Imagining intergroup contact reduces implicit prejudice

Recent research has demonstrated that imagining intergroup contact can be sufficient to reduce explicit prejudice directed towards out-groups. In this research, we examined the impact of contact-related mental imagery on implicit prejudice as measured by the implicit association test. We found that, relative to a control condition, young participants who imagined talking to an elderly stranger subsequently showed more positive implicit attitudes towards elderly people in general. In a second study, we demonstrated that, relative to a control condition, non-Muslim participants who imagined talking to a Muslim stranger subsequently showed more positive implicit attitudes towards Muslims in general. We discuss the implications of these findings for furthering the application of indirect contact strategies aimed at improving intergroup relations.

A test of the extended intergroup contact hypothesis: The mediating role of intergroup anxiety, perceived ingroup and outgroup norms, and inclusion of the outgroup in the self

S. C. Wright, A. Aron, T. McLaughlin-Volpe, and S. A. Ropp (1997) proposed that the benefits associated with cross-group friendship might also stem from vicarious experiences of friendship. Extended contact was proposed to reduce prejudice by reducing intergroup anxiety, by generating perceptions of positive ingroup and outgroup norms regarding the other group, and through inclusion of the outgroup in the self. This article documents the first test of Wright et al.'s model, which used structural equation modeling among two independent samples in the context of South Asian-White relations in the United Kingdom. Supporting the model, all four variables mediated the relationship between extended contact and outgroup attitude, controlling for the effect of direct contact. A number of alternative models were ruled out, indicating that the four mediators operate concurrently rather than predicting one another.

Can Imagined Interactions Produce Positive Perceptions? Reducing Prejudice Through Simulated Social Contact

The contact hypothesis states that, under the right conditions, contact between members of different groups leads to more positive intergroup relations. The authors track recent trends in contact theory to the emergence of extended, or indirect, forms of contact. These advances lead to an intriguing proposition: that simply imagining intergroup interactions can produce more positive perceptions of outgroups. The authors discuss empirical research supporting the imagined contact proposition and find it to be an approach that is at once deceptively simple and remarkably effective. Encouraging people to mentally simulate a positive intergroup encounter leads to improved outgroup attitudes and reduced stereotyping. It curtails intergroup anxiety and extends the attribution of perceivers' positive traits to others. The authors describe the advantages and disadvantages of imagined contact compared to conventional strategies, outline an agenda for future research, and discuss applications for policymakers and educators in their efforts to encourage more positive intergroup relations.

Constrained adoptive parenthood and family transition: Adopters' experience of unplanned birth family contact in adolescence

Adoption policy in the UK emphasizes its role in providing secure, permanent relationships to children in care who are unable to live with their birth families. Adoptive parents are crucial in providing this life-long, stable experience of family for these vulnerable children. This paper explores the experience of adoptive parenthood in the context of changes to adoptive kinship relationships brought about by new, unplanned contact with birth family during their child's middle adolescence. This contact was initiated via informal social networks and/or social media, with older birth siblings instrumental in negotiating renewed relationships. The contact precipitated a transition in adoptive family life resulting in emotional challenges and changes in parent/child relationships, which were experienced as additional to the normative transitions expected during adolescence. Parental concern as a dominant theme was founded in the child and birth sibling's stage of adolescence, coupled with constraints on adoptive parenthood imposed by the use of social media, by perceived professional attitudes and by parental social cognitions about the importance of birth ties. Adoptive parents' accounts are interpreted with reference to family life-cycle theory and implications are suggested for professional support of adoptive kinship relationships.

Contact and context: sharing education and building relationships in a divided society

One approach to tackling problems of division in society has been to promote collaboration and engagement between schools separated on ethno-religious lines. Based on some variant of contact theory, the received wisdom is that inter-group encounters can contribute to prejudice reduction and promote more harmonious relationships. Evidence to support this analysis is convincing; however, relatively little is known about the environmental factors that impede or enhance the potential for contact in different contexts. The importance of understanding such factors is underscored in divided jurisdictions, where separate education has been linked to the perpetuation of division and hostility. This paper adopts a qualitative approach to exploring the impact of two inter-school initiatives in Northern Ireland. The projects are located in contrasting socio-political and demographic environments, and research findings point to very different contact outcomes for participants in each. Seemingly relevant factors include the degree of congruence between school and community norms and values, the opportunity to develop relationships outside the school context, the relationships developed between the schools and local communities and the historical, political and social referents used by individuals to navigate the contact experience. The paper concludes with some reflections on factors that may help foster social harmony and on potential policy implications of the findings.

Long-term graft survival in patients with flexible open-loop anterior chamber intraocular lenses

Purpose. To evaluate the long-term graft survival in patients with flexible open-loop anterior chamber intraocular lenses (AC IOL). Methods. We retrospectively reviewed the records of patients with aphakic/pseudophakic bullous keratopathy who underwent penetrating keratoplasty and flexible open-loop AC IOL implantation in our institution from 1983 to 1988. Results. 79 eyes from 77 patients were included in the study. Mean follow-up was 50 months (range 1 to 123 months). At last follow-up 61 eyes (77.2%) had clear grafts. Among them, the visual acuity was = 20/40 in 14 eyes (23.0%), 20/50-20/100 in 22 eyes (36.1%), 20/200-20/400 in 9 eyes (14.8%) and = CF in 16 (26.2%). Increment of glaucoma medications and/or glaucoma surgery was the most frequent complication (37 eyes, 46,8%). Cystoid macular edema was newly diagnosed in 10 eyes (12.7%). Conclusions. Flexible, open-loop anterior chamber lens are a viable option in the treatment of patients with aphakic or pseudophakic bullous keratopathy undergoing penetrating keratoplasty.

Long-term graft survival in patients with flexible open-loop anterior- chamber intraocular lenses

Purpose. To evaluate the long-term graft survival and complications of flexible, open-loop anterior-chamber intraocular lenses in patients with penetrating keratoplasty for pseudophakic or aphakic bullous keratopathy. Methods. We reviewed charts of all consecutive patients who underwent penetrating keratoplasty for pseudophakic or aphakic bullous keratopathy combined with implantation of a flexible, open-loop, anterior-chamber intraocular lens at our institution between 1983 and 1988. One-hundred one eyes of 99 patients were evaluated. Graft-survival rates were calculated by using the Kaplan-Meier actuarial method. Results. Mean follow-up was 49.8 months (range. 1-144). The probability of graft survival at 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8 years was 93, 87, 78, 65, and 65%, respectively. A total of 25 (24.8%) grafts failed. Progressive corneal edema without signs of rejection was the most common finding in patients with failed grafts (10 eyes, 40%). The most frequent complication observed was newly diagnosed or worsening of preexisting glaucoma (46 eyes, 45.5%). Conclusions. Our long-term results support flexible, open-loop anterior-chamber intraocular lenses as a reasonable option, at the time of penetrating keratoplasty, in patients with pseudophakic and aphakic bullous keratopathy.

On Irish stickleback:Morphological diversification in a secondary contact zone

Question: How parallel is adaptive evolution when it occurs from different genetic backgrounds? Background: Divergent evolutionary lineages of several post-glacial fish species including the threespine stickleback are found together in Ireland. Goals: To investigate the morphological diversity of stickleback populations in Ireland and assess whether morphology evolved in parallel between evolutionary lineages. Methods: We sampled stickleback from lake, river, and coastal habitats across Ireland. Microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA data revealed evolutionary history. Geometric morphometrics and linear trait measurements characterized morphology. We used a multivariate approach to quantify parallel and non-parallel divergence within and between lineages. Results: Repeated evolution of similar morphologies in similar habitats occurred across Ireland, concordant with patterns observed elsewhere in the stickleback distribution. A strong pattern of habitat-specific morphology existed even among divergent lineages. Furthermore, a strong signal of shared morphological divergence occurred along a marine-freshwater axis. Evidently, deterministic natural selection played a more important role in driving freshwater adaptation than independent evolutionary history. © 2013 Mark Ravinet.

Evaluation of a simple disposable microband electrode device for amperometric gas sensing

We report a simple and facile methodology for constructing Pt (6.3 mm x 50 mu m) and Cu (6.3 mm x 30 mu m) annular microband electrodes for use in room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) and propose their use for amperometric gas sensing. The suitability of microband electrodes for use in electrochemical analysis was examined in experiments on two systems. The first system studied to validate the electrochemical responses of the annular microband electrode was decamethylferrocene (DmFc), as a stable internal reference probe commonly used in ionic liquids, in [Pmim][NTf2], where the diffusion coefficients of DmFc and DmFc(+) and the standard electron rate constant for the DmFc/DmFc(+) couple were determined through fitting chronoamperometric and cyclic voltammetric responses with relevant simulations. These values are independently compared with those collected from a commercially available Pt microdisc electrode with excellent agreement. The second system focuses on O-2 reduction in [Pmim][NTf2], which is used as a model for gas sensing. The diffusion coefficients of O-2 and O-2(-) and the electron transfer rate constant were again obtained using chronoamperometry and cyclic voltammetry, along with simulations. Results determined from the microbands are again consistent to those evaluated from the Pt microdisc electrode when compared these results from home-made microband and commercially available microdisc electrodes. These observations indicate that the fabricated annular microband electrodes are suitable for quantitative measurements. Further the successful use of the Cu electrodes in the O-2 system suggests a cheap disposable sensor for gas detection. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.