Motivation to Control Prejudice as a Mediator of Identity and Affirmative Action Attitudes1

Affirmative action is a divisive issue in society today. Attitudes toward affirmative action vary both between and within ethnic and racial groups, with Whites exhibiting the majority of negative attitudes. Researchers have suggested a variety of psychological explanations for differences in attitud...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of applied social psychology 2002-05, Vol.32 (5), p.934-964
Main Authors: Mack, Dan A., Johnson, C. Douglas, Green, Troy D., Parisi, Anthony G., Thomas, Kecia M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Affirmative action
Attitudes
Prejudice
Studies
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Affirmative action is a divisive issue in society today. Attitudes toward affirmative action vary both between and within ethnic and racial groups, with Whites exhibiting the majority of negative attitudes. Researchers have suggested a variety of psychological explanations for differences in attitudes toward affirmative action (e.g., racism, self‐interest, fairness). The current study investigates whether motivation to control prejudice acts as a mediator of ethnic/racial identity and Whites’ attitudes toward affirmative action. Support was found for the mediating role of motivation to control prejudice for several aspects of ethnic and racial identity and affirmative action attitudes. Limitations of the study are discussed, as are topics for future research.
ISSN:0021-9029
1559-1816
DOI:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2002.tb00249.x