Direct and Extended Friendship Effects on Minority and Majority Children’s Interethnic Attitudes: A Longitudinal Study

Abstract

Longitudinal direct and extended cross-ethnic friendship effects on out-group evaluations among German (majority status, N = 76) and Turkish (minority status, N = 73) children (age 7-11 years) in ethnically heterogeneous elementary schools were examined at the beginning and end of the school year (time lag: 7 months). The results showed that among majority status children, but not minority status children, direct cross-ethnic friendship predicted over time positive out-group evaluations. This association was partly mediated by perceived social norms about cross-ethnic friendship relations. No longitudinal effects of extended cross-ethnic friendship were found. These results suggest that in ethnically heterogeneous contexts, direct friendship is more effective in changing intergroup attitudes than extended friendship and that social status moderates direct friendship effects.

Cross-ethnic friendships: Are they really rare? Evidence from secondary schools around London

“…Accordingly, Feddes et al (2009) found that cross-ethnic friendships improved outgroup attitudes through perceived social norms which indicate crossethnic friendships as acceptable behavior in a multi-cultural environment. Similarly, the promotion of extended cross-ethnic friendship in which knowing that an ingroup friend has an outgroup friend lead to increases in positive intergroup relationships amongst children (Wright, Aron, McLaughlin-Volpe, & Ropp, 1997).…”

“…With the reformulation of the contact theory, more attention has been drawn to crossethnic friendships, which promote positive intergroup relations by providing long-term, mutual, and affective relationships that include self-disclosure, empathy and trust (Pettigrew, 1998;Turner et al, 2007). Empirical research has supported this assumption, and cross-ethnic friendships have consistently been found to improve positive outgroup attitudes among children and adolescents (e.g., Aboud et al, 2003;Feddes et al, 2009;Levin, Van Laar, & Sidanius, 2003;Pettigrew & Tropp, 2006). Supporting intergroup contact theory, propinquity, i.e.…”

“…Previous research on children"s cross-ethnic friendships mainly originates from the intergroup contact literature, which has documented the robust effect of cross-ethnic friendships in promoting positive intergroup attitudes (Aboud, Mendelson, & Purdy, 2003;Feddes, Noack, & Rutland, 2009) and from the developmental psychology literature, which has emphasized the positive outcomes of cross-ethnic friendships in childhood (e.g., Kawabata & Crick, 2008, 2011aLease & Blake, 2005). Cross-ethnic friendships increase intimate knowledge, empathy and self-disclosure among members of different groups (Turner, Hewstone, & Voci, 2007), in addition to providing the typical benefits of friendships by increasing social competence and skills, adjustment and satisfaction in the school environment (Hunter & Elias, 1999;Lease & Blake, 2005).…”

Cultureel-etnische segregatie in het onderwijs: achtergronden, oorzaken en waarom te bestrijden

“…Ellison & P owers, 1994;Feddes, Noack, & Rutland, 2009;Pettigrew & Tropp, 2006;Quillian & Campbell, 2003;Reinders, 2011), konden andere onderzoekers die gevolgen van gemengd onderwijs niet vaststellen (zie bijv. Bakker, Denessen, Pelzer, V eneman, & Lageweg, 2007;Stark, 2011;Wagner, Hewstone, & Machleit, 1989), of vonden zelfs resultaten die als een weerlegging van de contacthypothese kunnen worden geïnterpreteerd (zie bijv.…”

Factors Predicting Inter-Ethnic Friendships at the Workplace

“…Accepted: 2012-10-17. Published: 2012 *Corresponding author at: School of Social Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Pulau Pinang, Malaysia, email: hashimah@usm.my This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.Friendships can be used as a measure to improve inter-group relations in society with different sub-groups.Friendship that exists among people from different groups can be associated with more positive inter-group attitudes (Pettigrew, 1998;Feddes, Noack, & Rutland, 2009). Ethnicity represents a major construct by which a society can be divided into.…”