From Cultural Discordance to Support for Collective Action

Abstract

Support for collective action, an initial step in challenging social inequalities, can have important implications for intergroup relations in contemporary plural societies. The present study, conducted among majority Finns ( n = 274) and Russian immigrants in Finland ( n = 228), investigated the relationship between perceived cultural discordance (i.e., disagreement between majority and minority groups about the importance of cultural maintenance for minority members) and support for collective action benefiting the minority. Specifically, it was expected that the association between cultural discordance and collective action would be at least partially mediated by intergroup anxiety and outgroup trust, and that both the direct and indirect effects of cultural discordance would depend on group status (i.e., majority vs. minority). The results showed that among majority group members, the association was negative and mediated by high intergroup anxiety and low outgroup trust, whereas among minority group members, the association was positive and mediated by only low outgroup trust.