| Abstract: | On Facebook, connections between users are published within “friends” lists. Therefore, ties between in- and outgroup members may be easily observed. We simulated this novel form of indirect intergroup contact through an evaluative conditioning (EC) procedure and tested if intergroup attitudes may be influenced positively. To be specific, we presented outgroup members as conditioned stimuli (CSs) and mutual friendship as positively valenced unconditioned stimulus (US). To test our hypotheses, we carried out eight studies measuring explicit and implicit attitudes as well as prosocial intentions toward a target outgroup. However, results demonstrate consistently that the EC procedure did not improve attitudes. |
