Collective guilt and shame as motivation for white support of black programs

Two studies examined whether exposing Whites to collective guilt- and shame -inducing stimuli would lead to heightened support for Black programs. Whit e participants watched either a civil-rights videotape or one of two contro l videos and then completed either a self-affirmation task or a filler task . Support for Black programs was measured in a bogus second study. Those wh o watched the civil-rights video and completed the filler task suppressed t heir support for Black programs, whereas those who watched the civil-rights video and then self-affirmed displayed the highest levels of Black program support. Findings suggest that Whites might react antisocially to guilt- a nd shame-inducing situations, and react prosocially only after reaffirming their personal integrity.