Fein and Spencer (group dynamic in human relationships)

Aim

To investigate whether stereotyping and prejudice increase when self-image is threatened by negative feedback on an intelligence test.

Sample

61 male undergraduate psychology students.

Research Design

Experimental design.

Procedure

Participants received either negative feedback on an intelligence test or a control (test was fake). They then evaluated a character named Greg in a social judgment task. Greg was either "gay implied" (living with an unnamed partner) or "straight implied" (living with girlfriend Ana). Participants rated his personality on a 0-10 scale across various traits, some stereotypical of gay men.

Results

Participants who received negative feedback on their IQ test rated Greg in highly negative and stereotypical terms when he was implied to be gay. If Greg was described as heterosexual, there was no difference in ratings between the groups.

Conclusion

Lowering a person's self-esteem makes them more likely to discriminate. Prejudice may function as a psychological defense mechanism to protect or restore one's own self-image.

Strengths

Controlled experimental design provides strong internal validity and demonstrates a clear cause-and-effect relationship between self-esteem and stereotyping.

Limitations

Artificial tasks and a narrow sample (male psychology students) reduce generalizability. Ethical issues arise due to the use of deception regarding the intelligence test results. Gender bias as males may be more prone to exhibiting aggressive behavior. A follow up interview could give deeper iSight Ito why the boys who were given negative scores gave bad ratings to greg when he was implied as a homosexual.

Theory of threatened egotism def

• Theory of Threatened Egotism: when intergroup discrimination occurs when our own perception of self is threatened 

  • Happens by acting out against an out-group which enables us to feel better, boosting our restoring self esteem 

Connection to Social Identity Theory and Group Dynamics

Social Identity Theory:

how people protect or boost their self-image by putting down an out-group member. When participants’ self-esteem was threatened, they judged a stereotyped out-group member more negatively, which helped them feel better about themselves.

group dynamics

shows how group membership affects behavior and judgment between people.

Overall, the study shows that discrimination can happen when people use an out-group to restore their own self-worth.

Shows that inter-group conflict and prejudice are not just about group competition, but also about individual cognitive needs to maintain self-worth through the putting down of out-groups.