The affective consequences of imagined contact: A review and some suggestions for future research

Recent research has provided consistent support for imagined intergroup contact (Crisp & Turner, 2012), a new indirect contact strategy for reducing prejudice. In the present review, we focus on the affective consequences of imagined contact. In particular, we review studies showing that imagined contact has powerful effects on reduced intergroup and performance anxiety, as well as increased trust and empathy toward outgroup members. Moreover, these effects extend to the affective part of intergroup attitudes tapped at both an explicit and at an implicit level. We also present evidence that some of these variables mediate the effects of imagined contact on reduced prejudice. Finally, we discuss the double nature, cognitive and affective, of imagined contact.