Reverse Subtyping: The Effects of Prejudice Level on the Subtyping of Counterstereotypic Outgroup Members

Although many anti-bias interventions try to overcome stereotypes by presenting positive and/or counterstereotypic members of the outgroup, people often subtype these members and refuse to see them as typical of the outgroup. Although subtyping has been shown to be a common phenomenon, it is unclear if preexisting attitudes moderate this process. The current study examined whether preexisting prejudice levels would moderate the subtyping process. Specifically, it was found that although high-prejudiced individuals subtyped a positive racial outgroup member, low-prejudiced individuals demonstrated the opposite pattern and subtyped negative outgroup members as being atypical. This suggests that although the subtyping phenomenon may be universal, its expression is moderated by preexisting intergroup attitudes.     

The inspired time traveler: examining the implications of nostalgic entertainment experiences for two-factor models of entertainment

ABSTRACT

Two studies investigated the characteristics of nostalgic entertainment experiences. A survey (Study 1) asked American undergraduates to report their cognitive and affective reactions during a recent entertainment experience that they deemed nostalgic, meaningful, or pleasurable. Results indicated that nostalgic experiences often occurred after exposure to familiar media content (e.g., beloved children’s shows). Although these experiences were affectively similar to both pleasurable entertainment experiences (in terms of enjoyment) and meaningful entertainment experiences (in terms of mixed affect), they differed in the focus of their associated cognitions (i.e., reflection on the self in the past and over time). A follow-up experiment (Study 2) demonstrated that exposure to familiar children’s shows (rather than unfamiliar children’s shows or meaningful film trailers) induced nostalgic reactions in adults ranging in age from 19 to 47. The implications of these findings for current two-factor models of entertainment are discussed.     

Individual Self,Relational Self,Collective Self: Hierarchical Ordering of the Tripartite Self

The individual self comprise unique attributes, the relational self comprises partner-shared attributes, and the collective self comprises ingroup-shared attributes. All selves are fundamental components of the self-concept, with each being important and meaningful to human experience and with each being associated with health benefits. Are the selves, however, equally important and meaningful? We review a program of research that tested four competing theoretical views suggesting that the motivational hub of human experience is (a) the individual self, (b) the relational self, (b) the collective self, or (c) determined by contextual or cultural factors. The research furnished support to the view that the individual self is the primary form of self-definition. We discuss alternative explanations and implications. We end with the introduction of a theoretical model, the boomerang model, that has the potential to integrate the diverse literature on the topic.     

Will moral outrage stand up?: Distinguishing among emotional reactions to a moral violation

Moral outrage—anger at violation of a moral standard—is claimed to be a prevalent and powerful moral emotion. However, evidence for moral outrage has been compromised by failure to distinguish it from personal anger—anger at harm to self—felt by victims of a moral violation. Although it does not seem possible to distinguish these two forms of anger by measurement, it is possible to do so by experimental manipulation of their distinct eliciting conditions. Extending previous research, the current study manipulated how a victim (self vs. stranger) was excluded (fairly vs. unfairly) from a favorable experience. Reported anger and behavioral retribution provided evidence of personal anger and revenge, not of moral outrage. These findings suggest that the prevalence and power of moral outrage has been exaggerated. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mechanisms of moral disengagement and their differential use by right‐wing authoritarianism and social dominance orientation in support of war

Right‐wing authoritarianism (RWA) and social dominance orientation (SDO) are associated with the approval of war as a political intervention [McFarland, 2005]. We examined whether the effects of RWA and SDO on war support are mediated by moral‐disengagement mechanisms [i.e., responsibility reduction, moral justification, minimizing consequences, and dehumanizing–blaming victims; Bandura, 1999] and whether the ideologies use the mechanisms differently. Our data were consistent with the possibility that minimizing consequences (Study 1) and moral justification (Study 2) mediate the effects of RWA and SDO on approval of war. Both ideologies were positively associated with all moral‐disengagement mechanism though more strongly so for RWA. Comparisons within ideologies suggest that RWA was most strongly associated with moral justification and SDO was most strongly associated with dehumanizing–blaming victims. We discuss implications and limitations. Aggr. Behav. 36:238–250, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

The other side of we: when outgroup members express common identity

Previous research on the common ingroup identity model has focused on how one's representations of members of the ingroup and outgroup influence intergroup attitudes. Two studies reported here investigated how learning how others, ingroup or outgroup members, conceive of the groups within a superordinate category affects intergroup bias and willingness to engage in intergroup contact. Across both studies, high school students who learned that other ingroup members categorized students at both schools within the common identity of "students" showed less intergroup bias in evaluations and greater willingness for contact. However, consistent with the hypothesized effects of identity threat, when participants read that outgroup members saw the groups within the superordinate category, they exhibited a relatively negative orientation, except when ingroup members also endorsed a superordinate identity (Study 1). This result occurred even when the relative status of the groups was manipulated (Study 2).     

The survival of a cooperative tradition in the intergroup discontinuity context

Interindividual-intergroup discontinuity is the tendency, in mixed-motive situations, for groups to interact more competitively, or less cooperatively, than individuals, even though mutual competition yields worse results that mutual cooperation. The present laboratory experiment attempted to assess whether the discontinuity effect could be reduced by the establishment of an intergroup cooperative tradition. Cooperation between intact pairs of groups was induced by placing in each group confederates who successfully convinced their fellow group members of the long-term advantage of trust and cooperation. On subsequent blocks of trails, the confederate was replaced by an actual subject, and then each of the original subjects was replaced so as to simulate generational turnover. By the time all initial members were replaced, their level of cooperation had eroded to the level of groups never experiencing mutual cooperation. The results are discussed in the context of other means of reducing discontinuity. This research was supported by National Science Foundation grants (BNS-9007414 and SBR-9408760) to John Schopler and Chester A. Insko.     

How Groups Merge: The Effects of Merger Integration Patterns on Anticipated Commitment to the Merged Organization1

This study examined the influence of merger integration patterns on expectations about the merger process. The integration patterns included the absorb, in which the merged organization closely resembled the acquiring company; the blend, in which features of both companies were maintained, and the combine, in which the organization resembled neither pre-merger company. Undergraduates role-played employees of a merging organization and written scenarios manipulated the integration pattern and membership in the acquired or acquiring organization. Participants' commitment to the merged organization was most favorable in the combine pattern. Path analyses indicated that the relationship between merger integration pattern and organizational commitment is mediated by the conditions of intergroup contact, perceptions of organizational support, organizational unity, and the degree of threat experienced.     

The attribution of arousal and emergency helping: A bidirectional process

J. M. Piliavin, J. A. Piliavin, and J. Rodin (1969, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 13, 289–299) and J. A. Piliavin, J. F. Dovidio, S. L. Gaertner, and R. Clark (1981, Emergency intervention, New York, Academic Press) proposed that physiological arousal is causally related to a bystander's response to an emergency. Examining this proposition, the current research investigated the hypothesis that residual arousal from an extraneous event has the capacity to facilitate as well as to inhibit bystander intervention during an emergency depending on whether the extraneous arousal is attributed to the emergency or whether the emergency-generated arousal is attributed to the extraneous event. Specifically, it was predicted that during an Unambiguous emergency, extraneous arousal from the prior performance of physical exercise would be attributed to the emergency and thus facilitate bystander responsiveness. During an Ambiguous emergency, however, emergency-generated arousal would be attributed to the prior performance of physical exercise and thus bystander responsiveness would be inhibited by higher levels of arousal. Fifty-four male subects performed no, moderate, or high levels of exercise before exposure to an Unambiguous or Ambiguous emergency. Results indicated that during the Unambiguous emergency, higher levels of prior exercise facilitated helping. However, when the emergency was Ambiguous, high levels of exercise tended to inhibit bystander responsiveness. Correlational analysis of telemetered heart rates and latency to intervene corroborated the above pattern of findings.     

The Effects of Sex,Status, and Ability on Helping Behavior1

Protests against affirmative action articulate the concern that qualified white males will be subordinated to less qualified women and minorities. To examine the possibility that the reversal of traditional status relationships rather than competence inequity underlies resistance to affiimative action, a study was conducted in which subjects interacted with a male or female who was introduced as their supervisor or subordinate and as either higher or lower in ability than themselves. The results indicate that status, not ability, influences the frequency of helping women, whereas ability, not status, primarily influences helping behavior toward men. Specifically. female subordinates were helped more than females supervisors, regardless of ability, while high-ability males elicited more help than low-ability males, independent of status. Subsequent ratings revealed that although subjects acknowledged the greater competence of high-ability males, they did not evaluate high-ability females as more competent than themselves.