Social threat theory is a commonly used framework to explain the positive relationship between minority group size and discriminatory attitudes by members of the dominant group. A contrasting theory put forth in Allport's (1954) contact hypothesis suggests the opposite relationship; that growth in minority group size will decrease racial tension by increasing interracial contact, which works to dispel negative racial stereotypes. Using Germany as a case study, this paper assesses first the separate and then the simultaneous influences of perceived threat and intergroup contact on the relationship between minority group size and discriminatory attitudes, with a secondary focus as to how citizen age conditions these and other predicting factors of discrimination. Findings from this study reveal that both intergroup contact and dominant group perceptions of threat may mediate the relationship between minority group size and discrimination, when measures of actual and citizen-perceived minority population percentages are taken into account. Additionally, this paper presents evidence of stark generational differences in levels of discrimination among German citizens, and provides support for the idea that citizen age partly conditions what is significant in predicting discriminatory attitudes.
