To whom should I turn? Intergroup social connections moderate social exclusion's short- and long-term psychological impact on immigrants

Homelessness in Virtual Reality: Experiencing Social Exclusion Improves Attitudes and Behaviors Toward Unhoused People

Virtual reality (VR) interventions are receiving increasing attention from research seeking to promote harmonious intergroup relations. Despite this, the effectiveness of VR methods and the underlying mechanisms for enhancing intergroup relations yield mixed findings. The current research examined if a 360° immersive video where participants embodied an unhoused person could improve attitudes and behavioral intentions toward unhoused people by making participants experience social exclusion and its psychological repercussions. The study (N = 210) adopted a 2 × 2 between-subject design where participants were assigned to embody an unhoused or housed person either watching the video in VR (in 3D using head-mounted devices) or in 2D (on a monitor). The study included a followup after 9 days. Results revealed that embodying the unhoused person (vs. housed control) led to increased experiences of social exclusion, need-threat, and negative emotions. These experiences, in turn, were associated with reduced negative attitudes toward unhoused individuals and heightened intentions to engage in charitable behaviors. Notably, the effects on attitudes and behavioral intentions persisted at the followup, with a stronger impact observed for participants who embodied the unhoused person in 3D compared to 2D. The findings suggest that tailoring VR video interventions to elicit social exclusion by embodying the perspective of marginalized social groups can enhance intergroup attitudes and intentions over time. Overall, this research underscores the prominence of VR-based interventions in improving intergroup harmony compared to less-immersive paradigms.

The predictors of social exclusion in Afghan immigrants in Türkiye

Immigrants may experience many psychosocial problems when migrating from a home to a host country, including social isolation. Social exclusion is also important among the problems experienced by immigrants. This study aims to determine the factors affecting Afghan immigrants' perceived social exclusion in Türkiye. Accordingly, a cross-sectional study was conducted on 211 Afghan immigrants (Mage = 30.66, SD = 9), 24% of whom were females. The socio-demographic information form, social exclusion scale, self-esteem rating scale, and life satisfaction scale were used to collect data in this study. The findings showed that Turkish language proficiency, the length of residence in Türkiye, working status in Türkiye, life satisfaction, and negative self-esteem were predictor factors for social exclusion. Considering the results, suggestions to decision-makers and mental health professionals to reduce the perceived social exclusion of Afghan immigrants are discussed.

Passion is key: High emotionality in diversity statements promotes organizational attractiveness

To attract and retain a more diverse workforce, organizations embrace diversity initiatives, expressed in diversity statements on their websites. While the explicit content of diversity statements influences attitudes towards organizations, much less is known about the effect of subtle cues such as emotions. In three pre-registered studies, we tested the effect of positive emotionality in diversity statements on attitudes towards organizations. Study 1 focused on the degree to which 600 European organizations employed emotionality in their diversity statements, finding that although their statements differed in the level of emotionality, on average, organizations avoided highly emotional words. Study 2 (N = 220 UK participants) tested the effect of original diversity statements on readers' attitudes towards an organization, demonstrating that the level of emotionality in the existing statements did not influence positive attitudes towards the organization. In Study 3 (N = 815 UK participants), we thus modified the diversity statements so that they contained high levels of positive emotionality that triggered more positive emotions and resulted in more positive attitudes towards an organization. Taken together, highly emotional words (e.g. passionate; happy; wholeheartedly) are key in diversity statements if organizations wish to increase their attractiveness among potential employees.

Everyday discrimination, co-ethnic social support and mood changes in young adult immigrants in Germany-Evidence from an ecological momentary assessment study

Objective

In the context of international migration flows, Germany is the second largest receiving country of migrants in the world. The aim of this study is to investigate the momentary mood effects of discrimination experiences for young adult immigrants and which social resources can buffer negative effects. A distinction is made between the importance of inter and intra-ethnic interaction partners in processing stressors.

Method

Using an ecological momentary assessment design, first-generation migrants in Germany who had recently migrated from Poland, Turkey or Syria were interviewed three times a day over seven days in June 2021 (N individuals = 976; N observations = 11,470). The timing of the short surveys was chosen at random using a signal contingent sampling method. Participants reported their momentary mood and instances of discrimination, along with information on social support perception and interaction partners during the preceding hour in the context of their everyday lives. Hybrid mixed-effects regression models were estimated and the research questions were tested with three-way interactions.

Results

The results indicate that perceived social support only moderately buffers the negative effect of everyday discrimination experiences on mood. A positive main effect on mood is observed for situational variations in perceived social support as well as for support from interaction partners.

Conclusion

The findings illustrate that being embedded in supportive relationships is important in everyday life, regardless of the occurrence of stressors. Furthermore, the study suggests that the level of perceived support is more important for first-generation migrants than the ethnic origin of the support provider.

On the lowest rung of the ladder: How social exclusion, perceived economic inequality and stigma increase homeless people's resignation

Despite the relevance of social exclusion and economic inequality for homelessness, empirical studies investigating how these issues relate to homeless people's psychological well-being are scarce. We aimed to fill this gap by conducting two quasi-experimental studies on homeless and non-homeless groups. The first study (N = 200) showed that homeless (vs. non-homeless) people presented higher levels of resignation, characterized by depression, alienation, helplessness, and unworthiness (Williams, 2009). The second study (N = 183) replicated the findings from Study 1 and showed that perceived economic inequality could increase homeless people's resignation by emphasizing perceptions of social exclusion. Additional analyses found that identification with the stigmatized homeless group could mediate the relationship between perceived inequality and social exclusion, increasing the resignation. Overall, the results showed that chronic social exclusion of homeless people is associated with higher levels of resignation. Moreover, they showed the role of perceived economic inequality and homeless group stigmatized identification as group-specific mechanisms favouring social exclusion and ultimately worsening psychological well-being.

Intergroup Contact Alleviates Loneliness: The Extensive Effect of Common Ingroup Identity

Purpose

Previous studies show that intergroup contact, through common ingroup identity, has impact on intergroup processes such as reducing intergroup bias, improving intergroup relations, etc. The effect of intergroup contact on individual psychological process (through common ingroup identity), however, needs further exploration. Based on the positive effect of both intergroup contact and ingroup identification on mental health and well-being, this article proposes and tests a new model of individual loneliness reduction through intergroup contact by promoting common ingroup identity.

Methods

A total of 263 majority ethnic members and 275 minority ethnic members from China participated in the survey. Intergroup contact, common ingroup identity and loneliness were measured at three time-points (T1-T3) over an 8-month period. Longitudinal mediation analysis and parallel process Latent Growth Curve Model for mediation are used for the examination of the indirect effect of common ingroup identity.

Results

Longitudinal mediation analysis showed that intergroup contact quality at T1 positively predicted common ingroup identity at T2, and common ingroup identity at T2 alleviated loneliness at T3. Intergroup contact quality at T1 was indirectly linked to loneliness at T3 via common ingroup identity at T2. The parallel process latent growth curve model for mediation confirmed the robustness of the indirect effect of common ingroup identity. In addition, the growth rate of the quality of intergroup contact increased the growth rate of common ingroup identity, but reduced the growth rate of loneliness.

Conclusion

The current study revealed the protectiveness of intergroup contact and common ingroup identity on loneliness, viz., intergroup contact reduces individual loneliness by promoting common ingroup identity, the implication being that intergroup contact and common ingroup identity should be taken into account in intervening process of loneliness prevention so that an individual's physical and mental health could be better safeguarded.

It will (never) stop hurting: Do repeated or chronic experiences of exclusion lead to hyper- or hyposensitive psychological responses?

Unlike one-time lab manipulations of exclusion, in real life, many people experience exclusion, from others and from groups, over extended periods, raising the question of whether individuals could, over time, develop hypo- or hypersensitive responses to chronic exclusion. In Study 1, we subjected participants to repeated experiences of inclusion or exclusion (three Cyberball games, time lag of three days, N = 194; 659 observations). We find that repeatedly excluded individuals become hypersensitive to inclusion, but not to exclusion. Study 2 ( N = 183) tested whether individuals with chronic experiences of real-world exclusion show hypo- or hypersensitive responses to a novel episode of exclusion. In line with Study 1, exclusion hurt to the same extent regardless of baseline levels of chronic exclusion in daily life. However, chronically excluded individuals show more psychological distress in general. We discuss theoretical and practical implications for dealing with chronically excluded individuals and groups.