In DeFENCE of the In‐Group Historical Narrative in an Intractable Intergroup Conflict: An Individual‐Difference Perspective

Groups, particularly when immersed in an intractable intergroup conflict, place considerable value on protecting and defending their historical group narrative. However, some group members are more narrative‐protective than others. In Study 1, we introduce a new individual‐difference measure of motivation to achieve a Firmly Entrenched Narrative ClosurE (FENCE) and test it on several Israeli samples (N = 1132). In Study 2 (N = 120), we show that in‐group glorification, right‐wing political orientation, and right‐wing‐authoritarianism, but not attachment to the In‐group, nonspecific need for cognitive closure, or need for cognition, predict FENCE motivation and Behavioral Lack of Openness to Counternarratives (BLOC). In Studies 3 and 4, we show using international (N = 24) and Israeli (N = 78) samples that a belief in the zero‐sum nature of the conflict is related to FENCE and BLOC. In Study 5, we demonstrate that FENCE affects quality of recall of conflict information. The potential merit of FENCE in accounting for the variability among group members in protecting the group narrative is discussed.     

“In‐Group Love” and “Out‐Group Hate” in Repeated Interaction Between Groups

Costly individual participation in intergroup conflict can be motivated by “in‐group love”—a cooperative motivation to help the in‐group, by “out‐group hate”—an aggressive or competitive motivation to hurt the out‐group, or both. This study employed a recently developed game paradigm (Halevy, Bornstein, & Sagiv, 2008) designed specifically to distinguish between these two motives. The game was played repeatedly between two groups with three players in each group. In addition, we manipulated the payoff structure of the interaction that preceded the game such that half of the groups experienced peaceful coexistence and the other half experienced heightened conflict prior to the game. Enabling group members to express in‐group love independently of out‐group hate significantly reduced intergroup conflict. Group members strongly preferred to cooperate within their group, rather than to compete against the out‐group for relative standing, even in the condition in which the repeated game was preceded by conflict. Although both “in‐group love” and “out‐group hate” somewhat diminished as the game continued (as players became more selfish), choices indicative of the former motivation were significantly more frequent than choices indicative of the latter throughout the interaction. We discuss the implications of these findings for conflict resolution. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Social psychology of Making Poverty History: Motivating anti‐poverty action in Australia

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) represent the first global, tractable effort to combat world poverty and preventable disease. The success of the MDGs, however, depends critically upon the support of the people who do not themselves experience the disadvantage: That is, the people and governments of developed countries. In this paper it is argued that the solution to combating poverty and preventable disease in developing nations lies in creating sufficient political will among people in developed countries such as Australia. The authors draw on social psychological insights to explore ways to inspire social and political action in support of the anti‐poverty cause. Taking a social identity perspective, the role is reviewed of three key variables in promoting anti‐poverty action: (a) the presence of meaningful social identities that prescribe action, (b) motivating group emotions, and (c) group efficacy beliefs. A method is described that crystallises these three elements to boost commitment to the anti‐poverty cause. The paper concludes by arguing for the importance of meaningful group memberships in motivating social and political action to make poverty history for people in developing countries.     

“Bipolar groupthink”: Assessing groupthink tendencies in authentic work groups

Research on regressive group processes such as Janis’ (1982) “groupthink” phenomenon has rarely focused on work groups in authentic settings. In this study, teams from six different organisations (n=308) were studied by using a groupthink questionnaire constructed in accordance with the symptoms of groupthink described by Janis. It was hypothesised that groupthink could be described as a bipolar construct identifying either an omnipotent or a depressive variant of a group’s delusions about its own and other groups’ features. The questionnaire showed reasonably good reliability as a whole and a factor analysis identified three factors in line with the proposed theoretical model in which the two different types of groupthink can be distinguished. We propose that any group might have a tendency or predisposition to react in either of the two directions during provocative circumstances. The six different organisations exhibited different types of groupthink to a varying degree. A religious sect was the one most characterised by omnipotent groupthink, while a technological company and a psychiatric team seemed to be the ones with most features of depressive groupthink.     

In‐group representation and social value affect the use of in‐group identification for maintaining and enhancing self‐evaluation

Individuals with independent self‐construals identify with their in‐group in order to buffer threats to self‐esteem to a greater degree than do those with interdependent self‐construals. This study focused on the effect of the in‐group's social value and representation on this identification process among individuals who reported various real‐world threats to their self‐esteem. We conducted a questionnaire survey for university students and we examined how self‐construal, the in‐group social value, and the in‐group representation either moderate or mediate the relationship between threat to self‐esteem and identification with their academic departments. The results of multiple‐group analyses of structural equation modelling showed that independents who reported more threats to their self‐esteem identified with the in‐group when it was high in social value. In contrast, they did not exhibit in‐group identification when it was low in social value. Interdependents showed less in‐group identification regardless of the in‐group's social value. The representation of the in‐group as a common identity group mediated the relationship between threat to self‐esteem and in‐group identification for independents, whereas the representation of a common bond group played the same role for interdependents. These findings suggest the importance of considering the role of self‐construal and the in‐group social value, along with the representation of in‐group, in understanding in‐group identification in situations of threat to self‐esteem.     

Paradoxes of praise: Identity‐inconsistent praise results in praise‐inconsistent responses

In four experimental studies, we explored the effect of consistency between central group values and the content of group‐directed praise on group‐based esteem, group identification, and willingness to express attitudes and intentions (in)consistent with the content of praise. Study 1 used pre‐existing groups with clearly defined central values, Study 2 relied on individual differences in perceptions of central group values within the same social group, and Studies 3 and 4 manipulated the centrality of group values experimentally. The results demonstrated that identity‐inconsistent praise resulted in lower group‐based esteem (Studies 1–4), and reduced group identification (Study 4), as compared to identity‐consistent praise. In addition, in all studies, identity‐inconsistent praise led to stronger willingness to reaffirm (the ignored) central group characteristics than identity‐consistent praise. The results are consistent with extensions of the self‐verification approach to the collective self.     

The context of intergroup belief cross wherein minority members maintain consistency: Belief minority and majority in a categorical in‐group and out‐group1

Abstract: The present study investigated the social conditions required for minority members to preserve their attitudinal and behavioral consistency in an intergroup context. In the experiment, intergroup belief crosses wherein a belief minority (or majority) in a categorical in‐group was reversed as a majority (or minority) in an out‐group were manipulated. It was hypothesized that individuals supported by the majority in the categorical in‐group would preserve their attitudes and behavioral intentions even though they were a minority in the categorical out‐group. The results supported the hypothesis. Specifically, members of a majority in the categorical in‐group had more consistent behavioral intentions and less attitude changes although they were located as a minority in the out‐group. In contrast, members of a minority within the in‐group preserved consistency on the basis of support from the majority in the out‐group. The theoretical implications of these results are discussed with reference to future research.     

“Poor is pious”: Distinctiveness threat increases glorification of poverty among the poor

The current study examines whether a threat to group distinctiveness motivates the poor to glorify poverty as an identity management strategy. Research shows that threat to ingroup distinctiveness can motivate people to positively differentiate their group from similar outgroups on relevant dimensions of comparison. Little is known however about whether such processes would occur also with respect to devalued group characteristics that are not reflective of explicit group norms. This question is of high theoretical and practical importance because it can illustrate that people internalize and glorify even adverse traits as means of managing their social identity when faced with threat. We therefore tested whether among a poor community, individuals would glorify poverty when faced with distinctiveness threat. We collected data from Haredim (ultra‐Orthodox Jews), a poor and highly religious population in Israel. Across two experiments, we manipulated distinctiveness threat via inducing similarity between Haredim and seculars in Israel. We found that poverty was reconstrued as positive and desirable following distinctiveness threat, but only among Haredim who have a high commitment to group norms (Study 1) and who strongly justify their own social system (Study 2). Theoretical and applied implications of the findings are discussed.     

The good,the bad and the central of group identification: Evidence of a U‐shaped quadratic relation between in‐group affect and identity centrality

The present research investigates the interrelation between two widely studied dimensions of social group identity—in‐group affect and centrality. Specifically, we test the validity of a quadratic curvilinear relation between in‐group affect and identity centrality. We propose that group members who feel either decidedly positive affect or decidedly negative affect towards their group are more likely to feel that their identity is a central component of their self‐concept relative to group members with neutral affect. We find evidence for a quadratic relation between in‐group affect and identity centrality with respect to people's cultural identity (N = 512), ethnic identity (N = 462), religious identity (N = 61, N = 384) and racial identity (N = 3600, N = 2400). Theoretical and practical implications for the measurement and conceptualization of group identification are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

We‐commerce: Exploring factors influencing online group‐buying intention in Taiwan from a conformity perspective

Group buying is a relatively new online consumption practice. Consumers negotiate product or service prices with businesses to obtain low prices or an increased number of products. This study investigates factors influencing online group‐buying intention from a conformity perspective. An online survey is used to sample 650 online group buyers in Taiwan. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) is applied to examine the hypotheses within the theoretical framework. Analytical results indicate that social factors (online recommendations, media recommendations, and personal recommendations) positively affect social influence and online group‐buying intention. Individual factors (compliance and attention‐to‐social‐comparison‐information) positively affect social influence and conformity. Psychological factors (financial risk, performance risk, and social risk) negatively affect online group‐buying intention, and are positively correlated with social influence and conformity. Furthermore, social influence (informational influence and normative influence) are positively correlated with conformity and online group‐buying intention. Social influence and conformity are positively correlated with online group‐buying intention. Finally, implications of analytical findings are discussed.     

In‐group relevance facilitates learning across existing and new associations

Studies have shown that attention prioritizes stimuli associated with the in‐group. However, the extent to which this so‐called in‐group favoritism is driven by relevance is not clear. Here, we investigated this issue in a group of university rowers using a novel perceptual matching task based on the team label–color associations. Across three experiments, participants showed enhanced performance for the in‐group stimulus regardless of its familiarity level. These findings confirmed the role of relevance in in‐group favoritism. In a further control study, the advantage for certain stimuli was not found in an independent sample of participants who were not identified with the teams but were familiar with the label–color associations, indicating that in‐group relevance was necessary for the in‐group favoritism. Together, these findings suggest that in‐group relevance facilitates learning across existing and new associations. The consequences of these findings for understanding in‐group effects on perceptual processing are discussed.     

Movies as a Therapeutic Technique in School‐Based Counseling Groups to Reduce Parent–Adolescent Conflict

The authors evaluated a school‐based group counseling program aimed at reducing parent–adolescent conflict and assessing the unique contribution of movie therapy. Participants were 173 Arab adolescents who scored high on conflict with parents. Students were divided among 3 conditions: a treatment intervention with movies, a treatment intervention without movies, and a no‐treatment control group. Results indicated more favorable outcomes in both interventions compared with the control group, with no effect of movies.     

The contribution of feedback to outcome in long-term group psychotherapy

Two long-term analytic inpatient psychotherapy groups, comprised of severely disturbed neurotic and personality disordered patients, were intensively investigated using process ratings and therapist and patient reports to examine the contribution of interpersonal feedback to treatment outcome. We found that feedback was important throughout the course of therapy, and that patients who derived the most benefit from the groups were those who experienced a greater level of group cohesiveness and were most active in terms of self-disclosure, receipt of feedback, and making significant behavioral modifications within treatment. These successful patients received both positive and negative feedback, primarily from other group members, and worked effectively toward the goals that brought them to treatment.     

Exploring the rabbit hole of possibilities by myself or with my group: The benefits and liabilities of activating counterfactual mind‐sets for information sharing and group coordination

The current experiment explored the effect of activating a counterfactual mind‐set on the discussion of unique information and group judgment accuracy. Evidence suggests that a counterfactual mind‐set is characterized by a focused, analytic mental state and, when activated at the group level, improves group judgment accuracy in the murder mystery paradigm (a hidden profile task). We hypothesized that the beneficial effect of the counterfactual mind‐set would only help group problem‐solving tasks if the mind‐set had been activated at the group level, allowing the analytical mind‐set to play out in an atmosphere of synergistic coordination. In contrast, if this highly focused mental state is activated at the individual level, it could impair group judgment quality because inwardly focused analytical individuals may fail to coordinate their behavior with other group members. Consistent with our hypothesis, activating a counterfactual mind‐set at the individual level had a debilitating effect on the group judgment task, whereas activating a counterfactual mind‐set at the group level had a facilitative effect, increasing information sharing, synergistic coordination and judgment accuracy. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Moral and Group‐based Criteria in Children's Evaluation of Peers after Transgressions

The present study investigated how group membership criteria and moral understanding can affect children's evaluations of peers after different types of transgressions. In all, the study included 47 participants attending a junior school in Cornwall. All participants were allocated to an in‐group and responded to a number of questions which tested intergroup bias and the differential evaluation of norm‐violating peers from the in‐group and the out‐group. Overall, moral transgressions (physical and relational aggression) were evaluated more negatively than a social‐conventional transgression. However, those who violated group norms by expressing positive attitudes towards the out‐group were viewed differently depending on both moral and group‐based criteria. These different criteria for evaluating peers were uncorrelated. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Process and Content in a Therapy Group for Bipolar Outpatients

Although the literature suggests that homogeneous therapy groups are useful for bipolar outpatients, little is known about the process in such groups. Using the GCQ-S and a content analysis of discussion topics, we evaluated group process during the first 31 sessions of an outpatient bipolar group. Compared with normative samples, our group scored significantly higher in the Engaged dimension and significantly lower in the Avoiding and Conflict dimensions and in the anxiety/tension scale. Furthermore, 81% of the discussion topics were related to the three group goals, and an additional 18% dealt with general group issues such as orienting new members and attendance. The results from this pilot study suggest that bipolar patients can discuss relevant issues in a homogeneous group environment that is cohesive, open, and safe.     

The Moderating Effect of Within‐Group Similarity on Change in a Strengths‐Based Programme for Incarcerated Young Men

Many youth who are incarcerated within juvenile correctional facilities experience mental health disorders, histories of victimization and suicide ideation. Strengths‐based intervention programmes are intended to enhance participants' resilience against such challenges. However, little is known about how the composition of intervention groups contributes to programmes' efficacy. This study addresses the impact of within‐group similarity on the success of a strengths‐based intervention for incarcerated young men (n = 141). Similarity was assessed in terms of self‐reported demographics and behaviours and belief systems. Youths' masculine ideology, caring and cooperative behaviours, ethnic pride and respect for differences, self‐efficacy regarding education and non‐violence, and attitudes about criminal behaviour were measured before and after intervention. Results indicate that participants' caring and cooperative behaviour increased during the intervention. However, their education‐related self‐efficacy was reduced, and the perceived benefits of criminal activity increased. These changes were moderated by group composition: less similarity between participants and their group members was associated with less negative change. In the context of juvenile corrections facilities, where staying the same may be a relatively positive outcome, perhaps the more relevant question is not which processes and characteristics of others better enable youth to change but which experiences help them retain positive aspects of themselves. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

For the Win: Risk‐Sensitive Decision‐Making in Teams

Risk‐sensitivity theory predicts that decision‐makers should prefer high‐risk options in high need situations when low‐risk options will not meet these needs. Recent attempts to adopt risk‐sensitivity as a framework for understanding human decision‐making have been promising. However, this research has focused on individual‐level decision‐making, has not examined behavior in naturalistic settings, and has not examined the influence of multiple levels of need on decision‐making under risk. We examined group‐level risk‐sensitive decision‐making in two American football leagues: the National Football League (NFL) and the National College Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Play decisions from the 2012 NFL (Study 1; N = 33 944), 2013 NFL (Study 2; N = 34 087), and 2012 NCAA (Study 3; N = 15 250) regular seasons were analyzed. Results demonstrate that teams made risk‐sensitive decisions based on two distinct needs: attaining first downs (a key proximate goal in football) and acquiring points above parity. Evidence for risk‐sensitive decisions was particularly strong when motivational needs were most salient. These findings are the first empirical demonstration of team risk‐sensitivity in a naturalistic organizational setting. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.