Understanding collective guilt: Tolerance for contradiction and state-trait dissociations in perceived overlap between ingroup members

Abstract

Collective guilt is a group-based emotion that extends from recognizing the ingroup has harmed others, and it is known to be predicted by factors related to the ingroup (e.g., ingroup identification, glorification) and by specific details of the event (e.g., temporal distance, ongoing victimization). The current research tested if differences in ingroup members’ broader ability to handle inconsistent information also contribute to their experience of collective guilt. In three studies, trait variation in tolerance for contradiction positively predicted collective guilt. Because the relationship could not be explained by specific ingroup perceptions, it may be that tolerance for contradiction enables ingroup members to endure the aversive emotional experience of guilt instead of responding defensively. All three studies also provided evidence that the level of overlap ingroup members perceive between the historical perpetrators and the current ingroup represents a defensive reaction to ingroup wrongdoing that contributes to reduced collective guilt, and this reaction is separate from trait-level perceptions of continuity between past and present ingroup members. Perceived overlap between historical perpetrators and the current ingroup may be a valuable measure of defensive responding in future research on collective guilt.