Exploring the Relationships between Fear-Related Xenophobia, Perceptions of Out-Group Entitativity, and Social Contact in Norway

Abstract

An internet-related survey distributed to Norwegian students explored predictors of fear-related xenophobia toward immigrants. Specifically, this study examined a new social construct called "entitativity" (i.e., the extent to which out-group members are perceived as bonded together in a cohesive or organized unit), as well as frequency of informal social contact and valence of a recent encounter in relation to certain xenophobic attitudes. Correlational and multiple regression analyses indicated that perceived out-group entitativity was a moderate predictor of fear-related xenophobia. Voluntary informal contact was a weak predictor of fear-related xenophobia, whereas negative evaluation of an encounter in the recent past was a strong predictor. Further analysis indicated that the effect of entitativity on xenophobia was strongest when informal social contact was low. Moreover, analysis indicated that the effect of valenced contact was partly mediated through perception of entitativity.