engleski

The role of contextual factors in the effect of contact on generalized and specific prejudices towards national minorities: a cross-national approach

Contact hypothesis refers to human tendency to exhibit less negative prejudices (both generalized and specific) towards members of specific social out-groups they spend time with, which was generally confirmed by many studies. However, the question of relative predictive importance of contact in explaining generalized and specific prejudice, as well as role of contextual macro-level factors, is not so frequently investigated. This study: (1) tested the significance of contribution of contact to the explanation of generalized as well as specific prejudices towards national minorities (Roma, Jews, Muslims) over and above other common predictors, (2) tested the differences in predictiveness of contact in the context of specific macro-level indicators of inter-group equality and wellbeing (operationalized by national homogeneity, Human Development Index, GINI index, risk of violating human rights and socialist historical legacy), (3) discussed differences between linear and interactive relationship of contact as a determinant of generalized prejudice and prejudice towards specific national minorities. Multi-level models were conducted on survey data collected within EU FP7 MyPlace project (16935 participants aged 15- 25, from 14 European countries, 50.2% females), joined by macro-level data collected from most recent national censuses and publicly available databases. The results suggested that (1) more contact is related to less prejudices even in context of other relevant individual variables, (2) socio-cultural context plays an? important role in determining extent of prejudices and effectiveness of contact, (3) linear and interactive effects of contact may vary with respect to targeted prejudice. Although this study did not provide any causal inferences, it indicated usefulness of specific prejudice measures and relevance of macro-level context for understanding effect of contact on generalized and specific prejudice towards national minorities.

contact, prejudice, context

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