INTERGROUP CONTACT: MINORITIES

Question 1

“Minority”

Answer 1

• Mistakenly - numerical minority
• In some cases, minority groups are numeric minorities…
• EX: First Nations in Canada = 4.9% of the population (Statistics Canada, 2016)
• BUT numeracy is not sufficient for classification

Question 2

Ratios of study focus - Majority/Minority

Answer 2

• MAJ: 72.3%, MIN: 20.3%
• More research has focused on how contact reduces prejudice for majority status group members
• Ignoring half of the equation is a severe oversight/overlook
• Expecting people who have been the targets of prejudice to carry the burden of it & solving it

Question 3

We can classify majority/minority along several dimensions (4)

Answer 3

• Political affiliation
• Social economic status
• Numeracy
• Representation

EX: First nations are not only the numerical minority, but also social, economic, and political

Question 4

What is a “Minority”

Answer 4

• Mistakenly - numerical minority
• In some cases, minority groups are numeric minorities…
  (EX: First Nations in Canada = 4.9% of the population (Statistics Canada, 2016))
• But numeracy is not sufficient for classification

Question 5

How do we classify majority/minority groups?

Answer 5

• Political affiliation
• Social economic status
• Numeracy
• Representation
• EX: First nations are not only the numerical minority, but also social, economic, and political

Question 6

Why is prejudice reduction from contact weaker for minority groups?

Answer 6

• Minority group members might naturally report more contact with majority than the other way around…
• EX: existing in a white world
• So contact may have already reduced their prejudice?
• In some instances, minority group members do report more contact

Question 7

Does NEGATIVE contact reduce prejudice for minority groups?

Answer 7

• In some instances, minorities and majorities experience similar negative contact
• In others, minorities experience MORE negative intergroup contact

Question 8

SUMMARY OF MINORITY/MAJORITY CONTACT:

Answer 8

• In some instances, probabilistically, minority groups do have more contact with majority groups than the other way around
• On average, majority and minority groups have similar amounts of intergroup contact
• However, it is possible that minority groups have more negative intergroup contact experiences.

Question 9

Why do minority groups have more negative intergroup contact experiences?

Answer 9

• 2 very different levels of threat experience:
• Majority and Minority groups have different challenges after conflict
• Majority: concerns about seeming prejudiced
• Minority: becoming targets of prejudice

Question 10

Minority Groups in the Context of Prejudice (3)

Answer 10

• Minority groups have a history of being on the wrong side of the outcomes of prejudice, racism, conflict, etc.
• Given modern, symbolic, implicit, blatant, institutional, and cultural racism…
• Their contact is likely to be influenced by the history of conflict and prejudice

Question 11

Individuals of minority groups are… (7)

Answer 11

1: Aware of their devalued status
- If a black person were to say it’s racist, it’s racist.
2: More likely to be perceived and evaluated in terms of their devalued status
3: Constant threat of becoming targets of prejudice / discrimination
4: Receive inferior treatment
5: Less satisfied with efforts to achieve intergroup equality
- EX: “efforts” towards reconciliation
6: Less likely to view it as equal status
- Kind of supports Williams approach to equal status (doesn’t necessarily disapprove Allport’s)
7: Perceive greater racial discrimination against their own group

Question 12

Intergroup contact can realistically…

Answer 12

…highlight status differences

Question 13

Minority groups & discrimination (2)

Answer 13

• Perceive greater racial discrimination against their own group
• Greater perceived discrimination leads to worse intergroup attitudes for minority group individuals, but not majority group individuals

Question 14

Who does contact work best for?

Answer 14

• We see that contact works most for those who need it - if they’re a majority group member
• But this discrimination stunts the positive effects for minority groups

Question 15

SUMMARY OF DISCRIMINATION:

Answer 15

• Minority group members perceive more discrimination against their group than do majority group members
• Perceived discrimination can poison future positive contact experiences
• Perceived discrimination can also augment the negative effects of future negative interactions

Question 16

Contact does reduce perceptions of discrimination - WHY MIGHT THIS BE BAD?

Answer 16

Positive intergroup contact often has unintentional negative consequences for minoritized groups