The Effects of an Instructional Intervention on Racial Attitude Formation in Occupational Therapy Students

The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the effect of a 9-week instructional intervention designed to increase 24 Caucasian American occupational therapy students’ awareness of personal racial attitudes toward African Americans. The learning content focused on specific cognitive-perceptual biases thought to play a role in the formation of racial attitudes. A pre- to posttest implicit measure of racial bias indicated an increase in bias in some students following the intervention and a decrease of bias in others. Students’ perception of the instruction and subsequent stereotype activation are discussed as possible moderators of the intervention’s effectiveness. Several implications for future instruction and research are suggested to address factors that may limit antibias instruction.