Intergroup Threat Research Articles

Security and attitudes toward globalization: A multilevel analysis

Globalization implicates a number of social psychological processes and outcomes, including openness to ideas, products, and people from outside one’s national boundaries. Drawing from theory and research on intergroup threat, the researchers posited that people will be more open to connections between their nation and others if they feel their economic situation and culture are relatively secure. They found some support for these hypotheses in 2 sets of archival survey responses collected by the Pew Global Attitudes Project in 2002 (40 countries; N = 34,073) and 2009 (25 countries; N = 22,500). Personal economic security and perceived national economic security were associated with more positive attitudes toward globalization in both survey years. However, country-level variables—development status (as indexed by the United Nations’ Human Development Index) and aggregated economic and cultural security—moderated the individual-level effects in several ways. Individual perceptions of national economic security more strongly predicted attitudes toward globalization in more favourable climates (e.g., in more developed countries, and at higher levels of country-level national economic security). Individual-level cultural security was positively associated with attitudes toward globalization in countries with higher levels of socioeconomic development, but negatively related to those attitudes in less developed nations. The results provide some new perspectives on individual and collective factors that inform the perceived benefits of globalization.

An intergroup approach to collective narcissism: Intergroup threats and hostility in four European Union countries

Although it is known that collective narcissism is associated with problematic intergroup relations, its predictors are less well understood. Two studies, conducted in four European Union countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal, the United Kingdom [UK]), tested the hypotheses that integrated (i.e., realistic and symbolic) threat (Study 1, N = 936) as well as distinctiveness threat (Study 2, N = 434) positively predict national collective narcissism and national ingroup satisfaction, but that only national collective narcissism predicts problematic intergroup relations in reference to threatening outgroups. The results were consistent with those hypotheses. The two types of threat predicted increased national collective narcissism and national ingroup satisfaction. However, only national collective narcissism was associated with negative emotions and hostile behavioral intentions toward the threatening outgroups, when its overlap with national ingroup satisfaction was partialled out. These cross-national findings advanced knowledge of predictors, as well as consequences, of collective narcissism.

Intergroup Threat and Heterosexual Cisgender Women’s Support for Policies Regarding the Admittance of Trans Women at a Women’s College

Although spaces once reserved for cisgender women are becoming increasingly accessible to trans women, few studies have examined cisgender women’s responses to such changes. Informed by social identity perspectives, we examined if heterosexual cisgender women’s reactions to two types of women’s college admissions policies pertaining to trans women depended on their appraisals of intergroup threat—or the degree to which they perceived trans women as a threat to cisgender women. Four-hundred-and-forty heterosexual cisgender women completed a measure of intergroup threat and then read 1 of 2 articles about a women’s college’s admissions policy (accept trans women vs. reject trans women). Following the article, they indicated their support for the policy they read about. Overall, participants were significantly more supportive of the admissions policy when it was framed as being inclusive of trans women. The effect of policy type on policy support was moderated by intergroup threat. Specifically, women who were not particularly threatened by trans women expressed significantly more policy support when the policy was described as being inclusive of trans women, rather than as exclusionary. Alternatively, highly threatened women were significantly more likely to show support when the policy was described in terms of excluding trans women.

RETRACTED: Socially dominant women strategically build coalitions of strong men in resource-rich environments

Abstract Selecting formidable male coalitions to navigate intergroup threats and resource acquisition evolved to enhance survival through group living, given men's enhanced ability to extract and protect resources through physical aggression. Though advantageous in certain contexts, formidable men can nonetheless inflict intragroup costs, suggesting preferences for this trait varies with resource availability in local ecologies. This study tasked participants (477 women, 140 men; MAge = 19.98, SD = 4.22) with building coalitions from arrays of physically strong and weak men to acquire resources in hopeful and desperate ecologies before assessing endorsement of several aspects of conservatism. Women high in social dominance orientation built more formidable coalitions in resource-abundant ecologies. Men's coalitional interests were unaffected by these factors. We frame results through evolved sex differences in coalition-building based on men and women's different formidability valuation thresholds while considering ancestral logic behind political ideology related to resource acquisition.

Ottoman Empire Effects on 21st Century European Muslim Immigration

This research looked at how four historical wars during the Ottoman empire had effects on European attitudes and views on 21st century Muslim immigration. These wars included the War of Granada, the Polish Ottoman War, and the Balkan Wars including the Armenian Genocide. One prominent leader, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, and the leader of the War of Turkish Independence was also researched. The research provides an overview of European challenges regarding the integration of Muslim immigrants, and how the rise in social and political animosities towards Muslims has caused major concerns for European state governments. This includes Muslim lack of cultural assimilation into host nation communities and a rise in Islamic extremism and Islamophobia. A mixed methodology approach was used to research historical literature on the four main wars and on modern-day immigration issues and security concerns, and statistical data from EUROstats on the number of immigrants coming into EU countries, and how these countries rank in terrorist threats. Two theories; Intergroup Threat Theory and Social Identity Theory were researched to recognize how fear, resulting from stereotypes can result in hostility towards certain groups. The research shows that European attitudes towards Muslim immigrants, and the atrocities on civilians during the four main wars during the Ottoman empire, have revived a deeply rooted negative view of Muslims.

Trump against Germany: Examining How News about Donald Trump’s Anti-German Utterances Affect Anti-Americanism in Germany—A Moderated Mediation Model

Donald Trump frequently attacks foreign countries such as Germany (e.g., via Twitter). Drawing from social identity theory and intergroup threat theory, I theorized that exposure to news about Trump’s anti-German utterances indirectly increases anti-Americanism in Germany. First, I theorized that Trump’s utterances result in negative attitudes toward Trump and, in turn, increase anti-Americanism (spillover effect). Second, I theorized that Trump’s anti-German utterances indirectly affect anti-Americanism via increased European Union (EU) popularity. Furthermore, I assumed that effects would be stronger for individuals low in political interest. A quota-based online experiment ( N = 428) revealed that Trump’s anti-German utterances increased EU’s popularity. This effect was moderated by political interest. EU’s popularity was increased for moderately interested individuals and individuals low in political interest. No effects were detected for highly interested individuals. EU popularity, in turn, increased anti-Americanism. Therefore, Trump’s anti-German utterances indirectly increased anti-Americanism burdening relations between Germany and the United States. Implications for journalistic news coverage are discussed.

Can past intergroup contact shape support for policies in a pandemic? Processes predicting endorsement of discriminatory Chinese restrictions during the COVID-19 crisis

A survey of 340 UK residents was conducted when the COVID-19 virus first reached the UK in February 2020. We measured past experiences of positive and negative intergroup contact with Chinese people as predictors of intergroup threat and emotions in the context of the pandemic; and how these processes in turn predicted support for discriminatory policies designed to restrict the freedom of Chinese people in the UK. We tested a novel threat-matching hypothesis which draws upon models of outgroup-specific social perception to predict that the emotional processes underlying contact effects will depend on the specific threat posed by the outgroup. In the present epidemiological context, Chinese people posed a salient threat to individuals’ physical health and welfare. Accordingly, we show that whilst intergroup contact predicted both fear and anger towards the outgroup, the indirect effect of contact on support for Chinese restriction policies via fear was significantly stronger than the indirect effect via anger. Our findings provide a more nuanced understanding of how specific threat and emotions drive intergroup contact effects, and offer important insights for efforts to maintain positive intergroup relations in the face of the crisis.

Multi-ethnicity as a moderator of contextual effects on tolerance: The case of Hong Kong

ABSTRACT Grounded in intergroup threat theory, much research has illustrated the negative impact of the contextual presence of ethnic minorities construed as threats by the mainstream society on racial attitudes. This study examines the possibility that the presence of other “non-threatening” ethnic minorities could undermine such negative impact. We contend that the presence of genuine diversity can promote multicultural experiences and reduce people’s tendency to single out specific ethnic groups as threatening. Analysis of telephone survey (N = 2407) and government by-census data in Hong Kong shows that proportion of district residents being South Asians and proportion of district residents using Mandarin as their usual spoken language were associated with lower levels of social and political tolerance when proportion of district residents being other ethnic minorities was low. The negative impact became weaker when proportion of other ethnic minorities increased. The pattern of results was more conspicuous among less educated citizens.

‘The Boat is full!’: predictors of perceived migrant group size and perceived right to stay for immigrants (‘¡El barco está lleno!’: predictores del tamaño percibido de los grupos migrantes y de su derecho a residir en el país)

ABSTRACT Predictors of perceived population size and perceived right to reside in the UK were tested for immigrants to Britain. Two studies explored psychological responses of British respondents to immigration to the UK. A questionnaire study examined responses towards migrants living in the UK from India, Poland and Syria (Study 1, N = 136). In this study, perceived intergroup similarity and intergroup threat predicted intergroup affect, which in turn predicted estimates of the migrant group size and the perceived right of the migrants to reside in the UK. Study 2 (N = 126) was an experiment which manipulated similarity and threat, and elicited responses towards a fictional migrant group, to get a better handle on the causal direction of effects observed in Study 1. Taken together, the studies showed that perceived population size and perceived right to reside in Britain were predicted by intergroup similarity, threat and affect.

Do Intergroup Threats Provoke Intergroup Anxiety? An Experimental Study on Chinese Ethnic Group in Indonesia

Through an online experiment, this study examines the role of intergroup threat on intergroup anxiety in Indonesian Chinese ethnic group, by considering the moderating role of positive intergroup contact. The posttest-only randomized experimental design was used in this study. Sixtyfour Chinese Indonesian college students (male = 31, female = 33) were randomly assigned into treatment group (male = 14, female = 18) and control group (male = 17, female= 15). All participants were first asked to complete a positive intergroup contact scale. Following this, participants in the treatment group were asked to read threat-inducing reading passages, while those in the control group were given neutral reading passages. They then were asked to complete a manipulation check and intergroup anxiety scale. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). Results showed that when positive intergroup contact was controlled, intergroup threat significantly affected intergroup anxiety but in the direction opposing the hypothesis. Instead of showing higher intergroup anxiety, the experimental group showed lower intergroup anxiety compared to the control group. An interview on a few participants was conducted to explore possible explanations of this result.

Good refugees, bad migrants? Intergroup helping orientations toward refugees, migrants, and economic migrants in Germany

AbstractThe present study examined the effect of group labels on helping behavioral intentions toward displaced people in Germany. Specifically, it examined the impact of different labels evoking either voluntary or forced migration (i.e., migrants, economic migrants, and refugees) on different helping orientations (e.g., dependency vs. autonomy‐oriented helping) and if these effects occur via perceived intergroup threat, warmth and competence stereotypes. Participants (N = 304) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions (refugee vs. migrant vs. economic migrant) and read fabricated case vignettes, featuring a displaced person who arrived in Germany recently. Results showed that, as predicted, the use of different group labels affected the helping orientations of host society members, as well as, the stereotypes they held. No significant label effects were found for intergroup threat. While the label refugee evoked dependency‐oriented helping intentions and triggered paternalistic stereotypes, the label economic migrants increased opposition to help, decreased help affirmation and evoked envious stereotypes. Practical implications to strengthen peaceful intergroup relations between host society members and newcomers are discussed.

Concerns About Automation and Negative Sentiment Toward Immigration

Across 12 studies (N = 31,581), we examined how concerns about the rise of automation may be associated with attitudes toward immigrants. Studies 1a to 1g used archival data ranging from 1986 to 2017 across both the United States and Europe to demonstrate a robust association between concerns about automation and more negative attitudes toward immigrants. Studies 2a, 2b, 2c, and 3 employed both correlational and experimental methods to demonstrate that people’s concerns about automation are linked to increased support for restrictive immigration policies. These studies show this association to be mediated by perceptions of both realistic and symbolic intergroup threat. Finally, Study 4 experimentally demonstrated that automation may lead to more discriminatory behavior toward immigrants in the context of layoffs. Together, these results suggest that concerns about automation correspond to perceptions of threat and competition with immigrants as well as consequent anti-immigration sentiment.

Building bridges in police-youth relations through experiential peacebuilding: how reduced threat and increased humanization impact racialized structural and direct violence in Baltimore

ABSTRACT In the United States, trust in law enforcement is plummeting alongside increased crime rates and police-involved killings, primarily of unarmed black men, making this social issue of imminent importance. Moreover, globally, security actor reform and relationship-building between communities and security forces is essential to post-conflict reconstruction and violence prevention. This research examines Outward Bound’s Police Youth Challenge (PYC) program with officers and youth in Baltimore to assess the long-term impact of encounter-based peace education programs that use experiential peacebuilding to bridge divides between youth and security actors. To achieve this goal, interviews, focus groups, and observations were conducted with youth, officers, and key informants, and we conducted analysis of secondary data collected by Outward Bound and external evaluators. We found that PYC reduced intergroup anxiety and threat through building trust and facilitating mutual humanization between the youth and officers, which countered officers’ meta-dehumanization. However, challenges arose in participants generalizing these attitudes to the broader population outside of the contact situation. Consequently, we recommend follow-on activities to sustain transformations and promote their generalization to other out-group members. These findings suggest the importance of utilizing experiential peacebuilding to improve attitudes and relationships between security actors and the local populations they police.

Intergroup Threat as a Mediator of Ethnic Identification and Intergroup Orientations

In Croatia, four minority groups practice their right to education in their respective mother tongues. Relations between the majority and minority groups in the four multiethnic communities have developed under different historical circumstances. Thus, in some regions the different language of the minority and the majority group can be perceived as a threat to identity and result in intergroup prejudice and discrimination, whereas in others it might not. In this study, we wanted to examine: (a) the mediating effect of perceived threat on the relationship between in-group identification and intergroup orientation, (b) whether those relationships are moderated by the group status, and (c) contextual specificities, that is, we wanted to test the model in four different contexts. Results showed that ethnonationalism (rather than ethnic identity) is detrimental for intergroup relations, partially due to its connection to the perception of the out-group as a threat. Model tests in different contexts revealed some contextual differences.

Introducing the Sociopolitical Motive × Intergroup Threat Model to Understand How Monoracial Perceivers’ Sociopolitical Motives Influence Their Categorization of Multiracial People

Researchers have used social dominance, system justification, authoritarianism, and social identity theories to understand how monoracial perceivers’ sociopolitical motives influence their categorization of multiracial people. The result has been a growing understanding of how particular sociopolitical motives and contexts affect categorization, without a unifying perspective to integrate these insights. We review evidence supporting each theory’s predictions concerning how monoracial perceivers categorize multiracial people who combine their ingroup with an outgroup, with attention to the moderating role of perceiver group status. We find most studies cannot arbitrate between theories of categorization and reveal additional gaps in the literature. To advance this research area, we introduce the sociopolitical motive × intergroup threat model of racial categorization that (a) clarifies which sociopolitical motives interact with which intergroup threats to predict categorization and (b) highlights the role of perceiver group status. Furthermore, we consider how our model can help understand phenomena beyond multiracial categorization.

Proportion of Foreigners Negatively Predicts the Prevalence of Xenophobic Hate Crimes within German Districts

Statistics show that the increase in the number of refugees to Germany since 2015 was accompanied by an increase in xenophobic hate crimes. We deduced rivaling predictions from intergroup contact and intergroup threat theories that could explain the occurrence of xenophobic hate crimes. By combining structural data of the 402 German districts with the 2015 police crime statistics, we found evidence to support our predictions that aligns with intergroup contact theory: the higher the proportion of foreigners in a district, the lower the prevalence of xenophobic hate crimes. Our analyses further show that the prevalence of xenophobic hate crime attacks was positively related to the total prevalence of registered criminal offenses in a district and was higher in eastern German districts.

Are religious people intolerant?

Abstract The central question in this article is: ‘Are committed young Catholics, Protestants, Muslims and humanists in the Netherlands and Flanders intolerant towards other groups?’ To answer this question, we analyse survey data and interviews collected in this research population. We first look at intergroup attitudes, which mainly show a pluralist approach towards the plurality of worldviews. Subsequently, we discuss the levels of religiocentrism and perceived intergroup threat among these young people. Finally, we search the interviews for practical examples concerning interviewees’ willingness to accept a plurality of worldviews in the public square. Although liberal values are dominant, much depends on the specific topic and how it is presented in the media. Generally, interviewees are tolerant towards other worldviews.

Classical and Modern Prejudice toward Asylum Seekers: The Mediating Role of Intergroup Anxiety in a Sample of Italians

(1) Background: Increasing waves of immigration have not only changed the demographic features of European societies but have also had important implications for intergroup relationships. Based on the theoretical model of intergroup threat theory, this study examined whether and to what extent intergroup anxiety mediates the relationship between antecedents and attitudes toward asylum seekers. (2) Method: In a sample of 470 Italians (mean age 30.21), using a survey-based study, we assessed the antecedent of intergroup anxiety (national identification) and its consequences (classical and modern prejudice). (3) Results: The results supported most of the expected predictions. While intergroup anxiety was positively associated with prejudice toward asylum seekers, national identity was positively related to intergroup anxiety and prejudice. Moreover, the relationships between antecedents and consequences were mediated by intergroup anxiety. (4) Conclusion: This study has identified antecedents that can potentially increase or decrease intergroup anxiety and proposes certain strategies for improving social inclusion policies and relationships between asylum seekers and settled communities. The implications for future studies are discussed.

Exploring the Differential Effects of Perceived Threat on Attitudes Toward Ethnic Minority Groups in Germany.

Adopting a differentiated threat approach, we investigated the relationship between cultural, economic, and criminal threat on attitudes toward four different ethnic minorities in Germany (Muslims, foreigners, refugees, and Sinti and Roma). We hypothesized that the effect of different types of intergroup threats on ethnic prejudice varies with the perceived characteristics of minority groups. Using a representative sample of German adults, we found that cultural and economic threat primarily predicted attitudes toward Muslims and foreigners, while criminal threat played a minor role in attitude formation among the majority population. For refugees and Sinti and Roma, all three types of intergroup threats were found to be equally important for the prediction of attitudes toward these minority groups. These results are only partially in line with the culture-specific threat profiles of these minority groups in the German context. Therefore, we discuss the tenability of the differentiated threat approach to explain the genesis of ethnic prejudice in different cultural contexts.

Интегративная социально-психологическая модель оценки и прогнозирования эффективности межкультурного взаимодействия

Objective. Generalization of psychological approaches to the analysis of the effectiveness of intercultural interaction and their integration with related concepts, which will allowing to build an explanatory model for achieving the effectiveness of communication in a situation of intercultural communication. Background. In a traditional models of intercultural competence, the link in which a specific communicative situation is analyzed is missing. For the issue related to the effectiveness of intercultural interaction, the most relevant is a model that focuses on the result of communication — the communicative theory of anxiety / uncertainty management by W. Gudikunst. The combination of communicative and competence-based approaches can bring theoretical analysis to a higher level of understanding and predicting intercultural interaction. This approach describes the process of ensuring intercultural communication as managing uncertainty and anxiety. The socio-psychological mechanisms underlying these processes can be described using the theory of Uncertainty-Identity by M. Hogg and the theory of Intergroup threat by W. Stephan and colleagues. In this case, a comprehensive model using communicative and socio-psychological approaches will allow us to analyze the mechanism by which intercultural competence contributes to intercultural efficiency. Methodology. Systematic approach, method of comparative analysis. Main conclusions. An integrative socio-psychological model for assessing and predicting the effectiveness of intercultural interaction allows us to build an adequate fundamental scientific rationale for studying the effectiveness of intercultural interaction in specific communicative situations.