Weight Bias as a Function of Person Variables and Contact Experiences

We tested a mediation model of weight bias that considers person attributes and contact experiences with overweight individuals. In Study 1, we administered a survey to assess Openness, Agreeableness, Attributional Complexity, contact experiences with overweight individuals, and weight bias. Mediation analyses found that Agreeableness predicted less weight bias through contact experiences. In Study 2, we asked participants to interact with a peer whose weight and attributions regarding the weight were experimentally manipulated. We then measured acceptance of the peer. Agreeableness was found to indirectly predict more acceptance of an overweight peer through Empathy and contact experiences. These results show that contact theory is applicable to the domain of weight bias, and support person-situation approaches to prejudice