Congruence and incongruence in perceived ethnic acceptance among Israeli students.

Two major models of peer acceptance delineate necessary conditions for successful interpersonal ethnic contact. The first model pertains to contact between two relatively equal groups; the second model involves interaction between two unequal groups. The "contact hypothesis" (first model; Allport, 1954) maintains that fruitful ethnic contact requires equal status of the two groups, a common goal that leads to close and intensive intergroup contact, and a social climate that supports these close relations and prevents both groups from perceiving each other in stereotyped terms. This…