Us and them: Mood effects on intergroup discrimination.

What is the role of mood in intergroup discrimination? In 3 experiments, people in happy, sad, or neutral moods made reward allocation decisions and formed impressions about in-group and out-group members. When the personal relevance of the group was low, positive mood resulted in faster, more heuristic processing and greater intergroup discrimination. In contrast, when group relevance was high, it was negative mood that enhanced intergroup discrimination following slower, motivated processing, as predicted by the recent Affect Infusion Model (J. P. Forgas, 1995). Reaction time data and mediational analyses confirmed these processing differences. Results are interpreted as evidence for mood-induced selectivity in the way people process information about groups. The implications of the findings for real-life intergroup behavior and for contemporary affect-cognition theories are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social categorization and discriminatory behavior: Extinguishing the minimal intergroup discrimination effect.

Previous research on the minimal intergroup discrimination effect suggests that (a) apparently random social categorization may be sufficient to induce differential responses toward similarly and dissimilarly categorized others and (b) perceived categorical similarity (or intragroup vs intergroup comparisons) may be the basis for the effect. Four experiments were conducted with 227 undergraduates to provide 2 independent tests of the hypotheses. Exps I and II demonstrated that social categorization resulting from a lottery procedure was sufficient to elicit differential allocation of chips to and differential social evaluation of in- and out-group members. Exp III and IV demonstrated that both information about the reward value of the in-group and information about the reward value of the out-group had an impact on Ss' discriminatory behavior. The directions of the effects were opposite: rewards from the in-group increased and those from the out-group decreased discriminatory behavior. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reducing intergroup bias: Elements of intergroup cooperation.

The authors examined the potentially separable contributions of 2 elements of intergroup cooperation, interaction and common fate, and the processes through which they can operate. The manipulation of interaction reduced bias in evaluative ratings, which supports the idea that these components are separable, whereas the manipulation of common fate when the groups were interacting was associated with lower bias in nonverbal facial reactions in response to contributions by in-group and out-group members. Whereas interaction activated several processes that can lead to reduced bias, including decategorization, consistent with the common in-group identity model (S. L. Gaertner, I F. Dovidio, P. A. Anastasio, B. A. Bachman, & M. C. Rust, 1993) as well as M. Hewstone and R. J. Brown's (1986) group differentiation model, the primary set of mediators involved participants' representations of the memberships as 2 subgroups within a superordinate entity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social identities and intergroup bias in immigrant and nonimmigrant children.

Ethnic and American identity, as well as positivity and negativity toward multiple social groups, were assessed in 392 children attending 2nd or 4th grade in various New York City neighborhoods. Children from 5 ethnic groups were recruited, including White and Black Americans, as well as recent immigrants from China, the Dominican Republic, and the former Soviet Union. For ethnic minority children, greater positivity bias (evaluating one's ingroup more positively than outgroups) was predicted by immigrant status and ethnic identity, whereas negativity bias (evaluating outgroups more negatively than one's ingroup) was associated with increased age, immigrant status, and (among 4th graders only) ethnic identity. In addition, a more central American identity was associated with less intergroup bias among ethnic minority children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Language use in intergroup contexts: The linguistic intergroup bias.

Three experiments examine how the type of language used to describe in-group and out-group behaviors contributes to the transmission and persistence of social stereotypes. Two experiments tested the hypothesis that people encode and communicate desirable in-group and undesirable out-group behaviors more abstractly than undesirable in-group and desirable out-group behaviors. Experiment 1 provided strong support for this hypothesis using a fixed-response scale format controlling for the level of abstractness developed from G. R. Semin and K. Fiedler's (see record 1988-20078-001) linguistic category model. Experiment 2 yielded the same results with a free-response format. Experiment 3 demonstrated the important role that abstract versus concrete communication plays in the perpetuation of stereotypes. The implications of these findings and the use of the linguistic category model are discussed for the examination of the self-perpetuating cycle of stereotypes in communication processes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reducing intergroup bias: The benefits of recategorization.

Three hundred sixty undergraduates participated in small groups in an experiment that tested 2 strategies, based on the social categorization approach, for reducing intergroup bias. Both strategies involved recategorizing members' conceptual representations of the aggregate compared with a control condition designed to maintain initial group boundaries. The recategorization treatments induced members of 2 3-person groups to conceive of both memberships as 1 6-person group or as 6 separate individuals. The findings revealed that the one-group and separate-individuals conditions, as compared with the control condition, reduced intergroup bias. Furthermore, these recategorized conditions reduced bias in different ways consistent with M. B. Brewer's (see record 1979-25967-001) analysis and J. C. Turner's (1985) self-categorization theory. Specifically, the 1-group representation reduced bias primarily by increasing the attractiveness of former out-group members, whereas the separate-individuals representation primarily decreased the attractiveness of former in-group members. Implications for the utility of these strategies are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Models of crossed categorization and intergroup relations

Two studies explored 6 models of crossed categorization. In Experiment 1, Muslims (majority) and Hindus (minority) in Bangladesh evaluated 1 of 4 target groups created by crossing religion (Hindu or Muslim) and nationality (Bangladeshi or Indian) and then rated the target group's perceived variability. Experiment 2 was an extension of the research, including new measures. Both studies showed additive effects of religion and nationality, as predicted by 3 models, a strong effect of category dominance for religion, and out-group homogeneity only when the religious in-group was the dominant and majority group in its country. Experiment 2 also showed a significant relationship between discrimination based on religion and self-esteem and marginal support for the hierarchical ordering model. When and how specific models of crossed categorization might operate in different intergroup contexts are discussed.     

Linguistic intergroup bias: Evidence for in-group-protective motivation.

Linguistic intergroup bias (LIB) is the tendency to describe positive in-group and negative out-group behaviors more abstractly than negative in-group and positive out-group behaviors. Two experiments investigated the role of in-group-protective motives, by varying threat to ingroup identity of hunters vs. environmentalists (Experiment 1, N?=?160) and northern vs. southern Italians (Experiment 2, N?=?212). Participants whose in-group had or had not been threatened described positive and negative behaviors of in-group and out-group protagonists. In both experiments, the LIB was greater under identity threat. Experiment 1 also showed that LIB was positively related to postexperimental but not to preexperimental individual and collective self-esteem. Results suggest that the magnitude of LIB depends on in-group-protective motivation and that in-group-favoring language may be functional to self-esteem maintenance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In-group bias in the minimal intergroup situation: A cognitive-motivational analysis.

Experimental research on intergroup discrimination in favor of one's own group is reviewed in terms of the basis of differentiation between in-group and out-group and in terms of the response measure on which in-group bias is assessed. Results of the research reviewed suggest that (a) factors such as intergroup competition, similarity, and status differentials affect in-group bias indirectly by influencing the salience of distinctions between in-group and out-group, (b) the degree of intergroup differentiation on a particular response dimension is a joint function of the relevance of intergroup distinctions and the favorableness of the in-group's position on that dimension, and (c) the enhancement of in-group bias is more related to increased favoritism toward in-group members than to increased hostility toward out-group members. Implications of these results for positive applications of group identification (e.g., a shift of in-group bias research from inter- to intragroup contexts) are discussed. (67 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The White standard: Racial bias in leader categorization.

In 4 experiments, the authors investigated whether race is perceived to be part of the business leader prototype and, if so, whether it could explain differences in evaluations of White and non-White leaders. The first 2 studies revealed that "being White" is perceived to be an attribute of the business leader prototype, where participants assumed that business leaders more than nonleaders were White, and this inference occurred regardless of base rates about the organization's racial composition (Study 1), the racial composition of organizational roles, the business industry, and the types of racial minority groups in the organization (Study 2). The final 2 studies revealed that a leader categorization explanation could best account for differences in White and non-White leader evaluations, where White targets were evaluated as more effective leaders (Study 3) and as having more leadership potential (Study 4), but only when the leader had recently been given credit for organizational success, consistent with the prediction that leader prototypes are more likely to be used when they confirm and reinforce individualized information about a leader's performance. The results demonstrate a connection between leader race and leadership categorization. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The evolution of intergroup bias: Perceptions and attitudes in rhesus macaques.

Social psychologists have learned a great deal about the nature of intergroup conflict and the attitudinal and cognitive processes that enable it. Less is known about where these processes come from in the first place. In particular, do our strategies for dealing with other groups emerge in the absence of human-specific experiences? One profitable way to answer this question has involved administering tests that are conceptual equivalents of those used with adult humans in other species, thereby exploring the continuity or discontinuity of psychological processes. We examined intergroup preferences in a nonhuman species, the rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta). We found the first evidence that a nonhuman species automatically distinguishes the faces of members of its own social group from those in other groups and displays greater vigilance toward outgroup members (Experiments 1–3). In addition, we observed that macaques spontaneously associate novel objects with specific social groups and display greater vigilance to objects associated with outgroup members (Experiments 4–5). Finally, we developed a looking time procedure—the Looking Time Implicit Association Test, which resembles the Implicit Association Test (Greenwald & Banaji, 1995)—and we discovered that macaques, like humans, automatically evaluate ingroup members positively and outgroup members negatively (Experiments 6–7). These field studies represent the first controlled experiments to examine the presence of intergroup attitudes in a nonhuman species. As such, these studies suggest that the architecture of the mind that enables the formation of these biases may be rooted in phylogenetically ancient mechanisms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social categorization and the truly false consensus effect.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 65(6) of Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (see record 2008-10490-001). In this article, the second and third column headings of Table 2 were inadvertently transposed. The corrected table is provided in the erratum.] The false consensus effect involves adequate inductive reasoning and egocentric biases. To detect truly false consensus effects (TFCEs), item endorsements were correlated with the differences between estimated and actual consensus within Ss. In Exp 1, Ss overgeneralized from themselves to gender in-groups and to the overall population, but not to gender out-groups. Exps 2 and 3 demonstrated intuitive understanding of consensus bias. Another person's choices were inferred from that person's population estimates or estimates about the gender in-group. In Exp 4, Ss inferred that consensus estimates for a behavior were higher among people who were willing to engage in that behavior than among those who were not. Implications of these findings for general induction, social categorization, and the psychological processes underlying TFCEs are discussed. [A correction concerning this article appears in Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1993, Vol 65(6), 1090. The second and third column headings of Table 2 were inadvertently transposed and the corrected table is included.] (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Linguistic intergroup bias: Differential expectancies or in-group protection?

The linguistic intergroup bias describes the tendency to communicate positive in-group and negative out-group behaviors more abstractly than negative in-group and positive out-group behaviors. This article investigated whether this bias is driven by differential expectancies or by in-group protective motives. In Exp 1, northern and southern Italian participants (N?=?151) described positive and negative behaviors of northern or southern protagonists that were either congruent or incongruent with stereotypic expectancies. Regardless of valence, expectancy-congruent behaviors were described more abstractly than incongruent ones. Exp 2 (N?=?40) showed that language is used in an equally biased fashion for individuals as previously demonstrated for groups. Exp 3 (N?=?192) induced expectancies experimentally and found greater abstraction for expectancy-congruent behaviors regardless of valence. All experiments confirmed the differential expectancy approach. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Us without them: Evidence for an intragroup origin of positive in-group regard.

Four experiments examined whether group formation and positive in-group regard require interaggregate comparison as the in-group-requires-an-out-group assumption of the metacontrast principle implies. The authors fostered novel social aggregates with or without a contrasting aggregate with which members could compare and varied intra-aggregate factors (interaction or interdependence). Regardless of whether interaggregate comparison was feasible, the intra-aggregate factors increased the perceived entitativity of the aggregate and positive regard toward the aggregate (i.e., social attraction and cooperation among members). Mediation analyses were consistent with the possibility that the intra-aggregate factors promoted entitativity, which in turn promoted in-group regard. These data suggest that group formation and in-group regard have intragroup origins and do not require comparison with a contrasting social aggregate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Is there any scapegoat around? Determinants of intergroup conflicts at different categorization levels.

Recategorization at a higher level reduces tensions between groups. However, recategorization may cause conflicts between the common in-group and a new out-group. Additionally, determinants of conflict between subgroups may enhance conflict at the higher categorization level. In the context of German unification, the authors explored these suggestions with an East German 3-wave longitudinal study and a West German control group. Results show that a salient East German versus West German categorization enhances conflict between subgroups, whereas categorization as German enhances conflict at the common in-group level. Determinants of subgroup conflict also influence conflict at the inclusive level (Germans and foreigners). Thus, recategorization is a 2-edged instrument: Although it reduces conflict at the subgroup level, it may initiate conflict at the common in-group level. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intergroup processes in childhood: Social categorization and sex role development.

When groups are created experimentally, in-group favoritism, stereotyping, exaggeration of between-groups differences and within-group similarities, and out-group homogenization occur among adults. This study explored whether the same phenomena influence children's perceptions of boys and girls. Ninety-six 8- to 10-yr-olds viewed videotapes of unfamiliar children and rated them on possession of masculine, feminine, and gender-neutral evaluative traits, on similarity to self, and on liking. Children also were observed while interacting with classmates. Interactions occurred primarily among children of the same sex. Targets were viewed stereotypically. They also were rated higher on liking, similarity, trait favorability (female targets only), and variability (male targets only) by children of the same sex. Furthermore, there were significant correlations among the rating measures, supporting an intergroup perspective on sex role development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive bias in procedural justice: Formation and implications of illusory correlations in perceived intergroup fairness.

Illusory correlations in procedural justice were investigated in 2 experiments. After receiving information describing the fair and unfair treatment of 2 groups' members by police, participants judged the fairness of each group's treatment. Illusory correlations formed in both experiments, resulting in erroneous associations between the smaller group and the infrequent type of treatment. In Experiment 2, participants made harsher guilt judgments of members of the group perceived as receiving relatively favorable treatment. Mediational evidence suggests that differences in guilt judgments reflected attempts to compensate for perceived injustice, creating real differences in group treatment. The benefit of incorporating cognitive biases in models of procedural justice is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An age apart: The effects of intergenerational contact and stereotype threat on performance and intergroup bias.

An experimental study examined the effect of intergenerational contact and stereotype threat on older people's cognitive performance, anxiety, intergroup bias, and identification. Participants completed a series of cognitive tasks under high or low stereotype threat (through comparison with younger people). In line with stereotype threat theory, threat resulted in worse performance. However, this did not occur if prior intergenerational contact had been more positive. This moderating effect of contact was mediated by test-related anxiety. In line with intergroup contact theory, more positive contact was associated with reduced prejudice and reduced ingroup identification. However this occurred in the high threat, but not low threat, condition. The findings suggest that positive intergenerational contact can reduce vulnerability to stereotype threat among older people. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social categorization and perceptual judgment of size: When perception is social.

Social knowledge may affect not only people's thoughts and judgments but also their actual perceptions of physical magnitude. The physical magnitude of a stimulus is perceived in a relative way, comparing the magnitude of the target surrounding context stimuli. Because similar objects invite comparison processes more easily than dissimilar objects ("similarity breeds comparability"), social knowledge can affect judgments of physical magnitude by determining what is perceived as (dis) similar. In Experiment 1, the authors show that social categorizations that are based on physical cues (e. g., gender) may affect the magnitude of perceptual contrast effects (the Ebbinghaus illusion). More important, in Experiment 2, the influence of social categorizations that have no physical bases is shown to affect the magnitude of perceptual contrast effects. Implications of these findings for theories of social knowledge effects are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)