Thinking Well of African Americans: Measuring Complimentary Stereotypes and Negative Prejudice

Abstract

Racial prejudice toward African Americans has been largely measured and researched in terms of negative and hostile attitudes. However, there is considerable research to suggest the prevalence of evaluatively positive beliefs about Blacks (e.g., as athletic). A measure of Complimentary Stereotypes and Negative Prejudice (CSNP) is validated through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses across 6 samples (N = 4,404). The 30-item CSNP consists of 2 subscales. The Complimentary Stereotypes (CS) scale measures evaluatively favorable stereotypes of Blacks in domains of athleticism, musical and rhythmic ability, and social/sexual competence. The Negative Prejudice (NP) scale corresponds with traditional hostile attitudes related to the inferiority of Blacks, opposition to race-related policies, and aversion to interracial contact. The CSNP subscales demonstrated appropriate convergent and discriminant validity with other measures of prejudice, and 2 additional studies supported the validity of CS and NP in evaluating positive and negative subgroups of African Americans.