Effects of Individuating Information on the Generalization Part of Allport's Contact Hypothesis

Abstract

According to Gordon Allport's contact hypothesis, positive contact with a member of a negatively stereotyped group might ameliorate negative attitudes not only toward the specific member but also toward the group as a whole (generalization). In a direct empirical test of theoretical suggestions that individuating information might decrease the generalization part of the contact hypothesis, students learned material cooperatively with a "homosexual" confederate. To illustrate the material, the confederate used either impersonal or personal analogies. Students in the two conditions liked the confederate equally, but students who received personal analogies were less likely to ameliorate their attitudes toward homosexuals. The discussion addresses factors that might reduce the cognitive association between a group member and his or her group.