Comments on: People overestimate their reactions to racism

By: Musereader

Musereader — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 16:19:50 +0000

In a video from the What would you do? Series a woman sat down on the beach with an ipod dock, she left and a thief stole the dock, if she ignored everyone around her nobody did anything about the thief, she only had to smile and say hello to the people around her for action to be taken on her behalf. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIG6EMVy6zs

This experiment needs to be run again to determine if it is actually racism because I think this may also have to do with the above effect, the racist person [i]talked[/i] to the participant, the black person didn’t, a bond is formed with the person you talked to. I bet if the black person was friendly with the paticipant before the racial incident, the results would be inverted. Also were the actors swapped at any point? that may cause a difference.

By: Michael Daniluk

Michael Daniluk — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 17:44:40 +0000

This sounds like one of those things that either has very strange methods or tries to put numbers on abstract concepts.

By: Andy Hughes

Andy Hughes — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 17:39:36 +0000

Or more accurately, people lie about their reactions to racism.

By: Lotska

Lotska — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 22:48:48 +0000

When writing down their mood and feelings after the incident, does the participant do it in front of the two actors? If so, I’d imagine no one would be writing ‘Yes, I feel like shite for having this racist arse next to me, trying to include me in his delusions.’

Not just because we tend to play small events that could potentially lead to confrontation, but because that might also allow the black actor to know something of what had happened. Also, I wonder if the participant would have felt the incident more strongly if the black actor had made some sign of distress- hurt, offence, anger.

By: tj

tj — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 20:41:34 +0000

Honkies Sesame? Did you just awaken from the 70′s, you jive turkey.

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 22:11:04 +0000

I think there are just too many variables here to call it any more than a good observational setup. For instance, I am pretty sure that ANY comment by the actor would increase the chance of the person wanting to partner with them. They become a less unknown quantity. If you were to sit at a bar, and you had two options: Next to a random unknown person, or next to someone who had said a few words to you on the way in, which would you choose?
Re-run, where commentor will occasionally deliver neutral lines, instead of just no line, and I bet that also correlates with increased partnership desire.
Secondly, It doesn’t sound like a good control study was done. For instance, shouldn’t you be comparing “negative comment towards another person” vs “negative comment towards another person with racist undertones” to get a baseline, and delta, instead of just jumping straight to the final point? Maybe people’s INCREASE in distress is actually spot on, but that people generally assume more distress towards any kind of rude person.

By: Anonymous Rex

Anonymous Rex — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 21:17:54 +0000

@8-
Note that the experiencers were “of various races (apart from black)”. There was no implication that only white people can be racist.
@10-
“Although, uh, *yes* only white people can be racist. The other way around, i.e. remarking if a white person was the bumper, while not polite, is NOT racist.”
That’s utterly absurd. Racists are racists, regardless of their color.

By: Butterflywings

Butterflywings — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 00:43:16 +0000

I am not sure this is the best experiment, either.
Although, uh, *yes* only white people can be racist. The other way around, i.e. remarking if a white person was the bumper, while not polite, is NOT racist.
I remember, being about 16 and viewing houses with my parents, when the estate agents remarked on how ‘educated’ a black person sounded on the phone, and they ‘didn’t realise he was black’. None of us said anything, although once we left the agent we complained bitterly that they were racist.
At the time, though, we were probably downplaying it. There is a kind of denial, since we are told racism doesn’t exist any more, it was THOSE evil people and not nice, normal people like US and the people we interact with.
I think people just don’t like confronting other people. Especially, perhaps, not in experiments (Milgram? Asch?)
Also, we tend to justify our actions. Hence, not confronting – we would probably tell ourselves it was just a joke or no big deal, to rationalise it, and this would then explain being more likely to choose the white person as the partner (as we are telling ourselves they are NOT a bad person and hence perhaps blame the black person for bumping into them).

By: Sesame

Sesame — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 17:55:37 +0000

I almost want to say … that most people (whites and non-whites) have the concept, whether true or not, that it is a black person that will mess with you like that … “accidentally” bump you. It’s a real “city” things. And maybe they have had the experience. So, although everyone dreads being labeled a “racist” and everyone wants to “confront racism” perhaps deep down inside they agreed with what the person said, if not chiming in.
I agree with No. 8 … this isn’t really very scientific. If you had two black people and a white person, and the white person got up and bumped the black one, once out of earshot I can hear the bumped one saying “Why do honkies always do that? Are they just clumsy or is this some kind of sumblimnal message?” And the person, unaware it is an experiment, would probably smile and agree.

By: Con Kontikos

Con Kontikos — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 05:00:14 +0000

What an absurd and nonsensical piece of scientific bunk masquerading as “research”.
Did anyone research the reactions if there were two black people in the room and the white person bumped the black person’s knee? No.
Or do we assume that only white people can be and are racist?