Findings In Social Psychology Research Articles

The Social Dynamics of Genocide: Social Psychology and Compliance in Himmler’s Murder Squads

Abstract The mobile paramilitary units known as Einsatzgruppen murdered between one and two million Soviet Jewish and non-Jewish civilians under Nazi occupation. Contemporary and postwar documentation reveals that the units lumped together members of Germany’s various party and state security organizations, who, despite the common image of the Nazi “murder machine,” did not always work in complete collaboration. The article follows Einsatzkommando 12, a subunit of Einsatzgruppe D, which perpetrated executions in the southern regions of present-day Ukraine and Russia. Former members’ postwar interrogations reconstruct the unit’s professional hierarchies, operational structures, and job allocations. The article integrates historical works on SS values and organizational culture with findings in social psychology to explain how the Einsatzgruppen shaped peer group relations, cohesion, and comradeship to enhance members’ compliance with mass murder.

Trying Perpetrators: Denazification Trials and Support for Democracy in West Germany

We study the effects of transitional justice (TJ) programs that punish large numbers of human rights violators through the lenses of social psychology theories on how individuals respond to punishment in allocative situations, including how defendants in court trials evaluate their verdicts. We analyze subnational variation in procedures and outcomes of denazification trials in West Germany during 1946-1947. Consistently with established findings in social psychology, we find that procedural justice and the distributive fairness of outcomes can compensate for the anti-democratic attitudinal effects of being a defendant in a TJ trial. We also find evidence that procedural justice influences the democratic attitudes of family members of TJ defendants. The study has implications for contemporary cases of TJ programs that affect large numbers of perpetrators.

Gains and losses for humans and the environment: Effects of social identity and message prospect framing on pro‐environmental behaviors

AbstractAddressing the global climate emergency and an urgent need for psychological research, the present study drew on two major psychological perspectives: social identity theory's notion of a socially constructed sense of self, and prospect theory's cognitive heuristics on the asymmetric effects of gain and loss framed messaging. A 2 (Human vs. Environmental Identity) × 2 (Gain vs. Loss framing) factorial experiment (N = 160) sought causal evidence for superordinate identities, gain versus loss framed messaging, and their interactions upon motivations for pro‐environmental behavior. Results suggested interaction effects between social identity and message frames on activism, support for environmental policy, and enactment measures. Challenging prospect theory's original findings, gain framed messages were dominant in enhancing private sustainable behaviors, while loss frames were dominant in enhancing political behaviors. Whereas income was a significant demographic predictor, the overall social psychological findings inform campaign strategies for pro‐environmental behavior.

An Apology With a Tiny Monetary Compensation Is No More Effective Than a Verbal Apology Alone

How can organizations effectively deliver apologies? Prior research has indicated that apologies accompanied by significant costs are generally perceived as more sincere than those without any associated costs. However, these studies have not explored the impact of minimal financial compensation when the transgressor can only afford a nominal amount. This issue is particularly relevant to organizational apologies, where it may be challenging for a company to provide a substantial amount of compensation to every affected customer or stakeholder. In this study, we thus examined the effectiveness of a verbal apology combined with a nominal financial compensation in organizational settings. Drawing upon previously documented social and evolutionary psychological findings, our preregistered study tested the hypothesis that individuals perceive verbal apologies with ‘trivial’ compensation as less sincere than verbal apologies without any compensation (i.e., the trivialization effect). Contrary to our expectations, we did not observe the trivialization effect; verbal apologies with a trivial amount of financial compensation were as effective as verbal apologies alone. These findings suggest that a verbal apology accompanied by a minimal financial compensation does not necessarily enhance or detract from the perceived sincerity or effectiveness of the apology.

Can We Talk It Out?

AbstractResearch on the normative ideal of democracy has taken a sharp deliberative and epistemic turn. It is now increasingly common for claims about the putative cognitive benefits of political deliberation to play central roles in normative arguments for democracy. In this paper, I argue that the most prominent epistemic defences of deliberative democracy fail. Relying on empirical findings on the workings of implicit bias, I show that they overstate the epistemic virtues of political deliberation. I also argue that findings in cognitive and social psychology can aid in the development of a new and improved generation of epistemic arguments for deliberative democracy.

Extremism, segregation and oscillatory states emerge through collective opinion dynamics in a novel agent-based model

ABSTRACT Using mathematics to model the evolution of opinions among interacting agents is a rich and growing field. We present a novel agent-based model that enhances the explanatory power of existing theoretical frameworks, corroborates experimental findings in social psychology, and reflects observed phenomena in contemporary society. Bespoke features of the model include: a measure of pairwise affinity between agents; a memory capacity of the population; and a generalized confidence bound called the interaction threshold, which can be dynamical and heterogeneous. Moreover, the model is applicable to opinion spaces of any dimensionality. Through analytical and numerical investigations, we study the opinion dynamics produced by the model and examine the effects of various model parameters. We prove that as long as every agent interacts with every other, the population will reach an opinion consensus regardless of the initial opinions or parameter values. When interactions are limited to be among agents with similar opinions, segregated opinion clusters can be formed. An opinion drift is also observed in certain settings, leading to collective extremisation of the whole population, which we quantify using a rigorous mathematical measure. We find that collective extremisation is likely if agents cut off connections whenever they move away from the neutral position, effectively isolating themselves from the population. When a population fails to reach a steady state, oscillations of a neutral majority are observed due to the influence exerted by a small number of extreme agents. By carefully interpreting these results, we posit explanations for the mechanisms underlying socio-psychological phenomena such as emergent cooperation and group polarization.

"Walk in your own shoes!"

This contribution focuses on 'new narratives' dealing with the global issue of migration which however stands only as a paradigm of other forms of systemic injustice and discrimination. Taking paradigmatic projects -- Clouds over Sidra (2015) and This Room (2017) -- I will set off to look behind the promise of interactive, immersive narratives to let users 'walk in someone else's shoes'. This article explores in how far the specific affordances of VR affect the engagement with content and the potentially transformative impact the producers are aiming at. Are we dealing with an exploitive gaze, are we drawn into a 'human rights spectacle', or do new forms of narrative enable response-able witnessing? The theoretical framework brings together recent theories of VR non-fiction, drawing on the tradition of documentary theory and approaches to interactive storytelling, as well as findings in social psychology, especially conceptualizations of immersion, empathy, and presence in VR environments. Addressing problematic socio-cultural, socio-political and media-ethical constellations (the risk of 'improper distance', of dehistoricizing and depoliticizing complex issues, of reinscribing hegemonic points-of-view and of imposing one's own truth over the actual experiences of 'others', colonizing their feelings) I suggest a form of critical dis-immersion, arguing that the potential of new narratives does not consist in its amplification of visual illusion and immediate affective response but rather in its ability to model a different concept of subjectivity, questioning established regimes of gaze and perspective of the 'self' in relation to others.

Survivor guilt: Theoretical, empirical, and clinical features

The aim of this paper is to give the reader an overview of several theoretical, empirical, and clinical features of survivor guilt, and to integrate recent contributions of psychodynamic theory and, in particular, of control-mastery theory into the understanding of the concept alongside the latest findings in social psychology about it. After introducing the concept of survivor guilt and its origins in clinical observations on the consequences of having survived severe traumas (e.g., internment in concentration camps), we will discuss the findings in social psychology on the concept of survivor guilt in everyday social interactions, which is based on a conception that does not connect it strictly to severe traumas. We will then focus our attention on clinical observations and empirical research studies about survivor guilt, discussing the hypotheses developed by several control-mastery theorists about its role in psychopathology. Finally, we will illustrate some manifestations of survivor guilt with a brief clinical vignette.

Does social psychology persist over half a century? A direct replication of Cialdini et al.'s (1975) classic door-in-the-face technique.

Many failed replications in social psychology have cast doubt on the validity of the field. Most of these replication attempts have focused on findings published from the 1990s on, ignoring a large body of older literature. As some scholars suggest that social psychological findings and theories are limited to a particular time, place, and population, we sought to test whether a classical social psychological finding that was published nearly half a century ago can be successfully replicated in another country on another continent. To this end, we directly replicated Cialdini et al.'s (1975) door-in-the-face (DITF) technique according to which people's likelihood to comply with a target request increases after having turned down a larger request. Thereby, we put the reciprocal concessions theory-the original process explanation of the DITF technique-to a critical test. Overall, compliance rates in our replication were similarly high as those Cialdini et al. (1975) found 45 years ago. That is, participants were more likely to comply with a target request after turning down an extreme request than participants who were exposed to the target request only or to a similarly small request before being exposed to the target request. These findings support the idea that reciprocity norms play a crucial role in DITF strategies. Moreover, the results suggest that at least some social psychological findings can transcend a particular time, place, and population. Further theoretical implications are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Fair Share? Equality and Equity in American Attitudes Toward Trade

AbstractAmerican politicians repeatedly and strenuously invoke concerns about fairness when pitching their trade policies to their constituents, unsurprisingly since fairness is one of the most fundamental and universal moral concepts. Yet studies to date on public opinion about trade have not been designed in such a way that they test whether fairness is important, nor whether the mass public applies fairness standards impartially. Drawing on findings in social psychology and behavioral economics, we develop and find evidence for an “asymmetric fairness” argument. In a national survey of Americans, we find strong evidence that fairness, conceived in terms of equality, is crucial for understanding support for potential trade deals and support for renegotiating existing ones. Americans view as most fair and most preferable outcomes in which concessions and benefits are equal across countries, especially when those equal benefits match productivity. However, we find that Americans have an egoistically biased sense of fairness, responding particularly negatively to any outcome that leaves the United States relatively worse off—a sense of injustice that does not extend to the same degree to relative gains for Americans.

The paradox of productivity during quarantine: an agent-based simulation.

Economies across the globe were brought to their knees due to lockdowns and social restriction measures to contain the spread of the SARS-CoV-2, despite the quick switch to remote working. This downfall may be partially explained by the “water cooler effect”, which holds that higher levels of social interaction lead to higher productivity due to a boost in people’s mood. Somewhat paradoxically, however, there are reports of increased productivity in the remote working scenario. Here we address quantitatively this issue using a variety of experimental findings of social psychology that address the interplay between mood, social interaction and productivity to set forth an agent-based model for a workplace composed of extrovert and introvert agent stereotypes that differ solely on their propensities to initiate a social interaction. We find that the effects of curtailing social interactions depend on the proportion of the stereotypes in the working group: while the social restriction measures always have a negative impact on the productivity of groups composed predominantly of introverts, they may actually improve the productivity of groups composed predominantly of extroverts. Our results offer a proof of concept that the paradox of productivity during quarantine can be explained by taking into account the distinct effects of the social distancing measures on extroverts and introverts.Graphic abstract

All Human, yet Different

Abstract. Only little social psychological research is conducted outside so-called WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich and Democratic societies) cultures (e.g., in the “Global South”). Although cross-cultural replication of social psychological theorizing and findings is thus essential for higher external validity of the field, valid cross-cultural replications are not straightforward to do. Indeed, they require more than “copy-and-pasting” the same research design in different countries. To facilitate valid cross-cultural replications, we present a collection of concrete recommendations that integrate emic and etic approaches: (1) establishing an egalitarian and respectful partnership with representatives of the local community, (2) examining whether constructs carry the same meaning are relevant in and across contexts, and (3) preparing culture-sensitive research materials and procedures. These recommendations aim to inform and improve purely “etic” approaches.

Rising Powers, UN Security Council Reform, and the Failure of Rhetorical Coercion

AbstractDespite repeated calls for reform, the UN Security Council has as yet resisted to satisfy the demands of a group of rising powers – Brazil, Germany, India, and Japan (G4) – for a permanent seat. We focus on one strategy of institutional adaptation to power shifts mentioned in the introductory article to this special issue and examine why the G4’s rhetorical coercion strategy has failed to resonate with the Council’s permanent members and the wider UN membership. Looking at the key debate on Security Council reform in the General Assembly in 2005, we examine the justifications the G4 have offered to support their proposal and whether these have been accepted as legitimate by UN member states. We show that the G4’s rhetorical coercion strategy has failed to resonate with the targeted audience because the G4 have justified their demand strongly in terms of how their material contributions would enhance the UN’s performance. In contrast, the G4’s opponents provided justifications predominantly based on fair and democratic procedures, generating higher levels of expressed support. The importance of procedural fairness is consistent with findings in social psychology and challenges the prominent argument that performance is the main path to legitimacy for international institutions.

Sustainable and Community-Centred Development of Smart Cities and Villages

The article highlights the need to rethink and reconceptualise the accepted concepts of smart cities and villages by shifting the attention from technology and technological solutions and moving it towards understanding the significance of communities and sustainability. The conceptual framework combines four essential features—community, village, city and sustainability—and analyses the links and relationships between them. A new community-centred approach to development is suggested in order to emphasise that sustainable living cannot be achieved only through technological solutions. Instead, we suggest that to ensure social sustainability, appropriation, and effectiveness of new solutions in the long term, the process has to start, be adapted and led by people and their needs. In this light, the article analyses three dimensions of smart living—energy, mobility, waste—through the prism of rural–urban linkages and the role of ICT. Core principles and recommendations (calm technology, community size, identification of community leaders, surveillance and control issues, community building) for designers of ICT solutions and developmental projects in smart cities and villages are presented. These principles take into account people and communities and combine findings of engineering and social sciences, especially anthropology, psychology, and sociology.

Character in Kant’s Moral Psychology: Responding to the Situationist Challenge

Abstract In recent years, several philosophers have used “situationist” findings in social psychology to criticize character-based ethical theories. After showing how these criticisms apply, prima facie, to Kant’s moral theory, I lay out a Kantian response to them. Kant admits the empirical reality of situation-dependence in human actions but articulates a conception of “ought implies can” that vindicates his character-based moral theory in the face of rarity of character. Moreover, he provides an interpretive framework for the situation-dependence of human motivation in terms of humans’ “propensity to evil.” He also provides a framework for highlighting empirical bases for moral hope, a framework that makes it possible to see lack of character as something human beings can overcome. And he outlines a “moral anthropology” that develops something akin to what Mark Alfano calls “moral technologies,” but in Kant’s case, these technologies focus on cultivating character as such rather than merely good behavioral outcomes.

The Reform of Investor-State Dispute Settlement: Bringing the Findings of Social Psychology into the Debate

Abstract This article introduces the findings of social psychology, especially group psychology, into the study of investment arbitration. It argues that arbitrators as members of small groups (i.e. tribunals or divisions in an Investment Court) might be subjected to a number of influences inherent to such collective settings—factors already proven to be at play in domestic courts. In turn, identifying those factors provides an opportunity to reduce their impact on the decision-making of legal adjudicators through the implementation of adequate remedies. Adopting one of the most popular models of group decision-making—groupthink— this article discusses the manifestations and implications of this theory for Investor-State Dispute Settlement both in its ad hoc and institutionalized forms. Specifically, it claims that the Investment Court defended by the EU and generally posited in some agreements might not be that different from the current system from a socio-psychological perspective, and hence could be further improved.

Collective Emotions and Protest Vote

We leverage on important fi ndings in social psychology to build a behavioral theory of protest vote. An individual develops a feeling of resentment if she loses income over time while richer people do not, or if she does not gain as others do, i.e. when her relative deprivation increases. In line with the Intergroup Emotions Theory, this feeling is ampli fied if the individual identi fies with a community experiencing the same feeling. Such a negative collective emotion, which we de fine as aggrievement, fuels the desire to take revenge against traditional parties and the richer elite, a common trait of populist rhetoric. The theory predicts higher support for the protest party when individuals identify more strongly with their local community and when a higher share of community members are aggrieved. We test this theory using longitudinal data on British households and exploiting the emergence of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) in Great Britain in the 2010 and 2015 national elections. Empirical fi ndings robustly support theoretical predictions. The psychological mechanism postulated by our theory survives the controls for alternative non-behavioral mechanisms (e.g. information sharing or political activism in local communities).

Collective Emotions and Protest Vote

We leverage on important findings in social psychology to build a behavioral theory of protest vote. An individual develops a feeling of resentment if she loses income over time while richer people do not, or if she does not gain as others do, i.e. when her relative deprivation increases. In line with the Intergroup Emotions Theory, this feeling is amplified if the individual identifies with a community experiencing the same feeling. Such a negative collective emotion, which we define as aggrievement, fuels the desire to take revenge against traditional parties and the richer elite, a common trait of populist rhetoric. The theory predicts higher support for the protest party when individuals identify more strongly with their local community and when a higher share of community members are aggrieved. We test this theory using longitudinal data on British households and exploiting the emergence of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) in Great Britain in the 2010 and 2015 national elections. Empirical findings robustly support theoretical predictions. The psychological mechanism postulated by our theory survives the controls for alternative non-behavioral mechanisms (e.g. information sharing or political activism in local communities).

Coloring in the Links

The richness that characterizes relationships is often absent when they are modeled using computational methods in network science. Typically, relationships are represented simply as links, perhaps with weights. The lack of finer granularity is due in part to the fact that, aside from linkage and strength, no fundamental or immediately obvious dimensions exist along which to categorize relationships. Here we propose a set of dimensions that capture major components of many relationships -- derived both from relevant academic literature and people's everyday descriptions of their relationships. We first review prominent findings in sociology and social psychology, highlighting dimensions that have been widely used to categorize social relationships. Next, we examine the validity of these dimensions empirically in two crowd-sourced experiments. Ultimately, we arrive at a set of ten major dimensions that can be used to categorize relationships: similarity, trust, romance, social support, identity, respect, knowledge exchange, power, fun, and conflict. These ten dimensions, while not dispositive, offer higher resolution than existing models. Indeed, we show that one can more accurately predict missing links in a social graph by using these dimensions than by using a state-of-the-art link embeddedness method. We also describe tinghy.org, an online platform we built to collect data about how social media users perceive their online relationships, allowing us to examine these dimensions at scale. Overall, by proposing a new way of modeling social graphs, our work aims to contribute both to theory in network science and practice in the design of social-networking applications.

Doing Psychology With a Cultural Lens: A Half-Century Journey

My first international publication started out with the following sentences: “Some findings of social psychology may refer to general panhuman relationships, others to relationships that hold only within specific socio-cultural settings. Only systematic cross-cultural comparison can separate these or identify the limits within which particular generalizations hold” (Kagitcibasi, 1970, p. 444). These words still reflect my orientation to psychology and have shaped my work over half a century.