Describe personal and situational factors that affect the extent to which children hold racial and ethnic biases

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answer: The extent to which children hold racial and ethnic biases varies, depending on the following personal and situational factors:
• A fixed view of personality traits. Children who believe personality traits are fixed rather than changeable often judge others as either "good" or "bad." Ignoring motives and circumstances, they readily form prejudices on the basis of limited information. For example, they might infer that a new child at school who tells a lie to get other kids to like her is simply a bad person.
• Overly high self-esteem. Children (and adults) with very high self-esteem are more likely to hold racial and ethnic prejudices. These individuals seem to belittle disadvantaged individuals or groups to justify their own extremely favorable self-evaluation. Children who say their own ethnicity makes them feel especially "good"—and thus perhaps socially superior—are more likely to display in-group favoritism and out-group prejudice.
• A social world in which people are sorted into groups. The more adults highlight group distinctions for children and the less interracial contact children experience, the more likely white children will express in-group favoritism and out-group prejudice.