American Psychological Association, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1(83), p. 26-43, 2002
DOI: 10.1037/0022-3514.83.1.26
American Psychological Association, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1(83), p. 26-43
DOI: 10.1037//0022-3514.83.1.26
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The terror management prediction that reminders of death motivate in-group identification assumes people view their identifications positively. However, when the in-group is framed negatively, mortality salience should lead to disidentification. Study 1 found that mortality salience increased women's perceived similarity to other women except under gender-based stereotype threat. In Study 2, mortality salience and a negative ethnic prime led Hispanic as well as Anglo participants to derogate paintings attributed to Hispanic (but not Anglo-American) artists. Study 3 added a neutral prime condition and used a more direct measure of psychological distancing. Mortality salience and the negative prime led Hispanic participants to view themselves as especially different from a fellow Hispanic. Implications for understanding in-group derogation and disidentification are briefly discussed.