A one-semester intergroup dialogue can shift attitudes years later.

Evidence

GENERALIZATION ACROSS SITUATIONS World War II research showed major improvements in white attitudes toward black soldiers after combat together (Stouffer et al 1949). Yet whites continued to favor racially separate post exchanges (military stores). Other early studies also demonstrated limited generalization across situations (Biesanz & Smith 1951, Deutsch & Collins 1951, Harding & Hogrefe 1952, Minard 1952, Reitzes 1953, Saenger & Gilbert 1950). Recall that the first cooperative encounters of the Robbers’ Cave study did not generalize either. Only the cumulative effect of repeated optimal situations Annu. — Thomas F. Pettigrew, Intergroup Contact Theory, 60 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Intergroup relations programs show lasting effects that grow over time.; Improved intergroup attitudes often fail to transfer to new situations — Thomas F. Pettigrew, Intergroup Contact Theory, 60; Diversity dialogue programs produce attitude changes lasting three years — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice: Fifty Years…, 2651 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Improved intergroup attitudes often fail to transfer to new situations #complicates (0.82) — Thomas F. Pettigrew, Intergroup Contact Theory, 60