Effects of Responses to Bias on Cardiovascular Reactivity During Interracial Interactions

在美国，对有色人种的偏见仍然是一个严重的问题。解决这个问题的关键一步是就有色人种经历的歧视时刻进行诚实的对话。缺乏的是对导致有色人种人和白人之间富有成效的讨论的互动特征的坚定理解，特别是当有色人种人讨论带有歧视的经历时。白人是以接受和认可的行为回应，还是以轻蔑的行为回应(例如，将评论框定为投诉)？接受和/或轻视的反应如何影响对话的质量，以及每个人所经历的生理压力的大小？回答这些问题对于理解如何促进有效的联盟关系，减轻歧视对有色人种的危害，以及培养建立在相互理解和信任基础上的跨种族友谊具有重要意义。本研究涉及两个大规模的研究，以黑人、拉丁裔和白人成年人为社区样本。在这两项研究中，黑人或拉丁裔交往伙伴向白人交往伙伴透露了受到不公平对待的经历。在这些对话中获得了各种测量，包括自我报告的感知、评估生理反应的心血管活动以及视频捕获的相关行为模式。参与者的情绪和生理反应可以与他们互动伙伴的特定评论或行为联系在一起。这允许对假设的序列进行测试，例如，描述歧视经历的拉丁裔人是否在与白人互动的伴侣有接受反应后立即表现出压力减少。研究1测试了这样一种预测：当有色人种人披露有偏见的经历(与种族无关的不公平经历)时，白人的接受反应特别有帮助，而轻蔑的反应特别没有帮助。研究一还测试了互动伙伴的对话质量是否会影响他们在后续任务中的合作程度。研究2测试了一种旨在提高白人对歧视表达的接受度的干预措施。这种干预措施鼓励就歧视经历进行富有成效的跨种族对话，并鼓励对话伙伴之间的有效合作。除了解决这些问题，这个项目还帮助培训不同的学生群体如何进行涉及社会互动和心血管测量的研究。这项研究的见解为循证干预提供了基础，可以改善关于种族的对话，减少群体间的紧张关系。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Bias against people of color remains a significant problem in the United States. A crucial step toward addressing this problem involves having honest conversations about moments of discrimination that people of color experience. What is lacking is a firm understanding of the features of interactions that lead to productive discussions between people of color and White people, especially when a person of color discusses an experience with discrimination. Does the White person respond with receptive and validating behavior or with dismissive behavior (e.g., framing comments as complaints)? How do receptive and/or dismissive responses shape the quality of the conversation as it unfolds and the amount of physiological stress that each person experiences? Answering these questions has important implications for understanding how to promote effective allyship, mitigate the harm of discrimination for people of color, and foster cross-race friendships built on mutual understanding and trust.The present research involves two large-scale studies with community samples of Black, Latinx, and White adults. In both studies, a Black or Latinx interaction partner discloses an experience of unfair treatment to a White interaction partner. A variety of measures are obtained during these conversations, including self-reported perceptions, cardiovascular activity to assess physiological reactions, and relevant behavioral patterns captured on video. Participants' emotional and physiological reactions can be linked to specific comments or behaviors from their interaction partner. This allows for a test of hypothesized sequences, such as whether a Latina person who describes a discrimination experience exhibits decreased stress immediately after her White interaction partner has a receptive response. Study 1 tests the prediction that when people of color disclose experiences with bias (vs. experiences of unfairness unrelated to race), receptive responses from White people are particularly helpful and dismissive responses particularly unhelpful. Study 1 also tests whether the quality of interaction partners' conversation affects how much they cooperate with each other on a subsequent task. Study 2 tests an intervention designed to increase a White person's receptivity to expressions of discrimination. The intervention encourages productive cross-race conversations about discrimination experiences and effective cooperation between conversation partners. In addition to addressing these issues, this project helps to train a diverse group of students on how to conduct research involving social interactions and cardiovascular measures. The insights from this research provide a basis for evidence-based interventions that can improve conversations about race and reduce intergroup tension.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.