Confronting a Friend’s Bias Protects Anticipated Relationship Quality
Faculty Mentor Information
Dr. Brady Wiggins, Brigham Young University - Idaho
Presentation Date
7-15-2026
Abstract
Prior research (Berkebile-Weinberg, et al., 2025) suggests that confronting racially biased comments may improve relationships rather than harm them. We conducted a modified replication of this research, adapting it to a religious context, targeting a sample of Latter-day Saint participants. Participants were asked to imagine their closest non-LDS friend or a new acquaintance making a religiously biased comment and then to imagine that they either did or did not confront the person about the comment. We assessed the anticipated impact of the interaction on relationship quality and understanding. We found that participants who imagined confronting a friend reported significantly higher anticipated relationship quality (M=5.02, SD=0.96) and significantly higher anticipated understanding (M=4.33, SD=1.10) than those who imagined not confronting the remark (M=4.44, SD=1.00; M=3.56, SD=1.18). Regardless of confrontation, participants anticipated higher relationship quality and understanding when the biased comment was made by a close friend (vs. acquaintance). The absence of an interaction effect indicates that confrontation consistently yields more positive expectations regardless of the existing relationship. Our findings suggest that the positive impact of confronting bias in relationships generalizes across racial and religious identity contexts.
Confronting a Friend’s Bias Protects Anticipated Relationship Quality
Prior research (Berkebile-Weinberg, et al., 2025) suggests that confronting racially biased comments may improve relationships rather than harm them. We conducted a modified replication of this research, adapting it to a religious context, targeting a sample of Latter-day Saint participants. Participants were asked to imagine their closest non-LDS friend or a new acquaintance making a religiously biased comment and then to imagine that they either did or did not confront the person about the comment. We assessed the anticipated impact of the interaction on relationship quality and understanding. We found that participants who imagined confronting a friend reported significantly higher anticipated relationship quality (M=5.02, SD=0.96) and significantly higher anticipated understanding (M=4.33, SD=1.10) than those who imagined not confronting the remark (M=4.44, SD=1.00; M=3.56, SD=1.18). Regardless of confrontation, participants anticipated higher relationship quality and understanding when the biased comment was made by a close friend (vs. acquaintance). The absence of an interaction effect indicates that confrontation consistently yields more positive expectations regardless of the existing relationship. Our findings suggest that the positive impact of confronting bias in relationships generalizes across racial and religious identity contexts.