"But there are no longer any anti-Semites": An experimental study on the communication latency of anti-Semitic attitudes

Abstract

Since the public sanctioning of anti-Semitism after 1945 has mostly prevented the articulation of anti-Semitic attitudes in public they outlast in private. This development was taken into account by the theory of anti-Semitism, in particular by the concept of communication latency, but had almost no impact on the data collection process. For the sensitive character of anti-Semitic attitudes it is uncertain whether they are reported truthfully in surveys. Respondents are assumed to answer in a socially desirable manner. Using an experimental setting, we demonstrate that the cognitive activation of an anti-Semitic primary group norm increases the prevalence of self-reported anti-Semitism. In addition, we show that under statistical control of this communication mechanism the explanatory power of established determinants of anti-Semitic attitudes such as education, political attitudes, and political interest decreases.