Not Practicing What You Preach By: Monica Davis

Background Wanted to discover info about prejudice towards ethnic Chinese communitiesWanted to discover info about prejudice towards ethnic Chinese communities Lapiere wanted to test that spoken attitudes are often poor predictors of actual behavior (what people say is not often what they do)Lapiere wanted to test that spoken attitudes are often poor predictors of actual behavior (what people say is not often what they do) Lapiere first traveled with young Chinese student and his wife Lapiere first traveled with young Chinese student and his wife

Research From the trio traveled over the U.S. accumulating 10,000 mi- visiting hotels, restaurants, and cafesFrom the trio traveled over the U.S. accumulating 10,000 mi- visiting hotels, restaurants, and cafes Observed the couples’ treatment while he lagged behindObserved the couples’ treatment while he lagged behind Chinese were unaware of Lapiere’s observationChinese were unaware of Lapiere’s observation 6 months later a questionnaire was sent out to the visited facilities6 months later a questionnaire was sent out to the visited facilities

Results Only 1 out of the 251 facilities denied them serviceOnly 1 out of the 251 facilities denied them service Treatment was good, if not better than how the average person would be treatedTreatment was good, if not better than how the average person would be treated 51% response rate to surveys- over 90% stated they would NOT serve Chinese customers51% response rate to surveys- over 90% stated they would NOT serve Chinese customers

criticisms/subsequen t research Yes or No questions = invalid measurement of a person’s attitude towards specific group of peopleYes or No questions = invalid measurement of a person’s attitude towards specific group of people 5 categories5 categories Strength of attitudeStrength of attitude Stability of the attitudeStability of the attitude Relevance of attitude to the behaviorRelevance of attitude to the behavior Salience of the attitudeSalience of the attitude Situational pressuresSituational pressures

Conclusion Attitudes do play a big role in one’s behaviorAttitudes do play a big role in one’s behavior Social attitudes can only be reliably measured by studying human behavior in actual social situationsSocial attitudes can only be reliably measured by studying human behavior in actual social situations