Showing papers in "European Journal of Social Psychology in 2015"
TL;DR: It was found that online privacy concerns were not significantly related to specific privacy behaviors, such as the frequency or content of disclosures on SNSs, which demonstrated that the privacy paradox still exists when it is operationalized as in prior research.
Abstract: The privacy paradox states that online privacy concerns do not sufficiently explain online privacy behaviors on social network sites (SNSs). In this study, it was first asked whether the privacy paradox would still exist when analyzed as in prior research. Second, it was hypothesized that the privacy paradox would disappear when analyzed in a new approach. The new approach featured a multidimensional operationalization of privacy by differentiating between informational, social, and psychological privacy. Next to privacy concerns, also, privacy attitudes and privacy intentions were analyzed. With the aim to improve methodological aspects, all items were designed on the basis of the theory of planned behavior. In an online questionnaire with N = 595 respondents, it was found that online privacy concerns were not significantly related to specific privacy behaviors, such as the frequency or content of disclosures on SNSs (e.g., name, cell-phone number, or religious views). This demonstrated that the privacy paradox still exists when it is operationalized as in prior research. With regard to the new approach, all hypotheses were confirmed: Results showed both a direct relation and an indirect relation between privacy attitudes and privacy behaviors, the latter mediated by privacy intentions. In addition, also an indirect relation between privacy concerns and privacy behaviors was found, mediated by privacy attitudes and privacy intentions. Therefore, privacy behaviors can be explained sufficiently when using privacy attitudes, privacy concerns, and privacy intentions within the theory of planned behavior. The behaviors of SNS users are not as paradoxical as was once believed. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
287 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the effectiveness of contact-based interventions for the reduction of ethnic prejudice was evaluated in real-world settings outside the lab, and the results showed that contact interventions not only improve attitudes toward individuals involved in the program, their effects also generalize to outgroups as a whole.
Abstract: The present meta-analysis tested the effectiveness of contact-based interventions for the reduction of ethnic prejudice. Up to now, a meta-analysis summarizing the results of real-world interventions that rest on the intergroup contact theory has been missing. We included evaluations of programs realizing direct (i.e., face-to-face) and/or indirect (i.e., extended or virtual) contact in real-world settings outside the lab. The interventions' effectiveness was tested shortly after their end (k = 123 comparisons, N = 11 371 participants) and with a delay of at least 1 month (k = 25, N = 1650). Our data show that contact interventions improve ethnic attitudes. Importantly, changes persist over time. Furthermore, not only direct but also indirect contact interventions are successful. In addition, contact programs are effective even in the context of a serious societal conflict (e.g., in the Middle East). Although changes are typically larger for ethnic majorities, there is an impact on minorities, too. Finally, contact interventions not only improve attitudes toward individuals involved in the program, their effects also generalize to outgroups as a whole. In sum, social psychology provides an intervention for prejudice reduction that can be successfully implemented in the practical field. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
284 citations
TL;DR: This paper found that negative self-discontinuity was associated with higher proneness to nostalgia and that nostalgia augmented self-continuity and did not exclude demand characteristics as a rival hypothesis.
Abstract: Nostalgia is a resource that functions, in part, as a response to self-discontinuity and a source of self-continuity. We tested and supported this regulatory role of nostalgia in the tradition of establishing a causal chain. In Study 1, we examined the naturalistic association between events precipitating self-discontinuity and nostalgia. Self-discontinuity, especially when stemming from negative life events, was associated with higher proneness to nostalgia. In Study 2, we experimentally induced negative self-discontinuity (i.e. relatively disruptive), positive self-discontinuity (i.e. relatively non-disruptive) or self-continuity (i.e. neutral non-disruptiveness) and subsequently assessed state levels of nostalgia. Only negative self-discontinuity evoked heightened nostalgia. In Study 3, we experimentally induced nostalgia (versus ordinary autobiographical recollection) and assessed selfcontinuity. Nostalgia augmented self-continuity. In Study 4, we experimentally induced nostalgia (versus ordinary autobiographical recollection versus positive autobiographical recollection) and assessed self-continuity. Again, nostalgia augmented self-continuity and did so above and beyond positive affect. Here, we ruled out demand characteristics as a rival hypothesis. Taken together, the findings clarify the role of nostalgia in the dynamic between self-discontinuity and self-continuity and elucidate the restorative properties of nostalgia for the self-system. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
186 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the applicability of subtle cues of being watched in research on social presence is discussed and it is shown that individuals with strong chronic public self-awareness show more prosocial behavior under conditions of watching eyes.
Abstract: In recent years, a growing number of researchers have examined the watching eyes phenomenon (i.e., increased prosocial and decreased antisocial behavior when subtle watching eyes are present in the environment). Somewhat surprisingly, the questions of how and under what conditions subtle cues of being watched operate have been unanswered so far. The present contribution addresses this research gap. In two studies, we document that (a) subtle cues of being watched induce a sense of being seen and (b) chronic public self-awareness moderates the watching eyes phenomenon in that specifically individuals with strong chronic public self-awareness show more prosocial behavior under conditions of watching eyes. The applicability of subtle cues of being watched in research on social presence is discussed.
88 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated whether mental contrasting with implementation intentions (MCII) can benefit time management and found that performing MCII on one's everyday concerns improves time management.
Abstract: Mental contrasting with implementation intentions (MCII) has been found to improve self-regulation across many life domains. The present research investigates whether MCII can benefit time management. In Study 1, we asked students to apply MCII to a pressing academic problem and assessed how they scheduled their time for the upcoming week. MCII participants scheduled more time than control participants who in their thoughts either reflected on similar contents using different cognitive procedures (content-control group) or applied the same cognitive procedures on different contents (format-control group). In Study 2, students were taught MCII as a metacognitive strategy to be used on any upcoming concerns of the subsequent week. As compared with the week prior to the training, students in the MCII (vs. format control) condition improved in self-reported time management. In Study 3, MCII (vs. format control) helped working mothers who enrolled in a vocational business program to attend classes more regularly. The findings suggest that performing MCII on one’s everyday concerns improves time management. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
86 citations
TL;DR: The authors found that low-threshold digital practices such as signing online petitions or “liking” the Facebook page of a group are thought to derail subsequent engagement offline, which may have detrimental consequences for groups that aim to achieve a collective purpose.
Abstract: Anecdotes of past social movements suggest that Internet-enabled technologies, especially social media platforms, can facilitate collective actions. Recently, however, it has been argued that the participatory Internet encourages low-cost and low-risk activism—slacktivism—which may have detrimental consequences for groups that aim to achieve a collective purpose. More precisely, low-threshold digital practices such as signing online petitions or “liking” the Facebook page of a group are thought to derail subsequent engagement offline. We assessed this postulation in three experiments (N = 76, N = 59, and N = 48) and showed that so-called slacktivist actions indeed reduce the willingness to join a panel discussion and demonstration as well as the likelihood to sign a petition. This demobilizing effect was mediated by the satisfaction of group-enhancing motives; members considered low-threshold online collective actions as a substantial contribution to the group's success. The findings highlight that behavior that is belittled as slacktivism addresses needs that pertain to individuals' sense of group membership. Rather than hedonistic motives or personal interests, concerns for the ingroup's welfare and viability influenced the decision to join future collective actions offline. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
82 citations
TL;DR: This article found that global self-investment was a stronger predictor for both convergent measures (e.g., social dominance orientation and authoritarianism) and behavioral intentions than global selfdefinition.
Abstract: Identification With All Humanity (IWAH) relates to higher levels of concern and supportive behavior toward the disadvantaged, stronger endorsement of human rights, and stronger responses in favor of global harmony. So far, IWAH has been conceptualized as a one-dimensional construct describing the degree with which one identifies with all humans as a superordinate ingroup. However, recent group identification models suggest a multi-dimensional model to provide a more differentiated approach toward the understanding of the highest level of social identification. Using principal axis (Study 1) and confirmatory (Study 2) factor analyses, we suggest that IWAH sub-divides into two dimensions—global self-definition and global self-investment. Study 2 revealed that global self-investment was a stronger predictor for both convergent measures (e.g., social dominance orientation and authoritarianism) and behavioral intentions than global self-definition. Finally, in Study 3, we manipulated IWAH to test its causal effect on donation behavior. Participants in the experimental condition, compared with the control condition, showed higher global self-investment, which in turn predicted greater giving to global charity. These findings suggest that two dimensions with different behavioral outcomes underlie IWAH.
80 citations
TL;DR: This paper found that disgust sensitivity predicts political attitudes for issues in several domains related to physical/spiritual purity and pathogen risk, including sexual minorities, immigration, and foreign outgroups.
Abstract: Individual differences in disgust sensitivity have been linked to social attitudes and ideology, but the generalizability of this effect and the nature of the political issues implicated remain unclear. In two studies using large Dutch samples, we find that disgust sensitivity predicts political attitudes for issues in several domains related to physical/spiritual purity and pathogen risk. Sensitivity to disgust was significantly associated with attitudes for a general ‘physical and spiritual purity’ factor, as well as specific issue factors regarding sex and sexual minorities, immigration, and foreign outgroups. Additionally, disgust sensitivity was associated with greater likelihood of voting for the socially conservative “Freedom Party” (Partij Voor de Vrijheid). These results suggest that the tendency to experience disgust influences a specific subset of social and political attitudes across cultures. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
66 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, structural equation models with appropriate research design and theoretically stringent mediation analysis can improve scientific insights, and the importance of non-statistical methods for scientific discovery is emphasized, and they use simulated data to demonstrate that additionally assessing the fit of causal models with structural equations can be used to exclude subsets of models that are incompatible with the observed data.
Abstract: Statistical tests of indirect effects can hardly distinguish between genuine and spurious mediation effects. The present research demonstrates, however, that mediation analysis can be improved by combining a significance test of the indirect effect with assessing the fit of causal models. Testing only the indirect effect can be misleading, because significant results may also be obtained when the underlying causal model is different from the mediation model. We use simulated data to demonstrate that additionally assessing the fit of causal models with structural equation models can be used to exclude subsets of models that are incompatible with the observed data. The results suggest that combining structural equation modeling with appropriate research design and theoretically stringent mediation analysis can improve scientific insights. Finally, we discuss limitations of the structural equation modeling approach, and we emphasize the importance of non-statistical methods for scientific discovery.
65 citations
TL;DR: This paper examined the roles of individual value priorities and of national laws regarding homosexuality and the interaction between them in explaining approval of homosexuality and found that individuals who prioritized openness to change and universalism values approved of homosexuality more, whereas those who prioritize conservation and power values exhibited more disapproval.
Abstract: Although research has revealed a trend toward liberalization of attitudes toward homosexuality in Western countries, acceptance of homosexuality differs remarkably among individuals and across countries. We examine the roles of individual value priorities and of national laws regarding homosexuality and the interaction between them in explaining approval of homosexuality. Data are drawn from the European Social Survey and include representative national samples of 27 European countries in 2010. As hypothesized, individuals who prioritized openness to change and universalism values approved of homosexuality more, whereas those who prioritized conservation and power values exhibited more disapproval. Approval was greater in countries whose laws regarding homosexuality were more progressive. In addition, legal regulation of homosexuality moderated the associations of individual value priorities. In countries with more progressive laws, both the positive effect of openness to change values and the negative effect of conservation values on approval of homosexuality were weaker. However, the positive effect of universalism values and the negative effect of power values did not vary as a function of national laws regarding homosexuality. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
61 citations
TL;DR: The authors explored whether the known preference for default options in choice contexts (default effects)occur in altruistic contexts and the extent to which this can be explained through appeal to social norms and found that participants were more likely to donate money to charity when this was the default option in an altruistic choice context.
Abstract: We explore whether the known preference for default options in choice contexts—default effects—occur in altruistic contexts and the extent to which this can be explained through appeal to social norms. In four experiments, we found that (i) participants were more likely to donate money to charity when this was the default option in an altruistic choice context; (ii) participants perceived the default option to be the socially normative option; (iii) perceptions of social norms mediated the relationship between default status and charitable donations; and (iv) a transfer effect, whereby participants translated social norms they inferred from the default option in one domain into behavior in a second, related domain. Theoretically, our analysis situates default effects within a comprehensive body of social psychological research concerning social norms and the attitude-behavior relationship, providing novel empirical predictions. Practically, these findings highlight that the way donation policies are framed can have an important impact on donation behavior: in our third study, we found that 81% donated half of their earnings for taking part in the experiment to charity when this was the default option, compared with only 19% when keeping the money was the default. Our work suggests that making use of default effects could be an effective tool to increase altruistic behavior without compromising freedom. © 2014 The Authors. European Journal of Social Psychology published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
TL;DR: A study of an outdoor music event characterized as a near disaster as discussed by the authors showed that social identification with the crowd predicted feeling safe directly and indirectly through expectations of help and trust in others in the crowd to deal with an emergency.
Abstract: There is considerable evidence that psychological membership of crowds can protect people in dangerous events, although the underlying social–psychological processes have not been fully investigated. There is also evidence that those responsible for managing crowd safety view crowds as a source of psychological danger, views that may themselves impact upon crowd safety; yet, there has been little examination of how such ‘disaster myths’ operate in practice. In a study of an outdoor music event characterized as a near disaster, analysis of questionnaire survey data (N = 48) showed that social identification with the crowd predicted feeling safe directly as well as indirectly through expectations of help and trust in others in the crowd to deal with an emergency. In a second study of the same event, qualitative analysis of interviews (N = 20) and of contemporaneous archive materials showed that, in contrast to previous findings, crowd safety professionals' references to ‘mass panic’ were highly nuanced. Despite an emphasis by some safety professionals on crowd ‘disorder’, crowd participants and some of the professionals also claimed that self-organization in the crowd prevented disaster.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated the influence of the distinct autonomous and controlled motivational regulations for engaging participants in online and offline support of charitable events for the causes of breast cancer and homeless youth.
Abstract: Using the framework of the self-determination theory continuum, we investigated the influence of the distinct autonomous and controlled motivational regulations for engaging participants in online and offline support of charitable events for the causes of breast cancer and homeless youth. Participants were exposed online to Facebook event pages appealing to helping others. When the often omitted integrated autonomous regulation was included in the model, it was the strongest predictor of supportive intentions. Without integrated regulation in the model, we would have overestimated the relatively minor influence of controlled introjected regulation. Furthermore, rather than one overall measure of autonomous intrinsic regulation, we assessed the differential influences of three separate dimensions (to experience stimulation, to learn and to accomplish). Intrinsic motivation to experience stimulation had a unique influence on online and offline supportive intentions. Such was not the case for the dimensions of to learn or to accomplish. Follow-up meditation analyses of self-reported behaviours confirmed that autonomous integrated and intrinsic to experience stimulation regulations led to stronger intentions to support online behaviours, which, in turn, increased the likelihood of actual online engagement. The findings in a social media context highlight the importance of analysing distinct regulatory styles within the self-determination theory continuum. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
TL;DR: The authors found that ego-depletion might demotivate self-control by making people believe that they are inefficacious in exerting self control in subsequent tasks and found that these effects are only observed among participants who endorse a limited (versus nonlimited) theory of willpower and are more motivated to conserve mental resources.
Abstract: Recent research has found that ego-depletion undermines self-control by motivating cognition that justifies conservation of mental resource. One potential cognitive mechanism is reduction of self-efficacy. Specifically, we propose that ego-depletion might demotivate self-control by making people believe that they are inefficacious in exerting self-control in subsequent tasks. Three experiments support the proposal. First, we demonstrated that (a) ego-depletion can reduce self-efficacy to exert further control (Experiments 1 to 3) and (b) the temporary reduction of self-efficacy mediates the effect of depletion on self-control performance (Experiment 2). Finally, we found that (c) these effects are only observed among participants who endorse a limited (versus non-limited) theory of willpower and are, hence, more motivated to conserve mental resources (Experiment 3). Taken together, the present findings show that decrease in self-efficacy to exert further self-control is an important cognitive process that explains how ego-depletion demotivates self-control. This research also contributes to the recent discussion of the psychological processes underlying ego-depletion.
TL;DR: This paper found that feeling individually deprived (individual-based relative deprivation) mediates the relationship between these two objective measures and self-esteem and ethnic identity centrality, and that belief that one's group is deprived (group based relative deprivation).
Abstract: Although income and inequality (objective measures of deprivation and the distribution of income within a defined area, respectively) predict people's self-appraisals, the psychological mechanisms underlying these relationships are largely unknown. We address this oversight by predicting that feeling individually deprived (individual-based relative deprivation [IRD])—a self-focused appraisal—mediates the relationship between these two objective measures and self-esteem. Conversely, believing that one's group is deprived (group-based relative deprivation [GRD])—a group-focused appraisal—mediates the relationship between these two objective measures and ethnic identity centrality. We examined these predictions in a national sample of New Zealand adults (N = 6349). As expected, income negatively correlated with IRD and GRD; in turn, IRD negatively correlated with self-esteem, and GRD positively correlated with ethnic identity centrality. Moreover, after accounting for between-level variability in income, neighbourhood-level inequality had indirect effects on self-esteem and ethnic identity centrality through IRD and GRD, respectively. Thus, income and inequality independently predicted self-esteem and strength of ingroup identification through distinct mechanisms. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
TL;DR: This article investigated the relation between informal help and subjective well-being and its underlying mechanisms using a cross-national perspective, focusing on two potential mechanisms derived from the self-determination theory and conformity to the social norms literature.
Abstract: This research investigates the relation between informal help and subjective well-being and its underlying mechanisms using a cross-national perspective. We focus on two potential mechanisms derived from the self-determination theory and conformity to the social norms literature. From the standpoint of self-determination theory, helping others is good for well-being if it is intrinsically motivated, rather than driven by the expectation of reciprocity. On the other hand, from the perspective of the conformity literature, helping others is associated with a higher well-being when it is linked to the benefits of social conformity, such as social approval. We tested these hypotheses using the data from a total of 23 countries. The results provided support for both mechanisms. First, we found that the lower individuals' beliefs in reciprocity are, the stronger is the positive effect of self-reported helping behavior on their well-being. Second, helping behavior was more strongly related to life satisfaction in countries where providing help represents a strong social norm (measured with two different cultural indicators). We conclude that both individual- and culture-level mechanisms account for the relation between prosocial behavior and well-being. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated people's reactions to others' misconduct and examined the effect of group membership and the possible threat-reducing function of moral opportunity, the prospect of being able to re-establish the group's moral image.
Abstract: When other ingroup members behave immorally, people's motivation to maintain a moral group image may cause them to experience increased threat and act defensively in response. In the current research, we investigated people's reactions to others' misconduct and examined the effect of group membership and the possible threat-reducing function of moral opportunity—the prospect of being able to re-establish the group's moral image. In Study 1, students who were confronted with fellow students' plagiarism and who received an opportunity to improve their group's morality reported feeling less threatened than students who did not receive such opportunity. In Study 2, students reacted to a recent academic fraud case, which either implicated an ingroup (scholar in their own discipline) or an outgroup member (scholar in another discipline). Results indicated that participants experienced more threat when an ingroup (versus an outgroup) member had committed the moral transgression. However, as hypothesized, this was not the case when moral opportunity was provided. Hence, the threat-reducing effect of moral opportunity was replicated. Additionally, participants generally were more defensive in response to ingroup (versus outgroup) moral failure and less defensive when moral opportunity was present (versus absent). Together, these findings suggest that the reduction of threat due to moral opportunity may generally help individuals take constructive action when the behavior of fellow group members discredits the group's moral image.
Abstract: Previous research has focused on the importance of leaders being seen to be of the group (i.e. to be prototypical of a group) but less on the impact of leaders' own degree of identification with the group. Also, little is known about the combined impact of leader prototypicality and leader identification on followers' responses. This paper reports two studies that address these lacunae. Study 1 shows experimentally that perceived leader identification and prototypicality interact to determine followers' personal identification with leaders and their perceptions of leader charisma. Findings indicate that high identification can compensate for low prototypicality such that high-identified leaders are able to inspire followership when leaders are low prototypical. Study 2 replicates these findings in the field by examining followers' responses to workgroup leaders. In addition, results demonstrate that the aforementioned responses are more pronounced for highly identified followers. The present research extends social identity theorizing by demonstrating that leaders' inability to inspire followership derives as much from their failure to project a sense of ‘we’ and ‘us’ as part of their self-concept as from a failure to exemplify group-typical attributes
TL;DR: This article explored the role of religiosity dimensions, previous contact, and factors in the dual-process motivation model as predictors of explicit and implicit anti-gay attitudes in samples of Muslims and Atheists.
Abstract: Research into the relationship between religion and anti-gay attitudes frequently focuses on Christianity. We explored the role of religiosity dimensions, previous contact, and factors in the dual-process motivation model as predictors of explicit and implicit anti-gay attitudes in samples of Muslims and Atheists. The explicit and implicit attitudes of Muslims were more negative than the attitudes of Atheists. Explicit attitudes were more negative towards gay men than lesbians; implicit attitudes were negative towards gay men but were unexpectedly positive towards lesbians. In regression analyses, religious fundamentalism and extrinsic religious orientations (Study 1), and contact and right-wing authoritarianism (Study 2) were strong significant predictors of explicit anti-gay attitudes. Interestingly, none of the factors of interest predicted implicit anti-gay attitudes. These findings reveal a strong link between Islam and explicit anti-gay attitudes, but suggest that the relationship between religion and implicit anti-gay attitudes may be more complex than previously thought.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors consider the social psychological bases of social media-based collective action and find that Kony2012 action was best captured by an emergent opinion-based social identity.
Abstract: Kony2012 was a viral Internet video that attracted unprecedented online interest in promoting a campaign to arrest the leader of an African militant group. The current research considers the social psychological bases of social media-based collective action. In three cross-sectional surveys (N=304) collected before, on, and after the key action date of 20 April 2012, we consider the nature (opinion based or global) and function (emergent or transforming) of social identity in modern forms of social action. Multigroup structural equation modelling showed that Kony2012 action was best captured by an emergent opinion-based social identity. Moreover, the same factors that predicted Kony2012 action generally also predicted engagement in new repertoires of protest (involving the use of social media) and an observable traditional socio-political action (signing a letter to a government minister). The results suggest that there is no sharp dividing line between traditional and new forms of collective action and that both may be understood as valid expressions of collective selfhood.
TL;DR: In this paper, three generations were compared in a survey of 1226 French-speaking and 1457 Dutch-speaking individuals and they concluded that the current social context has decisive consequences for collective remembrances, which, in turn, impact intergroup relations and political attitudes and choices.
Abstract: Collective memory theories propose that groups' remembrances of their past depend upon their current social situation. In Belgium, a significant proportion of Dutch speakers share a collective memory of past victimisation by French speakers and fight for an ever-larger autonomy of their region. Yet, as the respective economic, political and social situations of the linguistic regions of Belgium recently evolved with a reversal of fortunes, the current experience of younger Dutch speakers does not fit the traditional memory anymore. We thus predicted that the collective memories of victimhood would decline amongst them, thus bringing changes in intergroup attitudes and political aspirations. Three generations were compared in a survey of 1226 French-speaking and 1457 Dutch-speaking individuals. For both groups, younger generations evidenced less regionalist and more integrative positions than older ones. However, these effects were stronger for Dutch-speaking respondents, and for them, collective memory of victimhood mediated the relation linking age and identification with Belgium, intergroup attitudes and political aspirations. We concluded that the current social context has decisive consequences for collective remembrances, which, in turn, impact intergroup relations and political attitudes and choices.
TL;DR: In this article, three studies were conducted to examine the impact of being a numeric majority or minority in Hawai'i and U.S. mainland on the ethnic identity and self-esteem of Asian and European Americans.
Abstract: Three studies were conducted to examine the impact of being a numeric majority or minority in Hawai'i and U.S. mainland on the ethnic identity and self-esteem of Asian and European Americans. Results of Study 1 (N = 214, M age = 19.85 years) and Study 2 (N = 215, M age = 18.20 years) showed that Asian Americans who grew up on the U.S. mainland, where they are a numeric minority, reported higher ethnic identity than did Asian Americans who grew up in Hawai'i, where they are a numeric majority. In addition, ethnic identity was significantly associated with self-esteem for Asian Americans from the U.S. mainland and European Americans from Hawai'i (numeric minority), but not for Asian Americans from Hawai'i and European Americans from the U.S. mainland (numeric majority). Study 3 (N = 88, M age = 18.12) examined ethnic identity and self-esteem among Asian and European Americans who had moved from the U.S. mainland to attend a university in Hawai'i over a 1 year time period. The results showed significant relations between ethnic identity and self-esteem for Asian Americans when they initially moved to Hawai'i, but this relation decreased after they had lived in Hawai'i for 1 year. The findings highlight contextual variations in ethnic identity and self-esteem for members of both minority and majority groups in the U.S. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
TL;DR: This paper found that women's gender identification moderated the extent to which they favored men over women when they advanced in a male-dominated field, pointing to the power of the situation in eliciting this relationship.
Abstract: It is often expected that the first women to advance in male-dominated fields will promote other women who follow them. Two studies test the hypothesis that some women show this expected pattern of promoting women but that others show the opposite pattern, favoring men over women. In two studies, women's gender identification moderated the extent to which they favored men over women when they advanced in a male-dominated field. Specifically, the weaker women's gender identification, the more favoritism they showed for a male relative to a female subordinate. Gender identification did not moderate women's behavior in a context in which women were not underrepresented, pointing to the power of the situation in eliciting this relationship. Implications for the advancement of women in male-dominated fields are discussed.
TL;DR: This article analyzed 5343 posts on the #OccupyWallStreet Facebook event page to identify linguistic markers of shared social identity formation and found that discussants formed a shared identity if they agreed on both the desired change (the injunctive norm, ‘revoke corporate personhood’) and the predefined action (Occupy Wall Street).
Abstract: The Occupy movement made a series of local ‘sit-ins’ in cities across the world in response to financial and political injustices. Prior to the movement's emergence, the Internet provided a transnational forum for people across the world to discuss their opinions and coalesce about the financial and political contexts. Here, we analyse 5343 posts on the ‘#OccupyWallStreet’ Facebook event page to identify linguistic markers of shared social identity formation. Results suggest that discussants formed a shared identity if they agreed on both the desired change (the injunctive norm, ‘revoke corporate personhood’) and the predefined action (Occupy Wall Street). Lines of consensus and dissensus on injunctive norms and actions delineated the development of both affirmational in-group and negational out-group identities. We conclude that online discussion can create both in-groups and out-groups through (in)validating ideas about social reformation and delineating shared psychological spaces.
TL;DR: In this article, negative extended contact and positive extended contact were investigated to predict intergroup attitudes and intergroup self-efficacy in two cross-sectional studies, and positive and negative intergroup contact was found to uniquely predict inter-group attitudes.
Abstract: Knowing that fellow ingroup members have cross-group contact can affect how people think, feel, and behave towards an out-group. Previous research on extended contact focused almost exclusively on positive cross-group interactions, neglecting the fact that extended contact can also be negative. In this contribution, we introduce negative extended contact and investigate how both forms of extended contact predict direct cross-group contact and intergroup attitudes. In two cross-sectional studies (N1 = 286, N2 = 237), we found evidence that positive and negative extended contact uniquely predict intergroup attitudes, and that direct cross-group contact mediates this effect. In Study 2, we also provide initial evidence that extended contact might either prepare for or impair direct contact by changing ingroup norms and intergroup self-efficacy, which in turn influence feelings of intergroup anxiety.
TL;DR: This article found that individuals with a stronger tendency for habitual use of cognitive reappraisal showed both increased global climate change perception and a greater extent of pro-environmental behavior compared with those with a lower tendency.
Abstract: Ecosystems are under pressure due to global climate change. Empirical evidence showing how people can reduce their ecological footprint is needed. It has been shown that a consequence of the perception of climate change is an increase in ecologically responsible behavior, but little is known about the antecedents of this relationship. In two field studies, we examined whether an emotion-regulation strategy (i.e., cognitive reappraisal) predicted both climate change perception and pro-environmental behavior. Undergraduate students at two university campuses participated in Study 1 (n = 299). We found that individuals with a stronger tendency for habitual use of cognitive reappraisal showed both increased global climate change perception and a greater extent of pro-environmental behavior compared with individuals with a lower such tendency. As expected, our results also showed the mediating role of climate change perception in the relationship between people's habitual use of cognitive reappraisal and pro-environmental behavior. These findings were replicated in Study 2 (n = 81) with a non-student sample. Implications for future studies and environmental risk communication strategies are discussed.
TL;DR: This paper examined the influence of people's mind-set (construal level (CL): abstract versus concrete) on their risk-taking behavior and found that abstract CL resulted in greater risk taking compared with concrete CL, which led to lower risk taking.
Abstract: In a series of studies, we examined the influence of people's mind-set (construal level (CL): abstract versus concrete) on their risk-taking behavior. We measured differences in CL (study 1, CL as trait) and manipulated CL (studies 1–5, CL as state) with different priming methods, which were unrelated to the dependent variable of risk-taking behavior (studies 1, 3, 4, and 5: Balloon Analog Risk Task; study 2: Angling Risk Task). In all studies, abstract CL resulted in greater risk-taking compared with concrete CL, which led to lower risk-taking. Risky and safe game strategies mediated the CL effect on risk-taking. A concrete mind-set increased the safe game strategy, whereas an abstract mind-set increased the risky game strategy. Furthermore, different potential mediators were explored (i.e., focus on payoffs and probabilities, prevention versus promotion focus, attention to pros versus cons, and mood). A concrete mind-set increased prevention strategies and a negative mood when compared with an abstract mind-set. In turn, an abstract mind-set increased attention to pros (of an action). Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
TL;DR: This article investigated whether people perceive environmental degradation in Australia, and extend relative deprivation theory by connecting it to the construct of place attachment (PA) at multiple scales, and found that collective environmental behaviours and policy support were more strongly predicted by RD and just one of the PA measures.
Abstract: Global environmental degradation creates and exacerbates social injustices. Using relative deprivation (RD) theory, we investigate whether people perceive environmental degradation in Australia, and extend RD theory by connecting it to the construct of place attachment (PA) at multiple scales. We surveyed 5163 Australians, measuring RD, PA, personal and collective environmental behaviours, and policy support. About one-third believed environmental quality is worsening and felt angry about it. We regressed each of the behaviour and policy-support measures onto the RD and PA measures. Collective environmental behaviours and policy support were more strongly predicted, in each case by RD and just one of the PA measures. RD partially mediated the association between PA and each of the behavioural measures. Responses to global environmental degradation are an admixture of injustice and place attachments at multiple scales. Efforts to promote environmentally relevant behaviours require attention to local and global attachments and identities.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the ways in which players internalize being a player into their self-concept in MMORPGs, and they find that players tend to value and identify with the in-group players more than the outside players.
Abstract: This article investigates the ways in which players of massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) internalize being a player into their self-concept. In accordance with the social identity framework, we assume that being a player and being a member of a guild within the game can both shape the social identity of members. In two studies, we survey players inside or outside the MMORPG. Players are interviewed either at an interguild comparison level or at the more inclusive level of MMORPG players. Study 1 (n = 84) reveals favoritism for the in-group guild in a within-game context, and Study 2 (n = 200) shows that valuation of and identification with the in-group are moderated by the interview context and the level of category inclusion: Inside the game, the guild is more valued and identification is emphasized. In contrast, valuation of and identification with MMORPG players is not influenced by the interview context. Together, by examining both valuation and identification processes, this research reveals that playing online games may be self-involving because being a player, but also being a member of a guild, directly contribute to the social identity. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.