AN EXAMINATION OF ATTITUDE TOWARD NEGROES.

This paper reports the major results of two questionnaire studies. One employed a dimensional analysis of an attitude and examined the value of the customary trait-list procedure for assessing a group stereotype of an attitude object. The other focused on a possible explanation for the Ss' choice of attributes under the trait-list procedure of the preceding study. In the first research, the attitudes toward Negroes of 65 students at Boston University were examined by means of a trait-list procedure and a variety of opinion-type questions that were designed to assess three conceived dimensions of attitude: C-opinions about characteristics of Negroes; OMP-allegations concerning the Ss' behavior toward Negroes; and SMP-opinions concerning how others should behave toward Negroes. Affect toward Negroes was assessed primarily by one opinion-type question. In the second study, 84 different students selected from the same trait list used in Experiment 1 the 10 attributes that were most important to them in interpersonal relations. They also indicated how they would regard a person who exhibited each of the 10 to a greater, equal, or lesser extent than most people. Then, the Ss gave their general impressions of an unidentified person characterized by eight attributes sometimes associated with Negroes and stated their personal regard for such an individual. Some of the findings were: 1. The conceived dimensions of attitude were markedly interrelated. But strength of feeling about one's opinions varied with the dimensions for the more favorable Ss: C > SMP > OMP. Although the less favorable Ss exhibited a similar ordinal trend of intensity, the differences among the dimensions were not reliable. The more favorable Ss exhibited significantly higher intensities than did the less favorable Ss on the C and SMP dimensions but not on the OMP one. 2. The Ss exhibited wide individual differences in their selections of five traits to characterize Negroes or as putative determiners of their attitudes toward them. Only approximately half of the total group subscribed to the two most popular selections; and much smaller percentages recorded the three, four, or five most frequently chosen ones. Also, the Ss evidenced a distinction between their selections of traits for description and as determiners of their thoughts and feelings about Negroes. Furthermore, attitude toward Negroes was not found to be related to the Ss' selections of traits. These results, as well as the finding that many characteristics not chosen by the Ss were ones on which they considered Negroes to be different from most other people, posed the problem of the basis for the particular selections made. 3. The attributes selected as descriptive of Negroes or as determiners of attitude toward them were rarely chosen as generally important in interpersonal situations; and the converse relationship was also found. 4. Although the characterization of the anonymous person evoked certain aspects of the commonly observed depiction of Negroes, few Ss spontaneously identified the person as a Negro or expressed dislike for him or rejected him from all interpersonal relations with themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]