Social Psych 7 - Old to New Racism Flashcards
How has racist changed from the white supremisist views of the early 20th century to today?
Racism has become more subtle, covert and ambivalent
Old racism was openly racist and hostile
What movement was influential in changing from old racism change to new racism?
Changed with the civil rights movement
How did attitudes of white americans change between the 1940s to 1980s?
School integration changed from 32% to 90%
37% willing to vote for black president, 81% vote for black president
Describe the 5 features of symbolic or modern racism according to McConahay (1973) and Sears and Kinger (1971)
- Rejects beliefs about biological and genetic superiority
- Based on beliefs about cultural superiority
- Resentment towards groups based on feelings that they transgress cherished social values embodied in Protestant ethic - individualism, self-reliance, hard work, obedience and discipline
- Dominant group denies they are prejudiced
- Opposition to policies that redress social disadvantage of minority groups (e.g. affirmative action, rationalised and justified by invoking egalitarian principles like ‘everyone should be treated equally’
Has racism really declined according to social psychologists?
Not really, just the social norms around how racism is presented
What type of racism is based on beliefs of cultural superiority?
modern racism
With modern racism, is it argued that we still hold a negative affect towards minorities?
Yes, this is combined with the cultural superiority to generate modern racism.
What is Katz and Hass (1988) Ambivalent Racism?
Where you have both positive and negative attitudes around race
pro-black and anti-black statements are said to co-exist within the same individual, sometimes producing tra-individual conflict
What is it called when someone has pro-black and anti-black sentiments?
Ambivalent racism
ambivalence reflected in the contradictory values that co-exist within most western liberal democracies
How is ambivalent racism reflected in the most western liberal democracies?
Reflected in the contradictory values that co-exist in western countries
e.g. Protestant ethic values of individualism and hard work, and on the other, humanitarian and egalitarian values
How does ambivalent racism suggest why racism is enduring?
Its tied strongly to central cultural values such as individualism and egalitarianism, which themselves are contradictory
What does ambivalent racism suggest practically about interventions that are designed to increase positive attitudes in the community?
They may work, but they will also leave the prevalent negative attitudes unchanged
People will simultaneously hold positive and negative beliefs
According to ambivalent racism, will attempts to decrease negative attitudes lead to more positive attitudes?
Not necessarily
What is Gaertner and Dovido’s (1986) Aversive Racism?
Aversive racists are sympathetic to the plight of minority groups, identify with liberal-egalitarian principles and see themselves and non-prejudice, but at the same time find it difficult to let go of negative feelings about certain groups learned early in life.
More a theory based on emotion - rationally support minority groups but still feel uneasy about certain groups
similar to ambivalent racism
What are the similarities between aversive and ambivalent racism?
In both models:
individuals maintain a non-racist self image
emphasise intra-individual conflict - the resolution of which is largely unconscious
What is the main difference between aversive and ambivalent racism?
Contradictions in ambivalent racism are located in different value systems of society
Contraditions in aversive racism is located in openly expressed egalitarian view with negative feelings/affect within the person (which is associated with avoidance of contact with minority groups)
What does the dissociation model of prejudice suggest regarding where racial ambivalence is located? (Devine, 1989)
Racial ambivalence is located in the tensions between unconscious and conscious processes.
When are our negative stereotypes ingrained in us?
In early childhood typically
Why does the dissociation model of prejudice (Devine, 1989) believe we develop racial ambivalence?
In early childhood we are exposed to negative stereotypes about race
In late childhood however, we learn about egalitarianism
The early ingrained stereotypes are ingrained beyond our conscious control and activate automatically and spontanously despite our intentions.
What criticisms have been made of psychological theories of prejudice and racism?
- It shows prejudice at the individual level, rather than at a systematic/historical/social/institutional level
- Although prejudice is condemned by psychology, psychology has been criticized for depoliticizing the issue of racial inequality
Racism and prejudice only manifests itself at the individual level
True/False
False
Can be at the institutional, political, social level
