Do people become more racist during a recession?

Some of the world’s most troubling times, which have included periods of intense racism, have occurred during economic downturns.

And now a new study has found that people really do have a tendency to become more racist during a recession.

Researchers found that faces seem ‘blacker’ and have stronger racial features during an economic downturn, and this in turn increases the likelihood of discrimination.

The study by New York University claims that conditions of ‘resource scarcity’ alter people’s perception of race.

Their work follows a study last year, which suggested racism is on the rise in the UK, fuelled by financial strife.

In four experiments, involving 285 non-black Americans, scientists David Amodio and Amy Krosch found people see faces different during an economic downturn.

Read more at The DailyMail Online.