Institutional Change Affects Perceived and Personal Intergroup Attitudes

Abstract

This research tested whether institutional change impacts policy support and attitudes toward the social groups impacted by policy change. Study 1 demonstrated across a variety of topics that, when a hypothetical state legislature banned (vs. affirmed) a practice (e.g., allowing companies to implement mandatory anti-racism training), participants perceived less support for the policy and more negative attitudes toward the group impacted (e.g., Black Americans). Study 2, a longitudinal study, investigated the short- and long-term impact of real-world policy change—the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling that gave states the right to restrict access to abortion. Although the ruling did not produce lasting change in personal support for abortion restriction, it did lead participants to perceive more support for traditional gender roles and to personally endorse traditional gender attitudes more strongly. These results demonstrate the power of institutional policies to influence individually held intergroup attitudes.