Discrimination

Discrimination refers to biased actions that harm and disadvantage people on the basis of their group membership. Notably, discrimination is distinct from (but related to) stereotyping (i.e., beliefs, associations, and attributions about the characteristics of groups and their members) and prejudice (i.e., emotions, evaluations, and attitudes toward groups and their members). Discrimination is an important aspect of intergroup relations and occurs not only at an interpersonal level (between individuals) but also at the institutional and organizational levels (e.g., policies that perpetuate different outcomes for different groups). This entry contrasts blatant and subtle discrimination, discusses several psychological processes involved in them, provides real-world examples of discrimination, and concludes with observations on why psychological processes are important in understanding discriminatory political behavior.