Thus, our research contributes to aburgeoning literature on cross-group friendships by showingthat the positive effects of friendship can extend beyond inter-group attitudes per se to institutional attitudes, and by directlytesting causal links from cross-race friendships to positiveintergroup outcomes (cf. Pettigrew, 1998).

To the extent that a friend’s perceivedmembership in the university in-group is salient, cross-groupfriendship may increase the likelihood that minority-groupstudents will eventually incorporate a university identity as partof themselves.

Therefore, friendships with majority-group peers may be key in the development of dual identityamong minority-group students, and may provide a route towardrelational diversity within institutions of higher education.

Our research underscoresthe importance of the interpersonal climate for addressing issuesof access and diversity within such institutions, and shows thatthe development of affiliative ties across group boundariesprovides an important vehicle for achieving relational diversity.

Together, thefindings of these studies suggest that efforts to increase cross-group friendship are not incompatible with institutional effortsto clearly communicate acceptance of the minority group bysupporting organizations or activities centered on the ethnic orracial background of that group.

These findings provide experimental evidence that cross-group friendship is beneficial forpeople who are likely to experience anxiety in intergroup contexts.