White supremacist beliefs predict discrimination but not implicit bias towards perceived Arab Middle Eastern Muslim men

In recent decades, prejudices against Arab/Middle Eastern Muslim individuals have risen alongside surging white supremacist hate speech and violence. Perpetrators often subscribe to white supremacist ideology, which overtly supports hate against Arab/Middle Eastern Muslim individuals and attracts followers worldwide. However, research exploring biases against Arab/Middle Eastern Muslim individuals remains limited, leaving gaps in understanding these prejudices and the potential role of white supremacist beliefs. In a pre-registered study involving White non-Hispanic Americans varying in white supremacist beliefs, we examined if these beliefs influenced spontaneous evaluations and hiring bias towards perceived Arab/Middle Eastern Muslim and non-Muslim White men. Results showed negative spontaneous evaluations of perceived Arab/Middle Eastern compared to White men, regardless of white supremacist beliefs. However, those endorsing such beliefs exhibited more explicit hiring biases against Arab/Middle Eastern men, even after accounting for spontaneous evaluations. Thus, while white supremacist beliefs may not heighten implicit biases, they predict explicit biases against perceived Arab/Middle Eastern Muslim individuals.