Applying imagined contact to improve physiological responses in anticipation of intergroup interactions and the perceived quality of these interactions Author Keon West, Rhiannon Turner, Liat Levita Publication Year 2015 Type Journal Article Abstract This experiment (N = 49) is the first to show that imagined contact can buffer anticipatory physiological responses to future interactions, and improve the quality of these interactions. Participants imagined a positive interaction with a person with schizophrenia, or in a control condition, a person who did not have schizophrenia. They then interacted with a confederate whom they believed had schizophrenia. Participants in the imagined contact condition reported more positive attitudes and less avoidance of people with schizophrenia, displayed smaller anticipatory physiological responses, specifically smaller changes in interbeat interval and skin conductance responses, and had a more positive interaction according to the confederate. These findings support applying imagined contact to improve interactions with people with severe mental illnesses. Keywords imagined contact, schizophrenia, mental health Journal Journal of Applied Social Psychology Volume 45 Pages 425–436 Type of Article Journal Article URL External link to reference DOI 10.1111/jasp.12309 Full text Open access via the link provided. Type of Prejudice/Bias Ability Country United Kingdom Method Lab Setting College/University Google ScholarDOIBibTeX