Intergroup Perception and MIE Attit

Intergroup Perception and MIE Attitudes

Perceived Outgroup Entitativity

Research on perceived entitativity – the degree in which a collection of people are perceived as being bonded together in a cohesive or homogeneous unit (Campbell, 1958; Ham- ilton & Sherman, 1996; Lickel et al., 2000) – has illustrated how entitativity is important as an antecedent for inter- group perception (e.g., Spencer-Rodgers, Hamilton, & Sherman, 2007; Yzerbyt, Judd, & Corneille, 2004), and that it may influence stereotype change (Rothbart & Park,
2004). One seemingly common finding is that perceivers possess more extreme or negative evaluations of outgroups when the outgroup is seen as more entitative (e.g., Abelson, Dasgupta, Park, & Banaji, 1998; Dasgupta, Banaji, & Ableson, 1999; Grzesiak-Feldman, & Suszak, 2008). Fur- thermore, the perception of entitative groups may also lead to more distrust and negative impressions of outgroups (Wildschut, Insko, & Pinter, 2004). It may even result in collective retribution, i.e., judging the whole group based on the (mis)behavior of individual group members (Den- son, Lickel, Curtis, Stenstrom, & Ames, 2006). It thus seems reasonable to explore whether the perception of im- migrants as constituting an entitative body may also nega- tively affect majority attitudes toward accommodating im- migrant minorities.


Universal Dimensions of Warmth/Competence

Fiske and colleagues argued (Fiske, Cuddy, & Glick, 2007; Fiske, Xu, Cuddy, & Glick, 1999) that social cognition ap- pears to be organized around two universal appraisal di- mensions, warmth (warm/cold: do members of this out- group intend to benefit or harm me or my group?) and com- petence (ability/inability: can outgroup members benefit or harm me or my group?). Fiske, Cuddy, Glick, and Xu (2002) demonstrated that outgroup perceptions and stereo- types vary along these two dimensions, as do the preferred lines of action to be taken toward outgroups. According to Cuddy, Fiske, and Glick (2007, p. 631), on a general level, outgroup construals along the warmth dimension may “de- termine active behavioral tendencies” (e.g., helping or ha- rassing an outgroup), while perceptions involving compe- tence “determine passive behavioral tendencies” (e.g., ne- glect). It is conceivable, though unexplored, how the two dimensions may structure majority proactive attitudes




when applied to immigrants. The present study thus ex- plores how evaluations of non-Western immigrants along dimensions of warmth and competence are related to a will- ingness to support proactive integration in two “areas”: counterstereotypic information and metaperspectives.

Counterstereotypic Information

Several studies indicate a strengthening of the dominant representation of immigrants as a non-White, “non-West- ern,” and increasingly homogeneous group in Norway, the context of the present investigation (e.g., Gullestad, 2006; Phelps, Blakar, Carlquist, Nafstad, & Rand-Hendriksen,
2012). Furthermore, the Norwegian mass media has been criticized for upholding these immigrant stereotypes and
for not reporting more nuanced information about immi- grants (i.e., information that is also positive) and their ad- aptation to Norwegian society (Directorate of Integration and Diversity [DID], 2009; European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance [ECRI], 2009). Thus, the current nature of the social category “immigrant” may affect will- ingness and ability of Norway's majority members to play an active part in integration.
In the present study we suggest that perceptions of major- ity members of counterstereotypic statements about immi- grants may be assessed along the universal warmth/compe- tence dimensions of social cognition. It is conceivable that the integration intentions of immigrants are construed by ma- jority members as an aspect of warmth indicating good will to adapt to their host society. For instance, Matera, Sefanile, and Brown (2011) have shown that, when majority members perceive immigrants to desire integration, they tend to pos- sess more favorable attitudes toward them. This corresponds with Fiske et al.’s (2007, p. 81) explanation of the warmth dimension at a group level, which suggests that “when a group cooperates with or does not hinder the ingroup, then their intent is seen as friendly and trustworthy (i.e., warm).” On the competence dimension, perceptions of immigrants as unable to integrate may also be associated with prejudice (Goodman & Burke, 2011). Moreover, in the context of the present investigation, the Norwegian media have been criti- cized for their tendency to portray immigrants in a negative and stereotypical manner, which often indicates an unwilling- ness to adapt and inability to contribute to Norwegian society (ECRI, 2009; Gullestad, 2006). Implicit in this critique is the idea that agreement with a more nuanced and counterstereo- typic image of immigrants would foster more positive major- ity attitudes. In the present study, counterstereotypic state- ments about immigrants are therefore framed to assess an aspect of warmth in terms of the integration intentions of immigrants and competence regarding immigrants’ abilities to succeed in the Norwegian society.

Metaperceptions

The majority may also have ideas about the stereotypes held by outgroups toward them. Such metaperceptions

(Laing, Phillipson, & Lee, 1966) may, for example, con- cern a group’s feelings of being liked or respected by an- other group (e.g., Huo & Molina, 2006; Smith & Tyler,
1997), or that they are seen as prejudiced and discriminat- ing (Vorauer, Main, & O’Connell, 1998). In turn, the con- tent of these metaperceptions may guide the behavior of the majority toward the minority. The extent to which in-
tergroup metaperception, i.e., what majority members think immigrants think about them, is linked to the willing- ness of majority members to adjust to immigrants, is also investigated. Moreover, given the assumed universal na- ture of the dimensions of warmth/competence in social per- ception, it assesses metaperspectives on the appraisal di- mensions, warmth and competence.