How negative contact and positive contact with Whites predict collective action among racial and ethnic minorities.

Abstract

Positive contact with advantaged group members can improve disadvantaged group members' attitudes towards them, yet it may also lower perceptions of group discrimination and consequent collective action. Little is known, however, about how negative contact with the advantaged predicts collective action among members of disadvantaged groups. With samples of Black and Hispanic Americans, we tested positive and negative contact with White Americans as predictors of self-reported collective action behaviour and future intentions. Across both samples, negative contact with White Americans predicted greater collective action, largely through the mechanisms of perceived discrimination and intergroup anger. Simultaneously, positive contact showed a negative indirect effect on collective action primarily through reduced anger. These findings suggest that negative contact may be a potential driver of social change among racial minorities. Implications of these findings for the contact and collective action literatures are discussed.