in the Relationship Between Community Ethnic Diversity and Intra-Community Co…
Research frequently demonstrates diverse communities exhibit lower intra-community cohesion. Recent studies suggest there is little evidence perceived ethnic threat plays a role in this relationship. This paper re-examines the roles of ethnic threat and prejudice in the diversity/cohesion relationship. First, we test threat/prejudice as conceptualised in the literature: as mediators of diversity's effect. Second, we test a reformulation of the ro…
Ethnic Diversity, Inter-group Attitudes and Countervailing Pathways of Positive and Negative Inter-group Contact: An Analysis Across Workplaces and Neighbourhoods
This study advances the current literature investigating the relationship between contextual out-group exposure, inter-group attitudes and the role of inter-group contact. Firstly, it introduces the concept of contact-valence into this relationship; that is, whether contact is experienced positively or negatively. Secondly, it presents a comparative analysis of how processes of out-group exposure and frequency of (valenced) contact affect prejudi…
Intergroup contact is reliably associated with reduced prejudice, even in the face of group threat and discrimination
Intergroup contact provides a reliable means of reducing prejudice. Yet, critics suggested that its efficacy is undermined, even eliminated, under certain conditions. Specifically, contact may be ineffective in the face of threat, especially to (historically) advantaged groups, and discrimination, experienced especially by (historically) disadvantaged groups. We considered perceived intergroup threat and perceived discrimination as potential mode…
Secondary Transfer Effects of Intergroup Contact: A Cross-National Comparison in Europe
This article examines so-called secondary transfer effects of intergroup contact, a phenomenon whereby positive intergroup contact experiences can influence attitudes not only toward encountered (primary) outgroups but also toward other (secondary) outgroups that were not initially involved in the intergroup encounter. The current study relies on a unique cross-sectional sample of the general population drawn from eight European countries (N = 7,…
Extended contact effects as a function of closeness of relationship with ingroup contacts
Using survey data from Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland ( N = 428), the authors examined the effects of extended contact via different types of ingroup contacts (neighbors, work colleagues, friends, and family members) and tested whether closeness to ingroup contacts moderated the effects of extended contact on outgroup trust. Results demonstrated that extended contact effects varied as a function of the relationship to ingroup conta…
Neighbourhood Ethnic Diversity and Orientations Toward Muslims in Britain: The Role of Intergroup Contact
A persistent theme in the British and international debates about immigration and diversity is the controversial claim that living in diverse areas has negative consequences for intergroup attitudes and community relations. In the present paper we test this claim by investigating the impact of neighbourhood diversity and self‐reported intergroup contact on orientations (outgroup attitudes and social distance) toward one religious outgroup: Muslim…
Sharing Classes between Separate Schools: A Mechanism for Improving Inter-Group Relations in Northern Ireland
One manifestation of division and the history of conflict in Northern Ireland is the parallel education system that exists for Protestants and Catholics. Although recent decades have seen some advances in the promotion of integrated education, around 95% of children continue to attend schools separated on ethno-religious lines. In 2007 a programme for sharing education was established. Underpinned by intergroup contact theory, and reflecting educ…
Reducing aggressive intergroup action tendencies: Effects of intergroup contact via perceived intergroup threat
Two studies tested the prediction that more positive intergroup contact would be associated with reduced aggressive intergroup action tendencies, an effect predicted to occur indirectly via reduced intergroup threat perceptions, and over and above well-established effects of contact on intergroup attitudes. Study 1, using data based on a cross-section of the general population of eight European countries (France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Neth…
Dual identity, bicultural identity integration and social identity complexity among Muslim minority adolescents
Includes supplementary materials for the online appendix
Effects of majority members' positive intergroup contact on minority members' support for ingroup rights: Mobilizing or demobilizing effects
While some research suggests that ethnic and cultural diversity hinders societal cohesion, other studies show that it promotes intergroup contact opportunities, which, if exploited, help to overcome intergroup prejudice. Recently, however, intergroup contact theory has been criticized for neglecting the wider social context as well as for ignoring potential demobilizing contact effects for minority members. Using two cross‐sectional general popul…
Indirect contact predicts direct contact: Longitudinal evidence and the mediating role of intergroup anxiety
Although the effects of direct and indirect forms of contact on intergroup relations are well documented, little is known about their longitudinal co-development. Based on the social-psychological literature, we hypothesize that indirect contact predicts future direct contact by reducing intergroup anxiety. Across five longitudinal studies (Study 1: German adults, N = 560; Study 2: German, Dutch, and Swedish school students, N = 6,600; Study 3: N…
Diversity and Contact: Immigration and Social Interaction in German Cities
This book analyzes how the socio-demographic and cultural diversity of societies affect the social interactions and attitudes of individuals and groups within them. Focusing on Germany, where in some
Intergroup contact fosters more inclusive social identities
We examined how people construct their social identities from multiple group memberships—and whether intergroup contact can reduce prejudice by fostering more inclusive social identities. South Indian participants ( N = 351) from diverse caste backgrounds viewed 24 identity cards, each representing a person with whom participants shared none, one, two, or all of three group memberships (caste, religion, nationality). Participants judged each pers…
Construing multiple ingroups: Assessing social identity inclusiveness and structure in ethnic and religious minority group members
The combination of multiple social identities into a coherent ingroup construal is of immediate relevance in today's complex and diverse societies. This paper proposes a conceptual and operational framework to examine how individuals subjectively construe their ingroup in the context of multiple, cross‐cutting group memberships. The subjective combination of multiple social identities is described in terms of structure (social identity structure)…
Differential effects of positive versus negative contact: The importance of distinguishing valence from intensity
More and more research is considering the effects of both positive and negative intergroup contact on intergroup attitudes. To date, little is known about what factors may differentially influence these effects. We propose that differentiating not only between positive and negative contact (i.e., its valence), but also considering the intensity (i.e., low or high positivity/negativity) of contact valence is critical to understanding contact effec…
Adolescent development of interethnic attitudes following a social intervention to increase intergroup contact: The moderating role of affective forecasting
This longitudinal, quasi-experimental field study investigated affective forecasting as a moderator of positive intergroup contact effects among adolescents. We also examined a novel mediating mechanism that underlies this effect, namely accuracy of perceived outgroup willingness for intergroup contact. Three annual waves of survey data were used from 1,169 adolescents (Mage = 13.88 at Wave 1; 50% girls; 66% White British, 44% Asian British) whos…
Effects of neighbourhood religious diversity and religious and national identity on neighbourhood trust
This paper examines the relationship between religious diversity, religious and national identity, and neighbourhood trust. Using data from 6,089 individuals in England matched to census-based statistical estimates for 300 local areas, we find that religious diversity is negatively associated with neighbourhood trust. Further analyses tested indirect relationships between religious diversity and neighbourhood trust to examine whether higher level…
Does personality matter? Exploring its moderating role on the relationship between neighbourhood ethnic outgroup-size and preferences for Brexit
Prior research has examined the relationship between ethnic outgroup-size at the neighbourhood level and Brexit support, yet there is a lack of understanding on the factors that moderate these effects. This paper critically extends prior debate by focusing on how personality traits moderate not only the extent to which the levels (2011) of ethnic outgroup-size in individuals' residential neighbourhoods but also the increase thereof (2001-2011) ar…
Effects of absolute levels of neighbourhood ethnic diversity vs. changes in neighbourhood diversity on prejudice: Moderation by individual differences in personality
This paper examines drivers of prejudicial attitudes among adults in the UK, focusing on the interaction between ethnic out-group size and personality traits. Leveraging data from the National Child Development Study (NCDS), we use two survey waves carried out in 2000 and 2008, just before and after the EU enlargement policy that drove a wave of immigration in the UK. We test the extent to which personality traits moderate the relationship betwee…
Antecedents and Consequences of Social Identity Complexity: Intergroup Contact, Distinctiveness Threat, and Outgroup Attitudes
Social identity complexity defines people's more or less complex cognitive representations of the interrelationships among their multiple ingroup identities. Being high in complexity is contingent on situational, cognitive, or motivational factors, and has positive consequences for intergroup relations. Two survey studies conducted in Northern Ireland examined the extent to which intergroup contact and distinctiveness threat act as antecedents, a…
Secondary transfer effects of intergroup contact: Alternative accounts and underlying processes
Although intergroup contact is one of the most prominent interventions to reduce prejudice, the generalization of contact effects is still a contentious issue. This research further examined the rarely studied secondary transfer effect (STE; Pettigrew, 2009), by which contact with a primary outgroup reduces prejudice toward secondary groups that are not directly involved in the contact. Across 3 cross-sectional studies conducted in Cyprus (N = 1,…
Social Identity and Intergroup Conflict
Extended contact effects as a function of closeness of relationship with ingroup contacts
Using survey data from Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland ( N = 428), the authors examined the effects of extended contact via different types of ingroup contacts (neighbors, work colleagues, friends, and family members) and tested whether closeness to ingroup contacts moderated the effects of extended contact on outgroup trust. Results demonstrated that extended contact effects varied as a function of the relationship to ingroup conta…
Secondary Transfer Effects of Intergroup Contact: A Cross-National Comparison in Europe
This article examines so-called secondary transfer effects of intergroup contact, a phenomenon whereby positive intergroup contact experiences can influence attitudes not only toward encountered (primary) outgroups but also toward other (secondary) outgroups that were not initially involved in the intergroup encounter. The current study relies on a unique cross-sectional sample of the general population drawn from eight European countries (N = 7,…
Sharing Classes between Separate Schools: A Mechanism for Improving Inter-Group Relations in Northern Ireland
One manifestation of division and the history of conflict in Northern Ireland is the parallel education system that exists for Protestants and Catholics. Although recent decades have seen some advances in the promotion of integrated education, around 95% of children continue to attend schools separated on ethno-religious lines. In 2007 a programme for sharing education was established. Underpinned by intergroup contact theory, and reflecting educ…
Neighborhood Diversity and Social Identity Complexity: Implications for Intergroup Relations
The authors argue that exposure to contextual diversity can prompt more complex, differentiated, and inclusive multiple in-group perceptions, that is, social identity complexity, with positive consequences for intergroup relations. Two unique, large-scale national surveys, involving respondents sampled from neighborhoods of varying degrees of diversity in Germany (Study 1; N = 1,381 drawn from 50 different neighborhoods) and England (Study 2; N =…
“Fremd bin ich eingezogen… ” − An Outsider’s Vision of Ireland in Urszula Antoniak’s Nothing Personal
In the 2010 issue of Estudios Irlandeses, Tony Tracy (2010: 206) has questioned the centrality of European co-productions –among them Urszula Antoniak's Nothing Personal – to a discussion of Irish national cinema. After all, these films generally present an outsider's perspective on Ireland, despite the often considerable Irish input in terms of setting, actors and finances. In the case of Nothing
Neighborhood Ethnic Diversity and Trust: The Role of Intergroup Contact and Perceived Threat
This research reported here speaks to a contentious debate concerning the potential negative consequences of diversity for trust. We tested the relationship between neighborhood diversity and out-group, in-group, and neighborhood trust, taking into consideration previously untested indirect effects via intergroup contact and perceived intergroup threat. A large-scale national survey in England sampled White British majority ( N = 868) and ethnic …
Reducing aggressive intergroup action tendencies: Effects of intergroup contact via perceived intergroup threat
Two studies tested the prediction that more positive intergroup contact would be associated with reduced aggressive intergroup action tendencies, an effect predicted to occur indirectly via reduced intergroup threat perceptions, and over and above well-established effects of contact on intergroup attitudes. Study 1, using data based on a cross-section of the general population of eight European countries (France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Neth…
Neighbourhood Ethnic Diversity and Orientations Toward Muslims in Britain: The Role of Intergroup Contact
A persistent theme in the British and international debates about immigration and diversity is the controversial claim that living in diverse areas has negative consequences for intergroup attitudes and community relations. In the present paper we test this claim by investigating the impact of neighbourhood diversity and self‐reported intergroup contact on orientations (outgroup attitudes and social distance) toward one religious outgroup: Muslim…
Construing multiple ingroups: Assessing social identity inclusiveness and structure in ethnic and religious minority group members
The combination of multiple social identities into a coherent ingroup construal is of immediate relevance in today's complex and diverse societies. This paper proposes a conceptual and operational framework to examine how individuals subjectively construe their ingroup in the context of multiple, cross‐cutting group memberships. The subjective combination of multiple social identities is described in terms of structure (social identity structure)…
Perceived Threat, Social Identification, and Psychological Well‐Being: The Effects of Political Conflict Exposure
Using data drawn from the adult population in Northern Ireland (N = 1,515), this article examines the relationship between perceived intergroup threat and psychological well‐being, taking into consideration the mediating role of social identification and the moderating role of political conflict exposure. Results by and large confirmed our predictions that perceived threat would be directly associated with poorer well‐being but would also exert a…
Making and Unmaking Prejudice: Religious Affiliation Mitigates the Impact of Mortality Salience on Out-Group Attitudes
Research inspired by terror management theory has established that being reminded of the inevitability of death (i.e., 'mortality salience') leads people to express more negative attitudes toward out-groups. We examined the hypothesis that being affiliated with a religion may buffer individuals against this negative impact of mortality salience. Two studies, conducted in two cultures that differ in their emphasis on religiosity (the United Kingdo…
Developmental Dynamics of Intergroup Contact and Intergroup Attitudes: Long-Term Effects in Adolescence and Early Adulthood
Intergroup contact represents a powerful way to improve intergroup attitudes and to overcome prejudice and discrimination. However, long-term effects of intergroup contact that consider social network dynamics have rarely been studied at a young age. Study 1 validated an optimized social network approach to investigate intergroup contact (N = 6,457; Mage = 14.91 years). Study 2 explored the developmental trajectories of intergroup contact by appl…
Effects of majority members' positive intergroup contact on minority members' support for ingroup rights: Mobilizing or demobilizing effects
While some research suggests that ethnic and cultural diversity hinders societal cohesion, other studies show that it promotes intergroup contact opportunities, which, if exploited, help to overcome intergroup prejudice. Recently, however, intergroup contact theory has been criticized for neglecting the wider social context as well as for ignoring potential demobilizing contact effects for minority members. Using two cross‐sectional general popul…
Diversity and Contact: Immigration and Social Interaction in German Cities
This book analyzes how the socio-demographic and cultural diversity of societies affect the social interactions and attitudes of individuals and groups within them. Focusing on Germany, where in some
Intergroup Contact and Social Change: Implications of Negative and Positive Contact for Collective Action in Advantaged and Disadvantaged Groups
Previous research has shown that (a) positive intergroup contact with an advantaged group can discourage collective action among disadvantaged-group members and (b) positive intergroup contact can encourage advantaged-group members to take action on behalf of disadvantaged outgroups. Two studies investigated the effects of negative as well as positive intergroup contact. Study 1 ( n = 482) found that negative but not positive contact with heteros…
Ethnic Diversity, Inter-group Attitudes and Countervailing Pathways of Positive and Negative Inter-group Contact: An Analysis Across Workplaces and Neighbourhoods
This study advances the current literature investigating the relationship between contextual out-group exposure, inter-group attitudes and the role of inter-group contact. Firstly, it introduces the concept of contact-valence into this relationship; that is, whether contact is experienced positively or negatively. Secondly, it presents a comparative analysis of how processes of out-group exposure and frequency of (valenced) contact affect prejudi…
Prejudice, Contact, and Threat at the Diversity-Segregation Nexus: A Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Analysis of How Ethnic Out-Group Size and Segregation Interrelate for Inter-Group Relations
xtensive research explores how increasing ethnic out-group populations in society affects inter-group attitudes. Drawing on the threat and contact hypotheses, this study develops and tests a framework examining the role of segregation in the out-group size/prejudice relationship. We suggest that whether increasing minority share in a community generates processes of contact and/or perceived threat will depend on how segregated groups are from one…
Indirect contact predicts direct contact: Longitudinal evidence and the mediating role of intergroup anxiety
Although the effects of direct and indirect forms of contact on intergroup relations are well documented, little is known about their longitudinal co-development. Based on the social-psychological literature, we hypothesize that indirect contact predicts future direct contact by reducing intergroup anxiety. Across five longitudinal studies (Study 1: German adults, N = 560; Study 2: German, Dutch, and Swedish school students, N = 6,600; Study 3: N…
Ethnic diversity, ethnic threat, and social cohesion: (Re)-Evaluating the Role of Perceived Out-Group Threat and Prejudice in the Relationship Between Community Ethnic Diversity and Intra-Community Co…
Research frequently demonstrates diverse communities exhibit lower intra-community cohesion. Recent studies suggest there is little evidence perceived ethnic threat plays a role in this relationship. This paper re-examines the roles of ethnic threat and prejudice in the diversity/cohesion relationship. First, we test threat/prejudice as conceptualised in the literature: as mediators of diversity's effect. Second, we test a reformulation of the ro…
Intergroup contact fosters more inclusive social identities
We examined how people construct their social identities from multiple group memberships—and whether intergroup contact can reduce prejudice by fostering more inclusive social identities. South Indian participants ( N = 351) from diverse caste backgrounds viewed 24 identity cards, each representing a person with whom participants shared none, one, two, or all of three group memberships (caste, religion, nationality). Participants judged each pers…
Pro-diversity beliefs and intergroup relations
Modern societies and organisations are becoming increasingly diverse, leading many to argue that diversity should be valued because it can benefit teams, organisations and societies more widely. Considerable attention in both organisational and social psychological research has been devoted to so-called pro-diversity beliefs (i.e. the idea that diversity has an instrumental value to groups), and the consequences of these for various outcomes. In …
Effects of neighbourhood religious diversity and religious and national identity on neighbourhood trust
This paper examines the relationship between religious diversity, religious and national identity, and neighbourhood trust. Using data from 6,089 individuals in England matched to census-based statistical estimates for 300 local areas, we find that religious diversity is negatively associated with neighbourhood trust. Further analyses tested indirect relationships between religious diversity and neighbourhood trust to examine whether higher level…
Psychology (33 works) · Social and Intergroup Psychology (30 works) · Social Psychology (29 works) · Political science (18 works) · Sociology (18 works) · Social Psychology (17 works) · Developmental psychology (15 works) · Cultural Differences and Values (14 works) · Contact theory (12 works) · Ethnic group (11 works)