Conditions of contact, common in-group identity, and in-group bias toward contingent workers

In a survey-based field study of 111 permanent Finnish restaurant employees, the authors investigated intergroup relations between permanent and contingent workers. On the basis of the common in-group identity model, the authors hypothesized that the conditions of contact (supportive norms and perceived intergroup competition) would be related to common in-group identity, which in turn would be negatively related to intergroup bias. The present results indicated that perceived competition and institutional support were related to in-group bias only through their influence on the common in-group identity, as the model predicted.     

See your friends close and your enemies closer: social identity and identity threat shape the representation of physical distance

Three studies demonstrated that collective identity and identity threat shape representations of the physical world. In Study 1, New York Yankees fans estimated Fenway Park, the stadium of a threatening out-group (but not Camden Yards, the stadium of a neutral out-group) to be closer than did non-Yankees fans. In Study 2, the authors manipulated identity threat among people affiliated (or not) with New York University (NYU). When Columbia University was portrayed as threatening to NYU, NYU affiliates estimated Columbia as closer than did non-affiliates, compared with when Columbia was nonthreatening. In Study 3, Americans who perceived more symbolic threats from Mexican immigration estimated Mexico City as closer. Collective identification with the in-group moderated effects of threat on distance estimations. These studies suggest that social categorization, collective identification, and identity threat work in concert to shape the representations of the physical world.     

社会认同与内、外群体态度的关系：群际威胁和群体情绪的中介作用

为探究社会认同、群际威胁和群体情绪如何同时影响内、外群体态度,本研究以中日撞船事件为考察蓝本向天津市431名大学生被试进行调查研究,结果发现：国家认同在认同威胁对两种群体态度的总影响和通过群体愤怒的间接影响中都起到负向的调节作用;群际威胁和群体情绪在社会认同与内、外群体态度之间具有显著中介作用。结论：国家认同在对群体态度的影响中起基础性作用,不同群际威胁与不同群体情绪相对应进而影响群体态度。     

Diversity in in-group bias: structural factors, situational features, and social functions

Four experiments addressed the different forms and functions of in-group bias in different contexts. The authors proposed 2 functions: an identity-expressive function and an instrumental function (or promotion of positive social change). The authors manipulated status differentials, the stability of these differences, and the communication context (intra- vs. intergroup) and measured in-group bias and both functions. As predicted, identity expression via in-group bias on symbolic measures was most important for stable, high-status groups. By contrast, material in-group bias for instrumental motives was most prevalent in unstable, low-status groups but only when communicating with in-group members. This latter effect illustrates the strategic adaptation of group behavior to audience (i.e., displaying in-group bias may provoke the out-group and be counterproductive in instrumental terms). Stable, low-status groups displayed more extreme forms of in-group bias for instrumental reasons regardless of communication context (i.e., they had nothing to lose). Results are discussed in terms of a contextual-functional approach to in-group bias.     

"I am us": negative stereotypes as collective threats

Collective threat is the fear that an in-group member's behavior might reinforce a negative stereotype of one's group. In a field study, self-reported collective threat was higher in stereotyped minorities than in Whites and was linked to lower self-esteem in both groups. In 3 experimental studies, a potentially poor performance by an in-group member on a stereotype-relevant task proved threatening, as evidenced by lower self-esteem among minority students in 2 experiments and women in a 3rd experiment. The latter study demonstrated the generality of collective threat. Collective threat also undermined academic performance and affected self-stereotyping, stereotype activation, and physical distancing from the in-group member. Results further suggest that group identification plays a role in whether people use an avoidance or challenge strategy in coping with collective threat. Implications for theories of social identity and stigmatization are discussed.     

Cross-dimension-ambivalent in-group stereotypes: the moderating roles of social context of stereotype endorsement and in-group identification

In this study, the authors examined in-group stereotypes that are cross-dimensionally ambivalent-simultaneously (a) positive in cognition-related content dimensions and negative in affect-related content dimensions or (b) negative in cognition-related content dimensions and positive in affect-related content dimensions-to establish whether endorsement of such in-group stereotypes depends on whether this process occurs in an intragroup versus intergroup context. Drawing on social identity theory, the authors predicted that (a) endorsement of cross-dimension-ambivalent in-group stereotypes would be greater in an intragroup, relative to an intergroup, context and (b) this would hold for high but not low in-group identifiers. Confirming these hypotheses, results showed that endorsement of cross-dimension-ambivalent in-group stereotypes may vary as a function of their contribution to securing a positive social identity.     

群体独特性对群际偏差的影响

群体独特性影响群体认同,较高或较低的群体独特性都可能引发群际偏差,分别称为“反射式独特性假说”与“反应式独特性假说”.调节作用研究揭示,在较低群体认同或上位群体分类凸显时,群体独特性越高越易引发群际偏差;而在较高群体认同时,独特性越低越易引发群际偏差.动机作用的研究表明,在具有群际竞争目标时,这两种过程分别受工具性动机与认同性动机的驱动.情绪与认知的中介作用研究显示,在低独特性条件下,社会身份复杂性与焦虑情绪可起中介作用引发群际偏差.     

Us versus them: social identity shapes neural responses to intergroup competition and harm

Intergroup competition makes social identity salient, which in turn affects how people respond to competitors' hardships. The failures of an in-group member are painful, whereas those of a rival out-group member may give pleasure-a feeling that may motivate harming rivals. The present study examined whether valuation-related neural responses to rival groups' failures correlate with likelihood of harming individuals associated with those rivals. Avid fans of the Red Sox and Yankees teams viewed baseball plays while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging. Subjectively negative outcomes (failure of the favored team or success of the rival team) activated anterior cingulate cortex and insula, whereas positive outcomes (success of the favored team or failure of the rival team, even against a third team) activated ventral striatum. The ventral striatum effect, associated with subjective pleasure, also correlated with self-reported likelihood of aggressing against a fan of the rival team (controlling for general aggression). Outcomes of social group competition can directly affect primary reward-processing neural systems, which has implications for intergroup harm.     

Identity and emergency intervention: how social group membership and inclusiveness of group boundaries shape helping behavior

Two experiments exploring the effects of social category membership on real-life helping behavior are reported. In Study 1, intergroup rivalries between soccer fans are used to examine the role of identity in emergency helping. An injured stranger wearing an in-group team shirt is more likely to be helped than when wearing a rival team shirt or an unbranded sports shirt. In Study 2, a more inclusive social categorization is made salient for potential helpers. Helping is extended to those who were previously identified as out-group members but not to those who do not display signs of group membership. Taken together, the studies show the importance of both shared identity between bystander and victim and the inclusiveness of salient identity for increasing the likelihood of emergency intervention.     

Collective self-continuity,group identification and in-group defense

The present research tested the proposition that the sense of self-continuity that people derive from their group membership provides a basis for group identification and drives in-group defensive reactions in the context of identity threat. This proposition was examined in three studies, using the context of national identity. Study 1 found that collective self-continuity uniquely and strongly predicted national identification, when controlling for other identity motives. Studies 2 and 3 demonstrated that existential threats to national identity particularly increase a sense of collective self-continuity, compared to other identity motives, and that this enhanced sense of collective selfcontinuity results in stronger in-group defense in the form of opposition towards out-groups (Study 2) and social developments (Study 3) that may undermine group identity, as well as in stronger in-group protectionism (Study 3). Taken together, these findings indicate that collective selfcontinuity is an important motive for group identification and in-group defense in the context of identity threat.     

The importance of being we: human nature and intergroup relations

The author discusses the nature of in-group bias and the social motives that underlie ethnocentric attachment to one's own membership groups. Two common assumptions about in-group bias are challenged: that in-group positivity necessitates out-group derogation and that in-group bias is motivated by self-enhancement. A review of relevant theory and research on intergroup relations provides evidence for 3 alternative principles: (a) in-group attachment and positivity are primary and independent of out-groups, (b) security motives (belonging and distinctiveness) underlie universal in-group favoritism, and (c) attitudes toward out-groups vary as a function of intergroup relationships and associated threats to belonging and distinctiveness     

Decomposing identity: differential relationships between several aspects of ethnic identity and the negative effects of perceived discrimination among First Nations adults in Canada

The present investigation examined the relationship between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms among First Nations adults in Canada (N = 220). It was considered that specific aspects of ethnic identity (in-group affect, centrality, in-group ties) could serve as resilience and/or vulnerability factors. Whereas in-group affect (positive feelings regarding one's group) was directly associated with decreased depressive symptoms and buffered against perceived discrimination, high levels of centrality (salience of group membership) was associated with increased symptomatology and intensified the relation between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. In-group ties (connection to other group members) buffered against perceived discrimination, although this protective effect only applied for males. The data underscore the importance of examining different aspects of identity and gender differences in determining the role of ethnic identity in the well-being of minority populations.     

Social identities, group norms, and threat: on the malleability of ingroup bias

Ingroup bias is one of the most basic intergroup phenomena and has been consistently demonstrated to be increased under conditions of existential threat. In the present research the authors question the omnipresence of ingroup bias under threat and test the assumptions that these effects depend on the content of social identity and group norm salient in a situation. In the first two studies cross-categorization and recategorization manipulations eliminated and even reversed mortality salience effects on bias in relations between English and Scottish students (Study 1) as well as English and French people (Study 2). In the third study the specific normative content of a given social identity (collectivism vs. individualism) was shown to moderate mortality salience effects on ingroup bias. The results of these studies suggest a social identity perspective on terror management processes.     

Engaging in distancing tactics among sport fans: effects on self-esteem and emotional responses

The authors examined the effects of distancing tactics on self-esteem and emotions, following a win or loss of one's favorite team. They measured state self-esteem and emotional responses of basketball fans as they exited the sport arena after their team had won or lost an official game. Half of the fans were given the opportunity to increase or decrease their association with the team before the measures of self-esteem and emotions; the remaining fans were given the opportunity after the measures. The fans tended to associate more with the team after team success than after team failure. In addition, self-esteem and positive emotions were higher, and negative emotions lower, when measured after, rather than before, the opportunity to increase or decrease association with the team. Those effects were more pronounced among high-team-identification fans than among low-team-identification fans. The results suggest a distinction between the short- and long-term effects of game outcome on the willingness to associate with one's team. In the short term, willingness to associate with the team may oscillate in accordance with team performance, even among high-team-identification fans; in the long term, only high-team-identification fans may maintain their allegiance to the team.     

Intergroup relations in soccer finals: people's forecasts of the duration of emotional reactions of in-group and out-group soccer fans

The authors examined the hypothesis that people forecast a longer duration of uniquely human secondary emotions for their in-group than for an out-group. The authors conducted a field experiment in the setting of the European soccer championship. They asked Belgian participants to forecast the intensity with which their in-group Belgian fans or the out-group Turkish fans would experience various primary and secondary emotions in response to their team's victory or loss immediately after the Turkey-Belgium match and three days later. The results support the hypothesis. Moreover, and as the authors expected, they found no differences in the participants' forecasts of primary emotions. The authors discussed the implications of these findings for intergroup relations in general and for soccer fans' behavior in particular.     

群际接触减少偏见的机制：一项整合的研究

以321名少数民族大学生为被试,考察了民族接触（与汉族）、交往态度、民族认同、民族本质论、民族刻板印象和群际焦虑等变量,以整合的视角探讨了民族接触促进民族交往的机制问题。研究结果表明：民族接触通过降低群际焦虑和民族认同、减弱消极刻板印象和民族本质论而间接促进了民族交往,民族认同在民族接触和民族本质论之间、消极刻板印象在民族接触和群际焦虑之间存在中介作用。这项整合的研究理论上丰富了群际接触减少偏见的机制研究,发现了新的中介变量,对促进民族交往的实践具有指导意义。     

Two functions of verbal intergroup discrimination: identity and instrumental motives as a result of group identification and threat

In two studies, the authors examined the circumstances under which discrimination has an identity confirmation function or an instrumental function (instigating collective action). In Study 1, participants (N = 601) described a situation in which they had discriminated and then completed measures of functionality, group identification, and group threat. Both functions were predicted by group identification, whereas the instrumental function (but not identity confirmation) operated under group threat. In Study 2, "die-hard" soccer fans (N = 1,546) suggested soccer chants in reaction to either a group-reinforcing (own team scores) or group-threatening (other team scores) situation and rated the perceived functionality of the song. Although both of these conditions evoked discriminating songs, as predicted, these served a more identity-confirming function in the reinforcing situation but a more instrumental function (pepping up the team) in the threat situation. Results are discussed in terms of a contextual-functional model of intergroup discrimination.     

Relations of self-esteem concerns, group identification, and self-stereotyping to in-group favoritism

In 2 studies, the author examined the effect of collective self-esteem (CSE; J. Crocker & R. Luhtanen, 1993) on people's willingness to display in-group favoritism. To test that self-esteem hypothesis, he measured public CSE, rather than private CSE, because the former parallels a threat to social identity, a state believed to motivate in-group favoritism. Furthermore, the author explored whether group identification and self-stereotyping moderated the effect of public CSE on in-group favoritism. The participants were 92 British and Dutch university employees. As expected, participants high in public CSE displayed more in-group favoritism than did those low in public CSE. Moreover, group identification and self-stereotyping appeared to moderate the effect of CSE.     

New knowledge for old credences: Asymmetric information search about in-group and out-group members

Three experiments examined how people gather information on in-group and out-group members. Previous studies have revealed that category-based expectancies bias the hypothesis-testing process towards confirmation through the use of asymmetric-confirming questions (which are queries where the replies supporting the prior expectancies are more informative than those falsifying them). However, to date there is no empirical investigation of the use of such a question-asking strategy in an intergroup context. In the present studies, participants were asked to produce (Study 1) or to choose (Studies 2 and 3) questions in order to investigate the presence of various traits in an in-group or an out-group member. Traits were manipulated by valence and typicality. The results revealed that category-based expectancies do not always lead to asymmetric-confirming testing: whereas participants tended to ask questions that confirmed positive in-group and negative out-group stereotypical attributes, they used a more symmetric strategy when testing for the presence of negative in-group or positive out-group traits. Moreover, Study 3 also revealed a moderation effect of in-group identification. The findings point to the role played by motivational factors associated with preserving a positive social identity. Possible consequences of these hypothesis-testing processes in preserving a positive social identity for intergroup relations are discussed.