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Perceived entitativity and the black-sheep effect: when will we denigrate negative ingroup members?
Amy C Lewis1, Steven J Sherman
1Breech School of Business, Drury University, 900 North Benton Avenue, Springfield, MO 65802, USA. aclewis@drury.edu
The Journal of Social Psychology
|April 20, 2010
Summary
Ingroup favoritism has exceptions. High group unity (entitativity) can lead to derogating negative ingroup members, known as the black-sheep effect, to protect social identity.
Area of Science:
- Social Psychology
- Group Dynamics
- Social Identity Theory
Background:
- Ingroup favoritism is a common social psychology finding.
- Exceptions include the outgroup extremity effect (outgroup derogation) and the black-sheep effect (ingroup derogation).
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate perceived entitativity as an explanation for the black-sheep effect.
- To understand how group unity influences ingroup derogation.
Main Methods:
- Participants evaluated essays of varying quality attributed to ingroup and outgroup members.
- Perceived entitativity of the groups was manipulated or measured.
Main Results:
- No difference in evaluation between ingroup and outgroup members for low entitativity groups.
- For high entitativity groups, participants showed ingroup extremity, derogating negative ingroup members.
Conclusions:
- Perceived entitativity moderates ingroup favoritism.
- The black-sheep effect occurs when negative ingroup members from highly unified groups threaten social identity.
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