Today, physical and psychological barriers can reduce opportunities for the type of direct face-to-face intergroup contact first identified by Gordon Allport. Consequently, social psychological researchers have identified, developed and tested a burgeoning array of different forms of indirect contact, including, extended contact, Electronicor E-contact, imagined contact, vicarious contact and parasocial contact. In addition to providing a critical review of each of these forms, we argue that indirect contact is more than just a simple "replacement" for direct contact, but instead has the potential to improve intergroup relations for both minority and majority members in its own right. Relatedly, we acknowledge that indirect contact occurs within specific normative contexts embodied in legislation, institutions, and media and political contents. In fact, we recognize that indirect contact requires an integrative understanding of the role of intergroup norms and affective processes in order to effectively achieve public policy objectives to optimize effects on prejudice reduction.
How people perceive outgroup prosocial behaviors is an important but under‐researched aspect of intergroup relations. In three experiments conducted in two cultural contexts (Italy and Kosovo) and with two different populations (adolescents and adults; N = 586), we asked participants to imagine being offered help by an outgroup versus ingroup member. Participants attributed fewer prosocial motives to and were less willing to accept help from the outgroup (vs. ingroup) member. This was particularly true for highly prejudiced participants and when the outgroup was described negatively. Participants' perceptions of the outgroup helper's prosocial motives and expected quality of the interaction with the helper mediated the effect of helper's group membership on willingness to accept the help (Experiment 3). We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these findings for intergroup relations.
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