Islamist Terrorism, Out-Group Trust, and Motivation to Control Prejudice

Kari Steen-Johnsen,Marte Slagsvold Winsvold

doi:10.1093/ijpor/edz014

Kari Steen-Johnsen, Marte Slagsvold Winsvold

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1093/ijpor/edz014

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Abstract

Abstract Using Norwegian survey experiments (N = 1,541), we examined the relationship between Islamist terrorist threats and trust in out-groups, focusing on how this relationship was conditioned by the “motivation to control prejudice” (MCP) and emotions of anxiety. After exposure to a news story describing an Islamist threat scenario, the treatment group reported higher levels of trust in out-groups than the control group. High levels of MCP were linked to higher levels of trust; anxiety played an ambiguous role. Although anxiety had a strong negative effect on trust in out-groups, the positive effect of MCP increased with rising anxiety levels, thus making the people who were most scared also more trusting. Activation of social norms may, thus, bolster distrust.

Highlights

Using Norwegian survey experiments (N 1⁄4 1,541), we examined the relationship between Islamist terrorist threats and trust in out-groups, focusing on how this relationship was conditioned by the ‘‘motivation to control prejudice’’ (MCP) and emotions of anxiety
This study uses a survey experiment to examine the effect of an assumed Islamist terrorist threat on trust in Muslims and immigrants as ‘‘connoted outgroups’’, with emphasis on the roles played by social norms and on the anxiety that the threat provokes
We focus on the role of a particular social norm—the motivation to control prejudice (MCP), which motivates people to ‘‘avoid acting on biases against stigmatized minorities’’ (Blinder, Ford, & Ivarsflaten, 2013, p. 842)—and on how the activation of this norm is conditioned by the emotion of anxiety

Summary

Introduction

Using Norwegian survey experiments (N 1⁄4 1,541), we examined the relationship between Islamist terrorist threats and trust in out-groups, focusing on how this relationship was conditioned by the ‘‘motivation to control prejudice’’ (MCP) and emotions of anxiety. In a Europe characterized by civil unrest and the rise of authoritarian populism, there is a widespread concern that we may be moving toward more fearful and polarized societies, with increasing levels of intolerance and distrust toward immigrants in general and Muslims in particular. The reasons for these developments are complex, and related to long-term economic and political trends. This study uses a survey experiment to examine the effect of an assumed Islamist terrorist threat on trust in Muslims and immigrants as ‘‘connoted outgroups’’, with emphasis on the roles played by social norms and on the anxiety that the threat provokes. We first lay out our perspective on social trust and how the threat of terrorism affects it; we specify the potential roles

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