Examining the Processes by Which Multiple Forms of Intergroup Contact Predict Prejudice in Daily Life

Intergroup contact theory posits that interaction with outgroup members should improve our attitudes toward the outgroup as a whole. However, contact with outgroups is rare, even in diverse communities. One form of contact that might be particularly useful for improving intergroup attitudes would be contact with outgroups through mass media. Indeed, people spend several hours a day consuming media, and mass media have become more diverse over the last few decades, offering many opportunities for people to have contact with outgroups. The goal of the present research was to examine how daily experiences of intergroup contact through social interaction (direct contact) and exposure to outgroups in mass media (media contact) relate to intergroup attitudes. In Study 1, a 1-time diary survey was used to examine whether direct social interaction with outgroup members and exposure to outgroup members in the media would predict attitudes toward these groups. Moreover, I had participants respond to several items to determine the mechanisms explaining these relationships. I found that intergroup contact did indeed occur more through media than direct social interaction. Importantly, the relationships of direct contact and media contact with attitudes toward ethnic/racial outgroups were explained by different mechanisms. Moreover, I found that these relationships were moderated by group status (minority or majority), such that many of them were only significant when considering contact with minority group members. This provides initial evidence that intergroup contact through media and direct social interaction each uniquely predict intergroup attitudes in daily life, but that the processes through which they do differs as a function of the type of contact and the status of the target group. In Study 2, I used an experience sampling design, which required participants to answer surveys throughout the day over a 5-day period. The goal of this study was to better ascertain how the quality of contact experiences moderates these relationships. Study 2 partially replicated the findings from Study 1, but found that quality played an important role in determining whether each form of contact would improve attitudes. Altogether, these studies provide important information about how we can optimize the effectiveness of multiple forms of intergroup contact.Ph.D