Effects of intellectual humility in the context of affective polarization: Approaching and avoiding others in controversial political discussions.

Affective polarization, the extent to which political actors treat each other as disliked outgroups, is challenging political exchange and deliberation, for example, via mistrust of the "political enemy" and unwillingness to discuss political topics with them. The present experiments address this problem and study what makes people approach, and not avoid, potential discussion partners in the context of polarized political topics in Germany. We hypothesized that intellectual humility, the recognition of one's intellectual limitations, would predict both less affective polarization and higher approach and lower avoidance tendencies toward contrary-minded others. Across four preregistered online-survey experiments (N = 1,668), we manipulated how intellectually humble a target person was perceived and measured participants' self-reported (topic-specific) intellectual humility. Results revealed that participants' intellectual humility was consistently negatively correlated with affective polarization. Additionally, intellectual humility of both the target person and the participants was beneficial, and sometimes even necessary, to make participants approach, and not avoid, the target person. Intellectual humility was more important than moral conviction, opinion, and opinion strength. Furthermore, the effects on approach and avoidance were mediated by more positive expectations regarding the debate, and the effects on future willingness for contact by higher target liking. Our findings suggest that intellectual humility is an important characteristic to enable political exchange as it leads to seeing political outgroups more positively and to a higher willingness to engage in intergroup contact. Implications for intergroup contact of political groups as well as ideas for future research are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Differentiating Between Belief-Indicative and Status-Indicative Groups Improves Predictions of Intergroup Attitudes.

Ingroup bias is often treated as the default outcome of intergroup comparisons. We argue that the mechanisms of impression formation depend on what information people infer from groups. We differentiate between belief-indicative groups that are more informative of beliefs and affect attitudes through ingroup bias and status-indicative groups that are more informative of status and affect attitudes through a preference for higher status. In a cross-cultural factorial experiment (Ntotal = 1,281), we demonstrate that when information about targets' multiple group memberships is available, belief-indicative groups affect attitudes via ingroup bias, whereas status-indicative groups-via preference for higher status. These effects were moderated by social-structural context. In two follow-up studies (Ntotal = 451), we develop and validate a measure of belief- and status-indicativeness (BISI) of groups. BISI showed expected correlations with related constructs of entitativity and essentialism. Belief-indicativeness of groups was a better predictor of ingroup bias than entitativity and essentialism.

What makes people feel respected? Toward an integrative psychology of social worth.

People care a great deal about their social worth in other people's eyes, and social worth is an important factor in many social scientific theories. At the same time, social worth phenomena are scattered across diverse literatures under different conceptual labels, with little correspondence between them. In the present article, we attempt to integrate social worth research by focusing on three core questions: (1) What is the meaning of social worth in a particular interaction or relationship? (2) How do people evaluate their social worth in the eyes of their partner? and (3) How do people react when they are credited with different forms of social worth? According to the theoretical framework we propose, the particular meaning of social worth depends on a person's goals for an interaction, and we draw on interdependence theory to map how different situations afford the activation of different goals. To evaluate their social worth in a partner's eyes, a person judges whether the role they are accorded by the partner satisfies their own interaction goals. This comparison can yield an affirmation, a disconfirmation, or a violation of the person's social worth expectations. A person's reactions to these social worth experiences can be understood as attempts to regulate the situation's interdependence structure following the partner's feedback. We review social worth-related research from different research areas to show the framework's wide applicability and integrative potential. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Multiple categorization and intergroup bias: Examining the generalizability of three theories of intergroup relations.

Research on intergroup bias usually focuses on a single dimension of social categorization. In real life, however, people are aware of others' multiple group memberships and use this information to form attitudes about them. The present research tests the predictive power of identification, perceived conflict, and perceived symbolic threat in explaining the strength of intergroup bias on various dimensions of social categorization in multiple categorization settings. We conduct a factorial survey experiment, manipulating 9 dimensions of social categorization in diverse samples from 4 countries (n = 12,810 observations, 1,281 participants representing 103 social groups). The dimensions studied are age, gender, ethnicity, religion, place of residence, education, occupation, income, and 1 country-specific dimension. This approach allows exploring the generalizability of established determinants of bias across dimensions of categorization, contexts, and target groups. Identification and symbolic threat showed good generalizability across countries and categorization dimensions, but their effects varied as a function of participant and target groups' status. Identification predicted stronger bias mainly when the participant belonged to a higher status and the target belonged to a lower status group. Symbolic threat predicted stronger bias mainly when the target was a minority group member. Conflict predicted bias only in few cases, and not only the strength but also the direction of the effects varied across countries, dimensions, and target and participant groups. These findings help to clarify the limits of generalizability of established determinants of intergroup bias and highlight the need for new explanations of social-cognitive processes among minority group members. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Self-Reported Voluntary Blame-Taking: Kinship Before Friendship and No Effect of Incentives.

Inspired by theories of prosocial behavior, we tested the effect of relationship status and incentives on intended voluntary blame-taking in two experiments (Experiment 2 was pre-registered). Participants (N E1 = 211 and N E2 = 232) imagined a close family member, a close friend, or an acquaintance and read a scenario that described this person committing a minor traffic offense. The person offered either a monetary, social, or no incentive for taking the blame. Participants indicated their willingness to take the blame and reasons for and against blame-taking. Overall, a sizable proportion of participants indicated to be willing to take the blame (E1: 57.8%; E2: 34.9%). Blame-taking rates were higher for family members than close friends or acquaintances in both experiments, as expected. Unexpectedly, there was no difference between a close friend and an acquaintance in Experiment 2. Social incentives did not have an effect on voluntary blame-taking in either experiment. Neither did we find an interaction between relationship status and incentives. The results highlight the importance of kin relationships in the context of voluntary blame-taking.

Deep-sea mining: Interdisciplinary research on potential environmental, legal, economic, and societal implications.

Deep-sea mining refers to the retrieval of marine mineral resources such as Mn nodules, FeMn crusts, and seafloor massive sulfide deposits, which contain a variety of metals that serve as crucial raw materials for a range of applications, from electronic devices to renewable energy technologies to construction materials. With the intent of decreasing dependence on imports, supporting the economy, and potentially even overcoming the environmental problems related to conventional terrestrial mining, a number of public and private institutions have rediscovered their interest in exploring the prospects of deep-sea mining, which had been deemed economically and technically unfeasible in the early 1980s. To date, many national and international research projects are grappling to understand the economic environmental, social, and legal implications of potential commercial deep-sea mining operations: a challenging endeavor due to the complexity of direct impacts and spillover effects. In this paper, we present a comprehensive overview of the current state of knowledge in the aforementioned fields as well as a comparison of the impacts associated with conventional terrestrial mining. Furthermore, we identify knowledge gaps that should be urgently addressed to ensure that the world at large benefits from safe, efficient, and environmentally sound mining procedures. We conclude by highlighting the need for interdisciplinary research and international cooperation. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2018;14:672-691. © 2018 SETAC.

Are Liberals and Conservatives Equally Motivated to Feel Empathy Toward Others?

Do liberals and conservatives differ in their empathy toward others? This question has been difficult to resolve due to methodological constraints and common use of ideologically biased targets. To more adequately address this question, we examined how much empathy liberals and conservatives want to feel, how much empathy they actually feel, and how willing they are to help others. We used targets that are equivalent in the degree to which liberals and conservatives identify with, by setting either liberals, conservatives, or ideologically neutral members as social targets. To support the generalizability of our findings, we conducted the study in the United States, Israel, and Germany. We found that, on average and across samples, liberals wanted to feel more empathy and experienced more empathy than conservatives did. Liberals were also more willing to help others than conservatives were, in the United States and Germany, but not in Israel. In addition, across samples, both liberals and conservatives wanted to feel less empathy toward outgroup members than toward ingroup members or members of a nonpolitical group.

Within-culture variation in the content of stereotypes: Application and development of the stereotype content model in an Eastern European culture.

There is little and unsystematic evidence about whether the content of stereotypes can vary within a culture. Using the Stereotype Content Model (SCM) as a theoretical framework, in two studies we examined the content of stereotypes in an Eastern European culture, namely Romania. Data were collected from four regions prototypical in terms of economic and social development in Romania, and we examined whether the content of stereotypes varies across these regions. As expected, the findings confirm the applicability of the SCM in Romania to reveal culture-specific stereotypes and provide initial support for within-culture variation in the content of stereotypes. We discuss, in particular, possible reasons for two main findings: a strong one-dimensional structure of stereotypes, and regional differences in stereotype content.

Contributions of positive psychology to peace: toward global well-being and resilience.

In this article, we analyze the relationship between positive psychology and peace psychology. We discuss how positive emotions, engagement, meaning, personal well-being, and resilience may impact peace at different levels, ranging from the personal and interpersonal to community, national, and global peace. First, we argue that an individual's positive experiences, personal well-being, and personal resilience, as defined in current positive psychology, may in fact contribute to personal and interpersonal peace but can also entail detrimental consequences for other individuals, communities, and nations. Second, we describe how peace psychology contains traces of positive psychology, especially with its focus on the pursuit of social justice. Third, reviewing and extending the concept of community resilience, we outline directions for further conceptual and empirical work in positive psychology inspired by peace psychology. Such work would do well to transcend positive psychology's current bias toward individualism and nationalism and to conceptualize well-being and resilience at the level of the "global community." This extended "positive peace psychology" perspective would have important implications for our understanding of how to overcome oppression and work toward global peace.

Individual differences in ideological attitudes and prejudice: evidence from peer-report data.

Our knowledge on the personality basis of ideological attitudes and prejudice, while based on a substantial body of research, suffers from a potentially serious methodological limitation: an overreliance on the method of self-reports. Across 2 studies (Ns = 193, 424), we examined associations between the Big Five personality dimensions, Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA), Social Dominance Orientation (SDO), and generalized prejudice, using both self-report and peer-report data stemming from 1 (Study 1) or 2 (Study 2) peer rater/s. Correlational and regression analyses as well as structural equation modeling showed that (a) the associations between personality dimensions, ideological attitudes, and prejudice were largely similar to previous research for both data sources; (b) RWA and prejudice showed a similar level of self-peer agreement to personality dimensions; (c) most of the known associations between personality, ideological attitudes, and prejudice were replicated also when measured by independent methods; (d) peer reports had some incremental validity in predicting ideological attitudes and prejudice; and (e) there was evidence that Openness to Experience and Agreeableness predicted prejudice directly and not only indirectly via RWA and SDO, respectively. Implications for the status of RWA, SDO, and prejudice as individual-difference constructs and for their bases in personality dimensions are discussed.

Dynamics of trust in medical decision making: an experimental investigation into underlying processes.

BACKGROUND: Patient trust in medical decision makers is a crucial facilitator of effective health care. Greater patient involvement in decision making requires improved understanding of how such trust is built, maintained, and lost in medical contexts. OBJECTIVE: The study investigates how trust in clinicians is affected by the 4 main diagnostic outcomes proposed by signal detection theory: true positives, true negatives, false positives, and false negatives. Cognitive appraisals of, and affective reactions to, the decisions were measured to investigate the psychological mechanisms underpinning effects on trust. DESIGN: Members of an Internet research panel (N = 1162) participated in a between-participant experimental study using hypothetical cancer diagnosis scenarios. RESULTS: Overall, correct diagnoses bolstered trust as much as incorrect ones undermined it. Consistent with recent findings in other decision-making domains, trust was not as precarious as generally believed. The influence of decisions and outcomes on trust was mediated through cognitive assessments and affective responses in line with current appraisal theories in psychology. Prior levels of trust in clinicians affected sympathy for doctors, highlighting the role that trust plays in responding to new information. CONCLUSIONS: Trust in (hypothetical) clinicians is sensitive to information about their past diagnostic performance. Greater understanding of the cognitive and affective mechanisms by which this occurs may help maintain current high levels of trust. Further research is needed to examine whether findings generalize to real medical decision-making contexts. Clinicians may want to consider the impact their diagnoses have on trust alongside medical and financial considerations.

Integrating situational and dispositional determinants of job satisfaction: findings from three samples of professionals.

Job satisfaction can be conceptualized as a function of situational conditions, personal characteristics, and interactions between both groups of variables. The authors compared the relative predictive power of these determinants in 3 samples of professionals (total N = 1,065). Perceived job characteristics (qualification possibilities, social support, stress, autonomy, participatory leadership) uniquely explained 7-22% of the variance in job satisfaction, and dispositional factors (Big Five, occupational self-efficacy, work centrality, mastery goals) uniquely explained 8-12% of the variance. Dispositional influences were partially mediated by perceived job characteristics. Interactions between situational and dispositional factors were of little significance. The authors concluded that perceived job characteristics (especially autonomy and participatory leadership) are important determinants of job satisfaction, and neuroticism is an important determinant as well. Highly educated professionals' job satisfaction also seems to be driven by qualification possibilities.

The motivational bases of right-wing authoritarianism and social dominance orientation: relations to values and attitudes in the aftermath of September 11, 2001.

Research suggests that different motivational dynamics underlie right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) and social dominance orientation (SDO). These differences may be framed in the theory of basic human values. RWA may trace back to conservation versus openness-to-change values, and SDO to self-enhancement versus self-transcendence values. Based on a large-scale German survey, associations of RWA and SDO with personal values and attitudes in the aftermath of September 11, 2001, were analyzed. Results indicated that RWA related more strongly than SDO to conservation values and threat-related attitudes toward Islam as an expression of the motivational goals of social control and security, whereas RWA and SDO related equally to self-enhancement versus self-transcendence values and concern for negative consequences of military action as an expression of the motivational goal of altruistic concern. Thus, the motivational bases of RWA and SDO appear to be only partly different.