ABSTRACT
Intergroup contact interventions have long been heralded as a promising method for reducing prejudice and improving intergroup relations. Contact can occur through face-to-face interactions or indirectly through real or fictional others. Meta-analyses of intergroup contact interventions typically show that contact with outgroup members reduces prejudice. However, well-powered field experiments testing contact interventions find more mixed results: some show large, positive effects of contact on attitudes and/or behaviors, while others find no or mixed effects. These findings raise a number of important questions about the conditions under which different kinds of intergroup contact are likely to improve intergroup relations and what outcomes are most likely to be affected. This chapter will provide a theoretical background of direct and indirect forms of intergroup contact, and will review evidence from meta-analyses on whether these contact interventions reduce prejudice. It will then take a deeper look at a series of intergroup contact studies conducted recently in field settings. Finally, it will outline the big open questions in intergroup contact research and provide tips for conducting contact interventions.
