Module 6: Old Fashioned and Contemporary Prejudice

Most contemporary prejudice theories were developed to explain whose attitudes?

White Americans' negative attitudes toward Black Americans.

When was Jim Crow racism most prevalent?

Before the 1960s.

What are the 3 main characteristics of Jim Crow racism?

Belief in White superiority; support for segregation; use of laws/government to enforce racial inequality.

What major change occurred beginning in the 1960s?

Racial equality became a stronger social norm and openly racist beliefs became less acceptable.

Did prejudice disappear when explicit racism declined?

No. It often became subtler and easier to justify on nonracial grounds.

What does bogus pipeline research show?

People report more negative attitudes when they believe lying can be detected.

What do implicit and physiological measures show?

People may explicitly report positive attitudes while still showing automatic negative responses.

What did the iPod study find?

Black sellers received about 20% fewer offers and offers were about 12.5% lower.

What did the roommate example show?

White students reported more discomfort with intimate interracial contact than structured interactions.

What 2 things do all contemporary prejudice theories share?

Implicit prejudice and expression that can be justified on apparently nonracial grounds.

All contemporary prejudice theories share implicit prejudice (unconscious, automatic bias) and justifiable expression (masking discrimination behind neutral, nonracial excuses to protect one's non-prejudiced self-image).

What is implicit prejudice?

Automatic prejudice a person may not consciously recognize.

What is explicit prejudice?

Conscious attitudes and beliefs a person can intentionally report.

What does modern-symbolic prejudice reject?

Old-fashioned/Jim Crow racism and biological racial inferiority.

What does modern-symbolic prejudice support in principle?

Equality of opportunity.

Does modern-symbolic prejudice usually support specific equality programs?

No.

What are the 5 explicit beliefs of modern-symbolic prejudice?

Discrimination is over: Serious racial prejudice and discrimination no longer exist in modern society

Inequality reflects low effort: Any remaining economic or social gaps between Black and White people exist because Black people lack the motivation to work hard

Anger is unjustified: Because discrimination is supposedly over and inequality is blamed on individual effort, any continuing anger or social protest over racial injustice is completely illegitimate

Black people seek favors: This is the belief that instead of working hard like everyone else, Black people are asking for unfair shortcuts or special rules from the government

Black people get more than deserved: This is the belief that Black people are being given jobs, money, or awards that they didn't actually earn, which takes away opportunities from others

What are the 5 psychological bases of modern-symbolic prejudice?

Anti-Black affect: People with modern prejudice typically do not experience intense, conscious hatred. Instead, they harbor subtle, negative emotional responses like discomfort, anxiety, or unease

Traditional values: In modern prejudice, these positive values become "racialized". The person uses them as a yardstick to judge minority groups, falsely concluding that if a group faces inequality, it must mean they are choosing not to live by these traditional values

Rejection of equality of outcome: Individuals strongly support equality of opportunity (everyone getting a fair start) but completely reject equality of outcome (ensuring fair or equal results)

Group self-interest: The natural psychological drive to protect and promote the well-being, status, and resources of one's own social group

Little personal contact: Having very few meaningful, close relationships or personal interactions with Black individuals

What is equality of opportunity?

Everyone receives a fair chance to succeed.

What is equality of outcome?

Reducing unequal results between groups, often through policies or programs.

What did the Obama-prime study find?

Priming Obama increased modern-symbolic beliefs and made people less willing to admit subtle bias.

The "Obama-prime" study found that exposure to Barack Obama as a highly positive, visible role model significantly reduced implicit anti-Black prejudice and stereotyping

What defines aversive prejudice?

Positive explicit egalitarian beliefs combined with negative implicit attitudes.

Aversive prejudice defines a style of bias where people sincerely support racial equality and believe they are not prejudiced, but unconsciously harbor negative feelings, anxiety, or discomfort toward a minority group.

Do people with aversive prejudice usually support equality programs?

Yes.

When is aversive prejudice least likely to produce discrimination?

When the fair response is obvious and discrimination would be clearly recognizable.

When is pro-White bias most likely under aversive prejudice?

When the situation is ambiguous and a biased decision can be justified for another reason.

What did the “Racing to Help” study show?

White participants were less likely to help a Black confederate when whether help was required was ambiguous.

How is aversive prejudice usually measured?

Through behavior in situations that allow bias to appear, or high implicit bias combined with low explicit bias.

What defines ambivalent prejudice?

Consciously holding both positive and negative beliefs about the same group.

How is ambivalent prejudice different from aversive prejudice?

Its main conflict is between two explicit beliefs rather than implicit negativity vs. positive explicit beliefs.

What is response amplification?

Responding unusually positively or negatively when a person's conflicting explicit beliefs are made salient.

What determines the direction of response amplification?

Egalitarian cues encourage overly positive responses; individualistic cues encourage overly negative responses.

What is benevolent prejudice?

Apparently positive stereotypes that still restrict or subordinate the target group.

Why is benevolent prejudice dangerous?

It can maintain inequality, be hard to recognize as harmful, and may even be adopted by the target.

What characterizes unprejudiced people in the slides?

Support for both opportunity and outcomes, complex identities, focus on similarities, and broad moral inclusion.

How can you distinguish the 4 prejudice types quickly?

Jim Crow = explicit inferiority; modern-symbolic = subtle explicit beliefs; aversive = positive explicit/negative implicit; ambivalent = positive + negative explicit.