Single,double, and triple minorities and the evaluations of persuasive arguments

The study examines the relationship between positional minorities, social minorities (i.e., African‐Americans and women) and the evaluations of persuasive arguments within the context of hypothetical small groups. Specifically, the study predicted that positional majority arguments would be evaluated most positively when identified with social minorities and that positional minority arguments would be evaluated least positively when identified with social minorities. Results demonstrated that when majority arguments were attributed to an African‐American spokesperson, they were evaluated more favorably than when the spokesperson was European‐American. However, spokesperson race did not influence evaluations of minority arguments. Spokesperson gender also did not influence argument evaluations for either position.