The Proactive Removal of Discriminatory Barriers: Affirmative Action as Effective Help

A review of the empirical literature shows that affirmative action has been moderately successful in increasing the representation of women and minorities in many organizations. However, the affirmative action recipient often must bear the stigma of “preferentially selected” —a stigma that can raise self‐doubts about one's ability and status. To account for these effects, we proposed a social psychological model of affirmative action as help (Turner & Pratkanis, 1994c). According to this model, help that does not conform to societal values and implies the recipient lacks certain abilities can be threatening and induce defensive behaviors. On the other hand, help that is directed toward removing discriminatory barriers does not produce these negative effects and can further the goals of an affirmative action program. We conclude by describing twelve principles for making affirmative action more effective.