Dyadic interracial interactions: A meta-analysis.

Abstract

This meta-analysis examined over 40 years of research on interracial interactions by exploring 4 types of outcomes: explicit attitudes toward interaction partners, participants' self-reports of their own emotional state, nonverbal or observed behavior, and objective measures of performance. Data were collected from 108 samples (N = 12,463) comparing dyadic interracial and same-race interactions, predominantly featuring Black and White Americans. Effect sizes were small: Participants in same-race dyads tended to express marginally more positive attitudes about their partners (r = .07), reported feeling less negative affect (r = .10), showed more friendly nonverbal behavior (r = .09), and scored higher on performance measures (r = .07) than those in interracial dyads. Effect sizes also showed substantial heterogeneity, and further analyses indicated that intersectional, contextual, and relational factors moderated these outcomes. For example, when members of a dyad were the same sex, differences between interracial and same-race dyads in negative affect were reduced. Structured interactions led to more egalitarian performance outcomes than did free-form interactions, but the effects of interaction structure on nonverbal behavior depended on participant gender. Furthermore, benefits of intergroup contact were apparent: Differences in emotional state across dyadic racial composition disappeared in longer term interactions, and racial minorities, who often have greater experience with intergroup contact, experienced less negative affect in interracial interactions than did majority group members. Finally, there was a significant historical trend toward more egalitarian outcomes across dyadic racial composition for explicit attitudes and for nonverbal behavior; however, participants' emotional responses and performance have remained consistent.

Getting a word in group-wise: Effects of racial diversity on gender dynamics

“…Target individuals in diverse groups were rated more anxious (M = 3.53, SD = 0.83) than those in racially-homogeneous groups (M = 3.33, SD = 0.81). This finding is consistent with research showing that interracial interactions tend to be anxiety-provoking for White people (Toosi et al, 2012). There was also a significant main effect of gender, F(1,40) = 8.22, p = .007, indicating that female group members were seen as more anxious than male group members.…”

“…Specifically, White individuals are often concerned with being perceived as racist by members of other groups (Crandall & Eshleman, 2003;Monteith, Sherman, & Devine, 1998;Shelton & Richeson, 2006), a concern that arises spontaneously given the likelihood of evaluation by an outgroup member (Vorauer, Hunter, Main, & Roy, 2000;Vorauer, Main, & O'Connell, 1998). When interacting with other-race partners, White individuals report more anxiety and discomfort than when interacting with same-race partners (Toosi, Babbitt, Ambady, & Sommers, 2012;Trawalter & Richeson, 2008).…”

When Societal Norms and Social Identity Collide

“…The range of inter-rater reliability in the current study is acceptable and is consistent with the range found in recent meta-analytic work with adults (αs = .64–.98; Toosi, Babbit, Ambady, & Sommers, 2012). …”

Working memory training in healthy young adults: Support for the null from a randomized comparison to active and passive control groups

“…experimenter bias, publication bias etc.). Notably, Redick et al’s [40] trial also shares in common with the current study, the failure to find near-transfer of training to measures of WM span, or WM capacity, contrary to many findings to this effect in the literature [28, 49–50]. …”