Blumer's theory
Blumer (1958) argued that prejudice is a sense of intergroup relations rather than interpersonal feeling. He identified four elements of dominant-group prejudice: a feeling of superiority, a feeling that the subordinate group is intrinsically different and alien, a feeling of proprietary claim to certain privileges and resources, and suspicion and fear that the subordinate group harbors designs on those prerogatives. This sense, he said, is formed collectively through public discourse by politicians, media and others.
Empirical research and extensions
Bobo (1983) showed that White opposition to busing was not explained by symbolic racism alone but included elements of group interest conflict. Using a Los Angeles survey, Bobo and Hutchings (1996) analyzed how much Whites, Blacks, Latinos and Asian Americans perceive each other as competitors, extending the theory to a multiracial setting. Bobo (1999) laid out the theory's microfoundations and discussed its relationship to realistic conflict theory and social dominance theory. Building on Blalock's (1967) group-size hypothesis, Quillian (1995) showed that immigrant share and economic conditions raise perceived group threat and prejudice in Europe.
Status threat and contemporary relevance
Craig and Richeson (2014) reported that White participants informed that the United States would soon become majority-minority felt status threat and expressed more conservative political views. This shows that demographic change can touch a dominant group's sense of position and shift political attitudes. Group position theory is used to understand racial resentment, immigration attitudes and identity politics.
FAQ
- What is group position theory in simple terms?
- Prejudice arises from the feeling that another group threatens the place your group rightfully holds.
- How does it differ from individual prejudice theories?
- It emphasizes a collective sense of hierarchy and resource competition between groups rather than individual feelings.
Sources reviewed: 2026-10-26
References
- Blumer, H. (1958). Race prejudice as a sense of group position. The Pacific Sociological Review, 1(1), 3–7. The original statement of the theory.
- Blalock, H. M. (1967). Toward a theory of minority-group relations. Wiley. Classic on group size and threat.
- Bobo, L. (1983). Whites' opposition to busing: Symbolic racism or realistic group conflict? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45(6), 1196–1210. Symbolic racism vs. group conflict.
- Quillian, L. (1995). Prejudice as a response to perceived group threat: Population composition and anti-immigrant and racial prejudice in Europe. American Sociological Review, 60(4), 586–611. Group threat and prejudice in Europe.
- Bobo, L., & Hutchings, V. L. (1996). Perceptions of racial group competition: Extending Blumer's theory of group position to a multiracial social context. American Sociological Review, 61(6), 951–972. Extends the theory to multiracial settings.
- Bobo, L. D. (1999). Prejudice as group position: Microfoundations of a sociological approach to racism and race relations. Journal of Social Issues, 55(3), 445–472. Microfoundations of the theory.
- Craig, M. A., & Richeson, J. A. (2014). On the precipice of a "majority-minority" America: Perceived status threat from the racial demographic shift affects White Americans' political ideology. Psychological Science, 25(6), 1189–1197. Status threat from demographic change.