The Transferability of Out‐Group Contact: Does Knowing a Member of the LGBT Community Improve Feelings Toward Racial Minorities, Muslims, and Immigrants?

Spencer Lindsay

Social Science Quarterly, 2021, vol. 102, issue 2, 737-754

Abstract: Objective This article seeks to establish a positive relationship between in‐group contact with members of one particular out‐group and affect toward all out‐groups. I hope to provide early evidence that contact with one specific out‐group may have a transferable effect on feelings toward all out‐groups. Methods Using data from the American National Election Study, I use a series of regression models to estimate the effect of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transsexual (LGBT) contact on authoritarianism, social dominance orientation, and ethnocentrism as well as feeling thermometers toward Muslims, undocumented immigrants, Latinos, Asian Americans, and blacks. I also analyze the effect of LGBT contact on political issues that affect other out‐groups. Results I find that contact with a member of the LGBT community is negatively associated with ethnocentrism, authoritarianism, and social dominance orientation. It is also positively associated with feelings toward Muslims, undocumented immigrants, and racial minorities. It also seems to be correlated with political positions that affect these groups, though these results are less robust. Conclusions This article provides preliminary support for the hypothesis that out‐group contact has transferable effects. It suggests that contact with members of one out‐group may affect how in‐group members see all out‐groups.

Date: 2021
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