Prejudice targets abstract racial categories more than concrete individuals in direct contact

Evidence

Allport’s insight about people drawing the line and controlling their behavior, using “situational checks,” seems still to be on target (see Devine, ch. 20 this volume). So is his view that prejudice expresses itself more powerfully about Blacks as a category than in direct interpersonal contact. Symbolic racism reflects people’s attitudes toward abstract and impersonal social objects, rather than behavior toward a specific individual. — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 2197

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Forced close proximity and shared goals can flatten perceived racial differences. — Amit Singh, “Carnal conviviality” and the end of…, 91