In some new studies, psychologists have been able to establish a close relationship between diverse pairs — black and white, Latino and Asian, black and Latino — in a matter of hours. That relationship immediately reduces conscious and unconscious bias in both people, and also significantly reduces prejudice toward the other group in each individual's close friends.
This extended-contact effect, as it is called, travels like a benign virus through an entire peer group, counteracting subtle or not so subtle mistrust.
"It's important to remember that implicit biases are out there, absolutely; but I think that that's only half the story," said Linda R. Tropp, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Massachusetts. "With broader changes in the society at large, people can also become more willing to reach across racial boundaries, and that goes for both minorities and whites."
Read more.
