Effects of Victims' Race and Organizational Affiliation on Receiving Help from Blacks and Whites

The present experiment tested the hypothesis that cross-racial discrimination in helping behavior would be most apparent when subjects had a reason other than race (that is, the victim's questionable associations) for withholding assistance. Black and white subjects received a "wrong number" telephone call in which a black or a white victim who was associated with either a reputable/traditional organization (such as the Red Cross) or a less reputable/nontraditional group (National Organization for Women) requested assistance. The data provided no evidence of cross-race discrimination, regardless of the organizational affiliation of the victim. However, victims associated with reputable/traditional organizations were more likely to receive assistance than were victims associated with less reputable/nontraditional organizations.