Brief Instruction Reduced Immediate Self-Reported Lesbian and Gay Prejudice in Trial

A brief instructional video combining sexual-orientation information with two selected critical-thinking elements was associated with lower immediate self-reported prejudice against lesbians and gay men than a duration-matched neutral video in a randomized experiment involving 112 Chinese college students. Participants assigned to the instructional intervention had an adjusted mean post-intervention prejudice score 20.36 points lower than those assigned to the control, with a 95% confidence interval from a 25.32-point reduction to a 15.40-point reduction and a p-value below 0.001. The difference was measured immediately after the assigned videos, so the experiment does not establish whether attitudes or behavior changed beyond that session.

Researchers used a two-condition, between-subjects design to randomly assign the participants either to the sexual-orientation-focused intervention or to a neutral-video control. Prejudice against lesbians and gay men, abbreviated PALG, was assessed before and immediately after each participant viewed the assigned video. The researchers also measured prior intergroup contact and critical-thinking disposition at baseline.

The primary analysis was an analysis of covariance, or ANCOVA, with post-intervention PALG as the dependent variable, assignment condition as the predictor, and centered baseline PALG and centered prior intergroup contact as covariates. This model estimated the adjusted difference between conditions while accounting for participants’ initial prejudice scores and baseline intergroup contact. The condition difference was supported by repeated-measures analyses and by sensitivity analyses that expanded the set of covariates.

A separate exploratory model examined whether the adjusted difference between conditions varied according to baseline PALG. It found substantial variation in the condition contrast, with F(1,107) = 250.49, p < 0.001 and partial η² = 0.70. The researchers said this variation may partly reflect floor compression, although the supplied findings do not provide further detail about that possibility.

Analyses by sexual orientation indicated that the difference between the intervention and control conditions was concentrated among heterosexual participants. Several design features limit the conclusions that can be drawn. Because the instructional package combined sexual-orientation information with two selected critical-thinking elements, the experiment cannot isolate the effect of any single component or determine which combination produced the observed difference.

The comparison video was neutral rather than an active educational intervention, so the findings do not establish that the package outperformed every plausible instructional approach. PALG was also measured only immediately afterward and by self-report, making the results susceptible to short-term changes in reporting and potentially to demand sensitivity. The sample comprised 112 Chinese college students, so generalization to other populations, settings and age groups remains untested.

The authors characterized the findings as preliminary and called for active-control comparisons, delayed follow-up, more diverse samples and less demand-sensitive outcomes before stronger conclusions could be drawn. Accordingly, the experiment provides evidence of a short-term difference in self-reported prejudice under the conditions studied, not proof of durable attitude change or improved real-world behavior.

Subject of Research: Randomized test of brief instruction and immediate self-reported prejudice against lesbians and gay men among Chinese college students

Article Title: Effects of a brief sexual-orientation-focused instructional intervention incorporating critical-thinking elements on immediate self-reported prejudice against lesbians and gay men: Baseline-adjusted evidence from a randomized experiment

Article References: Zheng, Q., Cao, Y., Niu, B., & Hu, X. (2026). Effects of a brief sexual-orientation-focused instructional intervention incorporating critical-thinking elements on immediate self-reported prejudice against lesbians and gay men: Baseline-adjusted evidence from a randomized experiment. BMC Psychology, 14(1), Article 1335. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-05500-7

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s40359-026-05500-7

Keywords: randomized experiment, sexual orientation, prejudice reduction, critical thinking, college students, self-reported attitudes, intergroup contact, baseline adjustment, China, Effects, brief, sexual-orientation-focused