Framing interethnic ideology: effects of multicultural and color-blind perspectives on judgments of groups and individuals

From Diversity Ideologies to the Expression of Stereotypes: Insights Into the Cognitive Regulation of Prejudice Within the Cultural-Ecological Context of French Laïcité

This theoretical paper examines the context-sensitivity of the impact of cultural norms on prejudice regulation. Granting the importance of understanding intergroup dynamics in cultural-ecological contexts, we focus on the peculiarities of the French diversity approach. Indeed, the major cultural norm, the Laïcité (i.e., French secularism) is declined today in two main variants: The Historic Laïcité, a longstanding egalitarian norm coexisting with its amended form: The New Laïcité, an assimilationist norm. In fact, these co-encapsulated Laïcité variants constitute a fruitful ground to cast light on the processes underlying prejudice regulation. Indeed, it is documented that the assimilationist New Laïcité is linked to higher levels of prejudice as compared to the egalitarian Historic Laïcité. To this day, research mainly explored interindividual determinants of Laïcité endorsements and specified how these endorsements shape prejudice. Crucially, this "indirect-endorsement path" does not account for the more straightforward causal relationship between Laïcité and prejudice. Moreover, recent experimental evidence suggests that the normative salience of both Laïcité norms shape intergroup attitudes beyond personal endorsement. Therefore, in this contribution, we complement previous work by investigating the possible socio-cognitive processes driving this "direct-contextual path." In doing so, we seek to bridge the gap of causality by investigating how the Laïcité norms can set the stage for specific regulatory strategies. Our reasoning derives from an application of the Justification-Suppression Model bolstered by classical work on mental control, modern racism and diversity ideology. From this, we sketch out the operative functioning of two distinct regulation processes: (a) one that prevents prejudicial attitudes but which can have unexpected consequences on stereotyping within the Historic Laïcité context (i.e., suppression) and (b) one that helps realize prejudice within the New Laïcité context (i.e., justification). From this analysis, we discuss the consequences for intergroup relations within and beyond the French context. In particular, we outline the importance of an adequate framing of egalitarian ideologies so that they achieve their goal to foster harmonious intergroup relations.

The Influence of In-Group Membership on Trust in Health-Care Professionals in Kazakhstan

Background:

Trust in providers is key to positive health outcomes. However, perceptions of trust in health-care professionals can vary by population. Factors beyond the immediate behaviors of health-care professionals such as group association may influence perceptions of trust.

Objective:

To examine the possible association of in-group membership and levels of trust in health-care professionals in Kazakhstan.

Method:

We used an online survey including the General Trust in Physicians scale along with demographic questions and a question regarding family members as health-care professionals. Bivariate analysis was used to compare the mean differences between general levels of trust and sociodemographic characteristics. Then multivariate analysis was conducted to examine the association between having a family member who is a health-care professional and general level of trust in health-care professionals among Kazakhstani citizens. Statistical tests were 2-sided.

Results:

A total of 497 Kazakhstani participants completed the survey. In adjusted multivariate regression, participants with family members as health-care professionals scored significantly higher on the trust scale (P < .001), and other factors such as language (P < .001) and interaction term of language and education (P< .05) were also shown to be influential in the general level of trust.

Conclusion:

Further examinations of how group membership influences reported trust levels in health-care professionals in Kazakhstan are warranted. Such studies would be beneficial if trust in health-care professionals is to be understood and improved in order to achieve more desirable health outcomes.

He, She, "They" at the Bargaining Table… Woman, Man or Just Negotiators? A Critical Review on Gender Ideologies in Mixed-Gender Negotiations

In recent years, an important number of studies aimed at levelling the playing field for women and men at the bargaining table. In spite of this, women continue to find themselves largely at a disadvantage when negotiating with a male counterpart. In this review, we focus on a neglected yet potentially important factor contributing to the gender gap in negotiations, namely people's gender ideology. We argue that gender ideology shapes day-to-day negotiations and we offer insights regarding its consequences on the bargaining process. We first present the available contributions regarding gender in negotiations and underline the most significant variables that lead to gender effects in negotiations. We then introduce gender ideology as a potentially important variable in the process and lean upon previous studies to support our claim.

When good for business is not good enough: Effects of pro-diversity beliefs and instrumentality of diversity on intergroup attitudes

Instrumentality-based pro-diversity beliefs (i.e., beliefs that diverse groups outperform homogenous groups in terms of group functioning) have been shown to improve intergroup attitudes. However, such valuing of diversity due to its expected instrumentality holds the risk that outgroups may be devalued in situations when diversity ends up being detrimental to group functioning. Across four experiments, we studied the interplay between instrumentality-based pro-diversity beliefs, actual instrumentality of ethnic diversity, and outgroup attitudes. Our results do not reveal a robust interaction effect between instrumentality-based pro-diversity beliefs and actual instrumentality of diverse groups. Some evidence, however, supports the assumption that instrumentality-based pro-diversity beliefs yielded a weaker positive or even a negative effect on ethnic outgroup attitudes when ethnic diversity was perceived as non-instrumental (i.e., when diversity was perceived as having a negative impact on group functioning). Theoretical contributions, practical implications, and directions for future research are discussed.

Perceiving demographic diversity as a threat: Divergent effects of multiculturalism and polyculturalism

The growing racial/ethnic diversity in the United States can be perceived as threatening to White Americans. The present work examines how interethnic ideologies—different ways of framing ethnic diversity—moderate perceptions of threat and political conservatism among White Americans exposed to a passage about the US becoming a “majority-minority” nation. Across 3 studies, we found divergent effects of multiculturalism and polyculturalism within the context of growing diversity. Priming multiculturalism increased perceived threats to the ingroup’s power and status, which in turn led to greater endorsement of conservative political views (Studies 1 and 3) and warmer feelings toward a conservative political figure (i.e., Donald Trump; Studies 2 and 3); however, these relationships were attenuated and sometimes reversed among participants primed with polyculturalism. We discuss implications for how interethnic ideologies influence White Americans’ threatened responses to increasing diversity.

Learning Empathy Through Virtual Reality: Multiple Strategies for Training Empathy-Related Abilities Using Body Ownership Illusions in Embodied Virtual Reality

Several disciplines have investigated the interconnected empathic abilities behind the proverb "to walk a mile in someone else's shoes" to determine how the presence, and absence, of empathy-related phenomena affect prosocial behavior and intergroup relations. Empathy enables us to learn from others' pain and to know when to offer support. Similarly, virtual reality (VR) appears to allow individuals to step into someone else's shoes, through a perceptual illusion called embodiment, or the body ownership illusion. Considering these perspectives, we propose a theoretical analysis of different mechanisms of empathic practices in order to define a possible framework for the design of empathic training in VR. This is not intended to be an extensive review of all types of practices, but an exploration of empathy and empathy-related phenomena. Empathy-related training practices are analyzed and categorized. We also identify different variables used by pioneer studies in VR to promote empathy-related responses. Finally, we propose strategies for using embodied VR technology to train specific empathy-related abilities.

Bridges or Barriers? Conceptualization of the Role of Multiple Identity Gateway Groups in Intergroup Relations

The modern era of globalization has been accompanied by a massive growth in interconnections between groups, and has led to the sharing of multiple identities by individuals and groups. Following these developments, research has focused on the issue of multiple identities, and has shed important light on how individuals who hold these complex forms of identity feel and behave, and on the reactions they elicit from members of other groups. However, the potential of groups with such multiple identities (e.g., biracials, immigrants, etc.) to affect the intergroup relations between the groups that represent the respective sources of the different identities (e.g., Blacks and Whites, country of origin and country of residence, etc.) has not been examined to date. Accordingly, in this paper, we first systematically explore the potential of groups in which people identify with multiple social categories, or groups that are perceived as such by others, to play a role in intergroup dynamics. Next, we offer a theoretical framework outlining what functions groups of people with shared multiple identities may serve (as bridges or barriers) by proposing how their presence may facilitate or deteriorate intergroup relations. Finally, we present recent empirical research examining how groups of people with shared multiple identities can act as gateways and bridge the cleft between two separate groups that represent the respective sources of their different identities, and discuss the theoretical and practical implications for the field of intergroup relations.

When does activating diversity alleviate, when does it increase intergroup bias? An ingroup projection perspective

The question how intergroup bias can be alleviated is of much theoretical and practical interest. Whereas diversity training and the multiculturalism ideology are two approaches prominent in practice, most theoretical models on reducing intergroup bias are based on social-identity theory and self-categorization theory. This social-identity perspective assumes that similar processes lead to intergroup bias in very different intergroup contexts if people identify with the respective social groups. A recent prominent model based on these theories is the ingroup-projection model. As this model assumes, an ingroup’s norms and standards are applied to outgroups included in a common superordinate category (this is called ingroup projection). Intergroup bias results because the outgroup fulfils these norms and standards less than the ingroup. Importantly, if the diversity of the superordinate category is induced as the norm, ingroup projection and thus intergroup bias should be reduced. The present research delineates and tests how general this process is. We propose that ingroup prototypicality is not only an outcome variable, as the ingroup-projection model originally assumes, but can also be an important moderator. We hypothesize that for members considering their ingroup highly prototypical (“pars pro toto”, large majorities), the superordinate group’s diversity may question their ingroup’s position and thus elicit threat and intergroup bias. In contrast, for members who consider their group as less prototypical (one among several, or “una inter pares” groups), activating diversity should, as originally assumed in the ingroup-projection model, reduce intergroup bias. Three experiments (total N = 345) supported these predictions in the contexts of groups defined by gender or nationality. Taken together, the ingroup-projection model can explain under which conditions activating superordinate-category diversity induces tolerance, and when it may backfire. We discuss in how far the ingroup-projection model can integrate conflicting findings on the multiculturalism ideology.

Perspective-taking increases willingness to engage in intergroup contact

The current research explored whether perspective-taking increases willingness to engage in contact with stereotyped outgroup members. Across three studies, we find that perspective-taking increases willingness to engage in contact with negatively-stereotyped targets. In Study 1, perspective-takers sat closer to, whereas stereotype suppressors sat further from, a hooligan compared to control participants. In Study 2, individual differences in perspective-taking tendencies predicted individuals' willingness to engage in contact with a hooligan, having effects above and beyond those of empathic concern. Finally, Study 3 demonstrated that perspective-taking's effects on intergroup contact extend to the target's group (i.e., another homeless man), but not to other outgroups (i.e., a man of African descent). Consistent with other perspective-taking research, our findings show that perspective-taking facilitates the creation of social bonds by increasing contact with stereotyped outgroup members.

A shared dual identity promotes a cardiovascular challenge response during interethnic interactions

We examined the influence of the social identity representation of an ethnic majority-group member on physiological responses during interactions with an ethnic minority-group member. Before engaging in a collaborative task with a Moroccan-Dutch confederate, native Dutch participants studied the advantages of a “one-group” representation that emphasizes their common Dutch nationality or a “dual identity” representation that simultaneously emphasizes their different ethnic subgroups and their overarching “Dutch” nationality. During the task, cardiovascular indices of challenge and threat motivational states were measured in accordance with the biopsychosocial model (Blascovich, 2008). We found that a salient dual identity representation led to more benign cardiovascular arousal (i.e., challenge instead of threat), but only when the minority-group interaction partner also expressed preference for a dual identity. Results are discussed in terms of the fruitfulness of a dual-identity approach for improving intergroup relations, and the importance of social identity factors for turning intergroup threat into challenge.

An fMRI investigation of racial paralysis

We explore the existence and underlying neural mechanism of a new norm endorsed by both black and white Americans for managing interracial interactions: "racial paralysis', the tendency to opt out of decisions involving members of different races. We show that people are more willing to make choices--such as who is more intelligent, or who is more polite-between two white individuals (same-race decisions) than between a white and a black individual (cross-race decisions), a tendency which was evident more when judgments involved traits related to black stereotypes. We use functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine the mechanisms underlying racial paralysis, to examine the mechanisms underlying racial paralysis, revealing greater recruitment of brain regions implicated in socially appropriate behavior (ventromedial prefrontal cortex), conflict detection (anterior cingulate cortex), deliberative processing (dorsolateral prefrontal cortex), and inhibition (ventrolateral prefrontal cortex). We also discuss the impact of racial paralysis on the quality of interracial relations.