Counter-stereotyped protagonists and stereotyped supporting casts: Identification with black characters and symbolic racism

Abstract

While exposure to stereotyped minority characters reinforces prejudice, when viewers identify with counter-stereotyped characters prejudice tends to decrease. This study examines the juxtaposition of identifying with either a counter-stereotyped Black protagonist or a stereotyped supporting cast. Participants read a prompt (group vs. individual salience), watched an episode of Luke Cage, then reported their identification with the Black protagonist (Cage) and the social group (the Black community of Harlem). Findings suggest that individual identification with a counter-stereotype reduces symbolic racism, while social identification with a stereotyped group does not.