How Race-Conscious (Vs. Colorblind) Cues Impact White Americans’ Inter- and Intraracial Interactions

Although both inter- and intraracial conversations about race are necessary for combating racism, discrepancies in people's racial ideologies may hinder these discussions. We conducted three experiments (N = 1529) to test how White American adults on Prolific (Studies 1 and 2) and White American college students (Study 3) anticipate a conversation about race with a White or Black person who expresses a race-conscious or colorblind racial ideology. Across studies, participants interpreted a Black interaction partner's expression of colorblindness (vs. race-consciousness) as a stronger identity safety cue. In contrast, participants interpreted a White interaction partner's expression of race-consciousness (vs. colorblindness) as a stronger identity safety cue. However, participants’ internal motivation to respond without prejudice predicted more positive responses to the race-conscious ideology expression regardless of partner race. These findings highlight when White Americans are most likely to engage in race-relevant conversations necessary for anti-racist allyship.