Advances in Applied Social Psychology by Kidd R. F.;Saks M. J.; & Michael J. Saks

Author:Kidd, R. F.;Saks, M. J.; & Michael J. Saks [Kidd, Robert F. & Saks, Michael J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Group
Published: 2022-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

Clearly, then, our study of interracial housing had some immediately useful and significant social consequences. In addition, it served to challenge a widely held opinion that “stateways cannot change folkways,” which, not surprisingly, was usually interpreted so as to support the status quo rather than a change in “stateways.” Thus, the study along with much other research, helped to provide a supporting rationale for judicial decisions and legislation to bar segregation.

However, I must admit that this research did not contribute significantly to the ideas of social psychology. Intellectually, its merit did not reside in its theoretical innovation but rather in its systematic application of existing social psychological concepts to the important social issues of residential segregation. This is not to say that there is not a need for new ideas and theoretical advances to clarify and develop systematic understanding of intergroup relations. Indeed, some of our current experimental research has this as an objective. But I must confess that as we begin to explore some of the conceptual underpinings in this area we are pulled in the direction of such questions as the relationship between social categories and social coordination. It takes us away from the immediate social urgencies.

Our housing study was not formulated with a theoretical objective and, unfortunately, we were not alert enough to appreciate fully the wider theoretical significance of some of our findings. These findings suggested that behavioral change preceded attitudinal change: The white women in the integrated projects often behaved in an unprejudiced manner toward their black neighbors before they felt this way. Had we been clever enough to realize the general implications of this finding we might have anticipated the major idea underlying Festinger’s theory of cognitive dissonance (Festinger, 1957), which is in essence the converse of the old truism that people tend to act in accord with their beliefs. Namely, people tend to make their beliefs and attitudes accord with their actions. This is a very important idea that has major implications for theoretical and practical work in the area of attitudinal change. This idea could have emerged from our field study of interracial relations in housing but, alas, it did not.

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