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Perceived normative pressure and majority adolescents' implicit and explicit attitudes towards immigrants
Tuuli Anna Mähönen1, Inga Jasinskaja-Lahti, Karmela Liebkind
1Department of Social Psychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland. tuuli-anna.mahonen@helsinki.fi
Summary
Perceived social pressure from family and friends influences adolescents' explicit attitudes toward immigrants. When social pressure is low, implicit attitudes predict explicit ones; when high, explicit attitudes are more positive regardless of implicit bias.
Area of Science:
- Social Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Sociology
Background:
- Adolescents' intergroup attitudes are shaped by various factors.
- Understanding the interplay between implicit biases and explicit attitudes is crucial.
- Normative pressure from social circles can influence attitude expression.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the direct impact of perceived normative pressure on majority youth's explicit attitudes towards Russian immigrants.
- To examine if normative pressure moderates the relationship between implicit and explicit attitudes.
- To explore how social expectations influence the expression of ethnic attitudes in adolescents.
Main Methods:
- Survey methodology with a sample of 93 adolescents.
- Measurement of explicit attitudes towards Russian immigrants.
- Assessment of implicit attitudes using the ST-IAT (Single-Target Implicit Association Test).
- Quantification of perceived normative pressure from family and friends.
Main Results:
- Perceived normative pressure positively correlates with more positive explicit attitudes.
- Implicit attitudes predict explicit attitudes only when normative pressure is low.
- High normative pressure leads to more positive explicit attitudes, independent of implicit biases.
- Controlled for age, sex, intergroup contact, and intergroup anxiety.
Conclusions:
- Normative pressure significantly shapes adolescents' explicit ethnic attitudes.
- Social expectations can override or mask implicit biases in attitude expression.
- Future research on adolescent ethnic attitudes should incorporate social normative factors.
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