This panel on concepts and theory opened the Conference on Prejudice and Stigma, convened online May 28, 2021, to foster dialog between different areas of social science with the aim of improving the state of research related to inequality. Lawrence Blume of Cornell University discussed methodology and modeling strategies in social science research that explores characteristics, identity, and perceptions of population groups. Sonja Starr of the University of Chicago Law School shared perspectives from her studies of discrimination and disparities in criminal justice and employment. Lawrence Bobo, a Harvard University sociologist, explored the intersection of social psychology, social inequality, politics, and race.

The conference was presented by the Human Capital and Economic Opportunity Global Working Group (HCEO) and the Committee on Quantitative Methods in the Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences at the University of Chicago.