Affective factors, not knowledge gain, drive contact’s prejudice-reducing effect

Evidence

Pettigrew and Tropp’s (2000; ch. 16 this volume) meta-analysis has revealed that, although cognitive processes did appear to contribute somewhat to the effects of intergroup contact, affective factors appeared to be much more influential. Specifically, Pettigrew and Tropp (2000) concluded that anxiety appears to be a more important link between contact and reduced prejudice than is increased knowledge of the outgroup. They estimated that 20–25% of the effect of contact in reducing prejudice is explained by a reduction in intergroup anxiety. — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 1831

Pettigrew and Tropp’s (2000; ch. 16 this volume) meta-analysis has revealed that, although cognitive processes did appear to contribute somewhat to the effects of intergroup contact, affective factors appeared to be much more influential. Specifically, Pettigrew and Tropp (2000) concluded that anxiety appears to be a more important link between contact and reduced prejudice than is increased knowledge of the outgroup. They estimated that 20–25% of the effect of contact in reducing prejudice is explained by a reduction in intergroup anxiety. — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 1831

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the contact hypothesis literature and the broader prejudice-reduction scholarship; nudges against the common assumption that ‘learning about’ a group is what reduces prejudice. — connects to: Polarization research distinguishes idea-based from affective polarization — Didier Caluwaerts et al., Deliberation and Polarization: A…, 87; Mere exposure effects depend on fluency misattributed to liking, not memory. — Anthony G. Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji, Implicit Social Cognition: Attitudes,…, 103
• QUESTION: Pettigrew and Tropp’s 20-25% estimate for anxiety - did later work revise this share upward or complicate it?
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice: Fifty Years…, 1831; , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 1831