Valuing high arousal negative states increases negative responses toward outgroups across cultures

Area of Science:

• Social Psychology
• Cultural Psychology
• Intergroup Relations

Background:

• Previous research links experiencing high arousal negative states (HAN) to increased prejudice and harm toward outgroups.
• The role of *valuing* these states, independent of experiencing them, in predicting intergroup harm remains less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether valuing HAN, beyond merely experiencing them, predicts harmful responses toward cultural outgroups.
• To examine the generalizability of this effect across different cultural contexts.

Main Methods:

• Study 1 involved U.S. European Americans (N=227) responding to hypothetical intergroup scenarios.
• Participants' valuation of HAN and their responses to outgroup members were assessed.
• Study 2 replicated findings in Canada (n=162) and Taiwan (n=170) to assess cultural generalizability.

Main Results:

• In Study 1, a higher ideal valuation of HAN predicted more negative responses and a greater perceived appropriateness of harmful actions toward outgroup members.
• Study 2 confirmed that the desire to feel HAN predicted negative intergroup responses across Canadian and Taiwanese samples, despite cultural differences in specific HAN valuations.
• The findings indicate that valuing HAN is a significant predictor of intergroup harm.

Conclusions:

• Valuing high arousal negative states (HAN) is a distinct predictor of prejudice and harm toward cultural outgroups.
• Reducing the societal or individual valuation of HAN may be a viable strategy for promoting tolerance in multicultural societies.
• These findings highlight the importance of considering affective values in understanding and mitigating intergroup conflict.