Study: Facebook Might Be Making Us Racist

The more time you spend on the social network, the worse it gets.

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Complex Original

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The more time you spend on Facebook, the more likely you are to agree with racist sentiments, finds a surprising new study. 

Shannon Rauch, assistant professor of psychology at Providence College, and Kimberly Shanz, a doctoral candidate at the John Jay School of Criminal Justice, asked 623 participants to rate their level of Facebook usage on a scale of 1-8. The higher the number, the more time they spent on the social network. 

From there, they were asked to read three different notes about race: One that argued whites were superior to blacks, a second that whined about whites becoming the "oppressed racial group in America," and a third insisting that all races are equal and that racism is still an issue in this country. 

Turns out the users who logged more time on Facebook agreed with the racist sentiments more than those who spent less time on the site. Conversely, those who spent less time on the site also identified more with the egalitarian message. 

For more details from the study, you'll want to pick up the latest issue of the journal, Computers in Human Behavior

[via The Daily Dot]

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