Historical Knowledge and Social Identity: Appeasing Identity Threat Among High-Identity Majority Group Members Through Perspective-Taking

Abstract

Previous research has demonstrated that increased relevant historical knowledge for White Americans leads to more accurate perceptions of racism in the United States against African Americans. However, high-identifying members of the majority group (HIMG) tend to deny the presence of racism when presented with the same historical information. The present study tested whether processing historical injustice information from a different perspective (i.e., that of the minority) reduces identity threat for HIMG participants and lead them to both perceive modern racism more accurately and be more open to the African American historical perspectives. The findings reveal that interventions involving historical information were not effective for changing HIMGs’ perceptions of racism, but perspective-taking approaches had the potential for leading HIMGs to be more receptive of learning more from an outgroup perspective. Further research on HIMG characteristics, social perceptions, and intergroup attitudes is needed to better inform a more optimal intervention for HIMGs.