Reframing Africa’s Image: Positive Information Outperforms Stereotype Negation in Changing Explicit Negative Evaluations

People often counteract unwanted stereotypes by stating they are false, known as stereotype negation, but is this effective? The current work applies evaluative learning theories to Western portrayals of Africa, which are dominated by negative stereotypes around poverty, backwardness, and harsh nature. In four preregistered experiments, U.S. participants read statements about Africa that were framed either as positive facts (PFs) or as negated negative stereotypes (NNSs). Compared to controls, PFs reliably reduced preferences for Europe over Africa in general evaluations (Studies 1–4) and behavioral intentions (Studies 3–4). NNSs also reduced preferences but inconsistently and less strongly. Process analyses showed that PF-NNS differences were driven by lower perceived positivity of NNSs than PFs (Studies 2–4) and that NNSs showed lower relationships with preferences than PFs (Studies 1–3), suggesting that negations may be processed less deeply. These studies demonstrate that reframing through positive information is more effective than negating negative stereotypes.