Date of Award
6-2009
Document Type
Union College Only
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Kenneth Debono
Language
English
Keywords
attitudes, homosexuals, attitude, condition, high
Abstract
The present study examines the potential for reducing prejudiced attitudes towards homosexuals in high Right-Wing Authoritarians by inducing vicarious cognitive dissonance. Participants completed six social attitude scales, including the Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale (Altemeyer, 1998) and the Attitudes Towards Homosexuals Scale. In the experimental condition, participants watched videos of religious authorities endorsing positive attitudes towards homosexuals. It was hypothesized that compared to the control condition, high RWAs would report more positive attitudes toward homosexuals after watching the video. Although the results did not significantly support the hypothesis, interesting patterns emerged in the data suggesting religious differences in the effectiveness of the authority figure for inducing social attitude change.
Recommended Citation
Foley, Rose Marie, "Reducing prejudice In Right-Wing authoritarians : the effect of cognitive dissonance in changing social attitudes By Rose Foley." (2009). Honors Theses. 1302.
https://digitalworks.union.edu/theses/1302