The association between intergroup contact and psychological capital among adolescents from Chinese ethnic minority areas: A latent profile analysis

Intergroup contact has been reliably associated with reduced prejudice and improved intergroup relations in research; however, relatively little is known about the association between intergroup contact and psychological capital. Guided by the tertiary transfer effect of intergroup contact, this study examined the latter association. A total of 1501 adolescents (M = 15.72 years, 55.8 % female) from areas in China mainly inhabited by ethnic minorities participated in this study. Latent profile analysis revealed that psychological capital could be classified into four different types: lowest (7.1 %), lower (51.0 %), mid (34.5 %), and high (7.3 %). Multinomial logistic regression revealed a positive association between contact quality (but not contact quantity and the product of contact quantity and quality) and the odds of adolescents being classified into the lower, mid, and high groups when compared to the lowest group. Moreover, the association between contact quality and being classified into the high group, compared to the lowest group, was stronger for boys than for girls. The implications of these findings are discussed in both theoretical and practical terms.