Black people are convicted more for being black than for being poor: The role of social norms and cultural prejudice on biased racial judgments.
| Title: | Black people are convicted more for being black than for being poor: The role of social norms and cultural prejudice on biased racial judgments. |
|---|---|
| Authors: | de Lima TJS; Department of Psychology, Universidade de Fortaleza, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil.; Pereira CR; Department of Psychology, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil.; Institute of Social Sciences, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal.; Rosas Torres AR; Department of Psychology, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil.; Cunha de Souza LE; Department of Psychology, Universidade de Fortaleza, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil.; Albuquerque IM; Department of Psychology, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil. |
| Source: | PloS one [PLoS One] 2019 Sep 20; Vol. 14 (9), pp. e0222874. Date of Electronic Publication: 2019 Sep 20 (Print Publication: 2019). |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: Public Library of Science Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 101285081 Publication Model: eCollection Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1932-6203 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 19326203 NLM ISO Abbreviation: PLoS One Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: San Francisco, CA : Public Library of Science |
| MeSH Terms: | Social Norms*; Black or African American/*psychology ; Poverty/*psychology ; Prejudice/*psychology ; Racism/*psychology ; White People/*psychology; Black or African American/statistics & numerical data ; Poverty/ethnology ; Poverty/statistics & numerical data ; Prejudice/statistics & numerical data ; Racism/ethnology ; White People/statistics & numerical data ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Judgment ; Male ; Social Class ; Young Adult |
| Abstract: | Black and poor people are more frequently convicted of committing crimes. However, the specific role played by skin color and social class in convicting a person has yet to be clarified. This article aims to elucidate this issue by proposing that belonging to a lower social class facilitates the conviction of black targets and that this phenomenon is because information about social class dissimulates racial bias. Study 1 (N = 160) demonstrated that information about belonging to the lower classes increases agreement with a criminal suspect being sentenced to prison only when described as being black. Furthermore, Studies 2 (N = 170) and 3 (N = 174) show that the anti-prejudice norm inhibits discrimination against the black target when participants were asked to express individual racial prejudice, but not when they expressed cultural racial prejudice. Finally, Study 4 (N = 134) demonstrated that lower-class black targets were discriminated against to a greater degree when participants expressed either individual or cultural prejudice and showed that this occurs when racial and class anti-prejudice norms are salient. The results suggest that social class negatively affects judgments of black targets because judgment based on lower class mitigates the racist motivation of discrimination. |
| Competing Interests: | The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. |
| References: | Psychol Sci. 2015 Aug;26(8):1325-31. (PMID: 26162847); J Pers Soc Psychol. 2002 Mar;82(3):359-78. (PMID: 11902622); J Epidemiol Community Health. 2006 Jan;60(1):7-12. (PMID: 16361448); Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci. 2018 Jan 1;13(1):22-31. (PMID: 29077925); Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2004 Aug;30(8):972-84. (PMID: 15257782); Span J Psychol. 2016 Nov 14;19:E77. (PMID: 27841106); Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2019 Oct;45(10):1512-1527. (PMID: 30902032); J Pers Soc Psychol. 2008 Oct;95(4):918-32. (PMID: 18808268); Psychol Sci. 2000 Jul;11(4):315-9. (PMID: 11273391); Behav Res Methods. 2007 May;39(2):175-91. (PMID: 17695343); Daedalus. 2010;139(3):8-19. (PMID: 21032946); Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2005 Sep;31(9):1237-49. (PMID: 16055643); Psychol Sci. 2006 Nov;17(11):949-53. (PMID: 17176425); J Exp Psychol Gen. 2019 Dec;148(12):2218-2228. (PMID: 31033321); Am Psychol. 2005 Jan;60(1):16-26. (PMID: 15641918); Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2018 Oct;44(10):1473-1486. (PMID: 29739296); J Pers Soc Psychol. 2002 Jun;82(6):878-902. (PMID: 12051578); Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2012 Apr;38(4):491-504. (PMID: 22143309) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20190921 Date Completed: 20200316 Latest Revision: 20240720 |
| Update Code: | 20260130 |
| PubMed Central ID: | PMC6754140 |
| DOI: | 10.1371/journal.pone.0222874 |
| PMID: | 31539411 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't