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Five Minutes of Fame: The Benefits of Imagined Contact with Famous Gay Men and Lesbians

Past research indicates that imagining contact with an outgroup member can reduce prejudice toward that outgroup (Miles & Crisp, 2014). However, for people with few experiences
with outgroup members, such as gay men and lesbians who are a numerically small outgroup, imagined contact may be difficult and less effective. The current work proposes imagining contact
with famous gay men and lesbians may be one way of resolving these issues and improving the efficacy of imagined contact. In one online study (Study 1) and one lab study (Study 2) we tested
the hypothesis that among heterosexuals, imagined contact with famous gay men and lesbians can be an effective means of improving responses toward gay men and lesbians compared to imagined
contact with non-famous gay/lesbian individuals and famous heterosexuals. Results supported our predictions demonstrating that imagined contact with famous gay men and lesbians is associated
with a more pleasant imagined interaction experience, reduced sexual prejudice, and fewer concerns about being misclassified as gay or lesbian. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Psychology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. / Fall Semester, 2014. / October 29, 2014. / contagion concerns, imagined contact, sexual prejudice / Includes bibliographical references. / E. Ashby Plant, Professor Directing Thesis; Colleen Ganley, Committee Member; James McNulty, Committee Member.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_252855
ContributorsLacosse, Jennifer (authoraut), Plant, Ashby (professor directing thesis), Ganley, Colleen M. (committee member), McNulty, James (committee member), Florida State University (degree granting institution), College of Arts and Sciences (degree granting college), Department of Psychology (degree granting department)
PublisherFlorida State University, Florida State University
Source SetsFlorida State University
LanguageEnglish, English
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeText, text
Format1 online resource (55 pages), computer, application/pdf
RightsThis Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them.

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