Youth With Positive Intergroup Contact Attitudes Are More Popular1
In a study that examined the influence of Intergroup Contact Attitudes (ICA) on friendships, researchers found:
- Youths with positive ICAs were more likely to be selected as a friend.
- Youths with positive ICAs were more popular and more likely to select friends across racial groups.
- Adolescents whose friends have positive ICAs adopt or maintain positive ICAs.
- Adolescents tend to maintain positive ICAs over time.
Sample demographics: Students were on average 12 years of age attending sixth, seventh, and eighth grades in an urban midwest middle school. They were comprised of Asian American and Pacific Islander (9%), African American (28%), Latino (13%), Multiracial (11%), Native American (1%), White (31%), and Other Race (5%).