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Back and to the Future: The Intergroup Contact Hypothesis Revisited *
Author(s) -
Smith Christopher B.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
sociological inquiry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.446
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1475-682X
pISSN - 0038-0245
DOI - 10.1111/j.1475-682x.1994.tb00401.x
Subject(s) - respondent , prejudice (legal term) , contact hypothesis , social psychology , selection (genetic algorithm) , differential (mechanical device) , sociology , psychology , political science , law , computer science , aerospace engineering , engineering , artificial intelligence
This article discusses definitional and methodological problems which have marked the forty‐year history of the Allport‐Pettigrew contact hypothesis and reports on a study of biracial private neighborhoods at two points in time, including tests of all four enhancing conditions of the hypothesis. Findings indicate that though interracial visiting and prejudice are inversely related, more strongly for whites than for blacks, support for the hypothesized qualifying conditions is stronger for blacks. Duration in the contact situation and age of the respondent are examined as tests of differential selection and as possible explanations for anomalous findings. New directions, guided by recent models and by reformulations of traditional frameworks, are suggested.