Seeing Similarity or Distance

Racial Identification Moderates Intergroup Perception After Biracial Exposure

Bibliographic Data

ID5338909
AuthorsLeigh S Wilton (0000-0001-9029-4505, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey), Leigh Wilton, Diana T Sanchez (0000-0002-8684-6183, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey), Lisa Giamo (Simon Fraser University)
Year2014
Volume45
Issue2
Pages127-134
Publication date2014-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1864-9335 • E-ISSN: 2151-2590
PublisherHogrefe Publishing Group (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1027/1864-9335/a000168
OpenAlexW1705140548
LanguageEN
Citations received9
References cited41

Biracial individuals threaten the distinctiveness of racial groups because they have mixed-race ancestry, but recent findings suggest that exposure to biracial-labeled, racially ambiguous faces may positively influence intergroup perception by reducing essentialist thinking among Whites ( Young, Sanchez, & Wilton, 2013 ). However, biracial exposure may not lead to positive intergroup perceptions for Whites who are highly racially identified and thus motivated to preserve the social distance between racial groups. We exposed Whites to racially ambiguous Asian/White biracial faces and measured the perceived similarity between Asians and Whites. We found that exposure to racially ambiguous, biracial-labeled targets may improve perceptions of intergroup similarity, but only for Whites who are less racially identified. Results are discussed in terms of motivated intergroup perception

Developmental psychology · Essentialism · Optimal distinctiveness theory · Perception · Race (biology) · Similarity (geometry) · Social perception · Sociology · Cultural Differences and Values · Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior · Gender Studies · Psychology · Social and Intergroup Psychology · Social Psychology

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