Cultural Humility: A Catalyst for Increasing Future Contact Intentions

Cultural humility, that is an interpersonal stance characterized by openness and self-reflection towards different cultural backgrounds and awareness of status and power imbalances, has become increasingly important in promoting positive and egalitarian intergroup relations. In three studies, we tested whether cultural humility could promote higher intentions of future contact with outgroup members, and the mechanisms underlying this association (i.e., intergroup anxiety, perceived threat, empathy). In (cross-sectional) Study 1 (N = 390), we found that participants' self-reported cultural humility was associated with higher levels of future contact intention and that intergroup anxiety mediated such association. In Study 2 (N = 312) and Study 3 (N = 274), we experimentally induced cultural humility. In both studies participants in the cultural humility induction condition reported significantly higher intentions of future intergroup contact compared to those in the control condition, but such effect was not mediated by intergroup anxiety. In contrast, in Study 3, cultural humility decreased perceived threat, which mediated the relationship between cultural humility and future contact intentions. No mediation by empathy emerged. Overall, these findings support the growing literature emphasizing the potential of cultural humility in promoting positive intergroup relations.