Premium
The impact of superordinate identification on the justification of intergroup inequalities
Author(s) -
Jaśko Katarzyna,
Kossowska Małgorzata
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
european journal of social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.609
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1099-0992
pISSN - 0046-2772
DOI - 10.1002/ejsp.1946
Subject(s) - superordinate goals , disadvantaged , psychology , identification (biology) , social psychology , inequality , social identity theory , legitimacy , identity (music) , social group , political science , mathematics , mathematical analysis , botany , physics , politics , acoustics , law , biology
Previous research on superordinate identification demonstrated the positive effects of such identification on intergroup relations. Our study investigated the hypothesis that superordinate identity increases acceptance of intergroup inequalities among members of low‐status groups. The results obtained from two studies supported our predictions. Superordinate identification increased the justification of unequal funding by members of the disadvantaged group (Study 1) and the acceptance of displaying religious symbols in public places among non‐believers (Study 2). In contrast, identification with the low‐status subgroup decreased perceived legitimacy of unequal intergroup arrangements. The results demonstrate that superordinate identification can have a negative influence on willingness to act in line with subgroup interest among members of disadvantaged groups. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.