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The motivation to express prejudice
Patrick S Forscher1, William T L Cox1, Nicholas Graetz1
1Psychology Department.
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
|October 20, 2015
Summary
Some individuals intentionally express prejudice, driven by a motivation to do so. A new scale measures this motivation, revealing its impact on intergroup relations and political choices.
Area of Science:
- Social Psychology
- Attitude Research
Background:
- Current prejudice research often overlooks intentional prejudice, focusing instead on unintentional bias.
- Real-world hate crimes and experimental data suggest some prejudice is deliberate, challenging existing theories.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce and validate the Motivation to Express Prejudice Scale (MP).
- To explore the role of intentional prejudice in intergroup behavior and political decision-making.
Main Methods:
- Development and validation of the Motivation to Express Prejudice Scale (MP) across 7 studies with over 6,000 participants.
- Assessed scale reliability and validity (convergent, discriminant, predictive) for targets including Black people and gay men.
- Examined the influence of normative climates on prejudice expression motivations.
Main Results:
- The MP scale demonstrated good reliability and validity across different versions and target groups.
- Motivation to express prejudice predicted resistance to intergroup contact programs and support for oppressive policies.
- The independence of internal and external motivations to express prejudice varied with normative climates.
Conclusions:
- A significant portion of prejudice may stem from an intentional motivation to express it.
- The Motivation to Express Prejudice Scale is a valid tool for measuring this construct.
- Future research should incorporate intentional prejudice to better understand negative intergroup behavior.