Self-esteem, ingroup favoritism, and outgroup evaluations: A meta-analysis

Abstract

Social identity theory hypothesizes that ingroup positive distinctiveness serves as a source of self-esteem that in turn propels individuals to favor ingroups over outgroups. The current meta-analysis extends past reviews of this hypothesis by testing if (a) self-esteem is differentially related to ingroup versus outgroup evaluations, and (b) the self-esteem–outgroup evaluation relation is moderated by four theoretically driven factors. A total of 103 effect sizes measured the self-esteem and outgroup derogation relation ( N = 15,764) and the self-esteem and ingroup liking relation ( N = 15,741). High self-esteem was associated with strong ingroup liking and, to a lesser extent, strong outgroup liking. Regarding the second goal, moderator analyses of the relation between self-esteem and outgroup evaluations (up to 71 effect sizes) revealed four patterns: the relation emerged when personal self-esteem was measured, real groups were targeted, low-status groups judged high-status groups, and there was no domain match between self-esteem and the outgroup.