Allport’s individual-level account missed culture’s role in victim responses

Evidence

In this chapter I will summarize Allport’s analysis and suggest broadly that (a) he was on target by examining the wide variety of ego-defenses that might be recruited to sustain psychological well-being against the relentless nature of racism, but that (b) his personality-based analysis was not fully adequate to capture the dynamic, multidimensional connections between individuals and their groups. These connections among personal cognitions and collective actions, and the recurring role that cultural patterns play in shaping adaptive responses to racism, are critical in understanding the responses of victims of discrimination. — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 1036

Categorization

• XREF: Echoes the broader critique of intrapsychic vs. structural accounts of oppression found across social psychology and critical race theory.