Children's evaluations of interracial peer inclusion and exclusion: The role of intimacy.

The present study investigated how Black and White American children, ages 6 to 9.5 years and 9.5 to 12 years (N = 219, M = 9.18 years, SD = 1.90; 51% female) evaluated vignettes in which peers included a same- or cross-race peer in a high-intimacy or low-intimacy context. These data were collected from 2021 to 2022. Children expected characters to be less likely to include cross-race peers in high- than low-intimacy contexts. They also evaluated cross-race exclusion more negatively in high- and low-intimacy contexts. Black participants evaluated cross-race exclusion more negatively than did White participants. Older participants were more likely to personally include a cross-race peer. This study is a first step toward understanding the role of intimacy in cross-race peer relationships.