Acceptance of outgroup members in schools: Developmental trend and roles of supportive school culture, stigma awareness, and teacher support

Abstract

Schools in Hong Kong are increasingly diverse in ethnicity and thus it is important to study and promote social inclusion. The objectives of this study are twofold. First, to examine the developmental trend of acceptance of outgroup members in both the ethnic minority and majority students. Second, to investigate the roles of supportive school culture, stigma awareness, and teacher support in the acceptance of outgroup members in schools. The participants were 3,725 Grade 2, Grade 5, Grade 8, and Grade 11 students in 24 Hong Kong schools (ethnic minority students: 39%, boys: 52%). They completed a questionnaire to report their intention to accept outgroup members, awareness of stigma of ethnic minority in Hong Kong, and the support they received from teachers in schools. The results indicated that minority students accepted majority students more than majority students accepted them. Majority students had an upward trend from Grade 2 to Grade 11 to accept minority students but the trend was stable for minority students. Multi-level analyses showed that acceptance of outgroup members was predicted by stigma awareness and perceived teacher support at the students level. The association between stigma awareness and acceptance was moderated by supportive school culture at the school level.