Contemporary state of contact hypothesis in social psychology .2.

In the first part of the study, the effects of intergroup social contacts on attitudes and behaviour of public to minority and stigmatized social groups, above all the conditions for a positive change in evaluation of objects of contact and the conditions for a generalization of this change to relevant social group or category, were analyzed. In this, second part of the study, the effects of contacts of ''normal'' and stigmatized persons and effects of contacts with mentally ill on their evaluation are studied. It is concluded that the contact approach can represent an acceptable strategy for influencing the negative intergroup attitudes and prejudices, however it is necessary to verify by means of further research, under which conditions, and in case of which type of stigmata this method can be effective.