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Visualizing minimal ingroup and outgroup faces: implications for impressions, attitudes, and behavior.
Kyle G Ratner1, Ron Dotsch2, Daniel H J Wigboldus2
1Department of Psychology, The Ohio State University.
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
|May 21, 2014
Summary
People form distinct mental images of ingroup and outgroup members, influencing social biases. These visual representations contribute to favoritism in impressions, attitudes, and behaviors, even in minimal group settings.
Area of Science:
- Social Psychology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Behavioral Economics
Background:
- Extensive research confirms ingroup favoritism in human impressions, attitudes, and behaviors.
- Minimal group paradigms demonstrate that arbitrary group distinctions elicit significant social biases.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether people form different mental images of ingroup versus outgroup members.
- To test if these visual mental representations contribute to ingroup favoritism.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a classic minimal group paradigm for group assignment.
- Employed a reverse correlation image classification to generate face representations.
- Assessed impressions, implicit attitudes, and trust in an economic game.
Main Results:
- Ingroup faces elicited more favorable impressions (trustworthy, caring, intelligent, attractive) than outgroup faces.
- Ingroup representations showed more favorable implicit attitudes and received higher trust.
- Facial physiognomy of ingroup faces was more associated with trustworthiness.
Conclusions:
- Minimal group categorization leads to distinct visual mental representations of ingroup and outgroup members.
- These visual biases are sufficient to drive ingroup favoritism in social judgments and behavior.
- Mental imagery plays a crucial role in mediating minimal group effects.
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