Prejudice as Lifeform*

In: Sociological inquiry: the quarterly journal of the International Sociology Honor Society, Volume 59, Issue 3, p. 301-317

Abstract

Sociological research on racial prejudice has generated consistent and reliable empirical findings on the social determinants of prejudice, but comprehensive theoretical explanations of the social forces that promote prejudice tend to be controversial. Two such theoretical perspectives are examined and then compared for their ability to explain prejudice; namely Durkheim's theory of cognition and the neoevolutionist approach to sociocultural modernization and ontogenetic maturation. An attempt also is made to merge the interactionist and evolutionist arguments for the purpose of developing a comprehensive explanation of prejudice.