COST Action IS1205 aims at advancing knowledge and promoting networking among historians and soci... more COST Action IS1205 aims at advancing knowledge and promoting networking among historians and social psychologists to analyse the role played by social representations of history in Europe. Social representations of history are central to the identity of groups that may or may not form the majority in any given country. In Europe, these representations are at best diverse, at worst fragmented, among various national and ethnic groups, either in the same country or across the continent. If left unexplored and unexplained, these social (mis)representations can incite adverse emotions, in turn influencing group behaviours and possibly leading to intergroup rivalry. Bridging the two disciplines through representatives from 28 countries, Action IS1205 addresses this issue by coordinating research on the role of: social cognitive processes in shaping lay representations of history; lay representation of history through the concepts of nationhood and identities; social-psychological studies...
Many European countries have introduced integration programs that oblige immigrants to adopt the ... more Many European countries have introduced integration programs that oblige immigrants to adopt the host culture. Indeed, research has shown that members of national majority groups consider host culture adoption by immigrants as desirable. However, so far, the effect of making host culture adoption mandatory on attitudes towards immigrants has not been investigated. We argue that mandatory adoption yields less positively evaluations than spontaneous adoption. Moreover, we contend that this effect is explained by a lower perception of identification with the host nation by immigrants. Participants received information about an immigrant who either adopted the host culture voluntarily or by obligation. As expected, he was perceived more positively in the voluntary condition, and this effect was fully mediated by perception of national identification. These results highlight the importance of inferred motivations underlying cultural adoption in social judgments about immigrants. Implications for mandatory integration programs are discussed.
We tested the internal reliability and predictive validity of a new 4-item Short Social Dominance... more We tested the internal reliability and predictive validity of a new 4-item Short Social Dominance Orientation (SSDO) scale among adults in 20 countries, using 15 languages (N 1⁄4 2,130). Low scores indicate preferring group inclusion and equality to dominance. As expected, cross-nationally, the lower people were on SSDO, the more they endorsed more women in leadership positions, protecting minorities, and aid to the poor. Multilevel moderation models showed that each effect was stronger in nations where a relevant kind of group power differentiation was more salient. Distributions of SSDO were positively skewed, despite use of an extended response scale; results show rejecting group hierarchy is normative. The short scale is effective. Challenges regarding translations, use of short scales, and intersections between individual and collective levels in social dominance theory are discussed.
Historical figures are often known for specific achievements that are considered as of historical... more Historical figures are often known for specific achievements that are considered as of historical significance. The memory and the perception of the less salient antecedents to these outcomes are likely to be influenced by the knowledge of these achievements. In a study, we varied the outcome of a sequence of ambiguous behaviors performed by an imaginary historical figure during World War II: compared to a control condition where no outcome was presented, this person either ended up saving Jews (heroic behavior) or denouncing Jews to the Gestapo (cowardly behavior). Knowledge of the outcome affected memory and communication about these antecedents were assessed one week later. Behavioral antecedents that were consistent with the outcome were likely to be recalled and communicated. Participants also fall prey to a "hindsight'" bias i.e., they believed that the salient behavior was more predictable than it actually was in the control condition. We suggest that these find...
The present study examines current social representations associated with the origins of the Grea... more The present study examines current social representations associated with the origins of the Great War, a major event that has profoundly affected Europe. A survey conducted in 20 European countries (N = 1906 students in social sciences) shows a high consensus: The outbreak of the war is attributed to the warring nations’ leaders while the responsibility of the populations is minimized. Building on the concept of social representation of history (Liu & Hilton, 2005), we suggest that the social representations of the Great War fulfill social psychological functions in contemporary Europe. We suggest that WWI may function as a charter for European integration. Their content also suggests a desire to distinguish a positively valued ingroup ("the people") from powerful elites, construed as an outgroup.
COST Action IS1205 aims at advancing knowledge and promoting networking among historians and soci... more COST Action IS1205 aims at advancing knowledge and promoting networking among historians and social psychologists to analyse the role played by social representations of history in Europe. Social representations of history are central to the identity of groups that may or may not form the majority in any given country. In Europe, these representations are at best diverse, at worst fragmented, among various national and ethnic groups, either in the same country or across the continent. If left unexplored and unexplained, these social (mis)representations can incite adverse emotions, in turn influencing group behaviours and possibly leading to intergroup rivalry. Bridging the two disciplines through representatives from 28 countries, Action IS1205 addresses this issue by coordinating research on the role of: social cognitive processes in shaping lay representations of history; lay representation of history through the concepts of nationhood and identities; social-psychological studies...
Many European countries have introduced integration programs that oblige immigrants to adopt the ... more Many European countries have introduced integration programs that oblige immigrants to adopt the host culture. Indeed, research has shown that members of national majority groups consider host culture adoption by immigrants as desirable. However, so far, the effect of making host culture adoption mandatory on attitudes towards immigrants has not been investigated. We argue that mandatory adoption yields less positively evaluations than spontaneous adoption. Moreover, we contend that this effect is explained by a lower perception of identification with the host nation by immigrants. Participants received information about an immigrant who either adopted the host culture voluntarily or by obligation. As expected, he was perceived more positively in the voluntary condition, and this effect was fully mediated by perception of national identification. These results highlight the importance of inferred motivations underlying cultural adoption in social judgments about immigrants. Implications for mandatory integration programs are discussed.
We tested the internal reliability and predictive validity of a new 4-item Short Social Dominance... more We tested the internal reliability and predictive validity of a new 4-item Short Social Dominance Orientation (SSDO) scale among adults in 20 countries, using 15 languages (N 1⁄4 2,130). Low scores indicate preferring group inclusion and equality to dominance. As expected, cross-nationally, the lower people were on SSDO, the more they endorsed more women in leadership positions, protecting minorities, and aid to the poor. Multilevel moderation models showed that each effect was stronger in nations where a relevant kind of group power differentiation was more salient. Distributions of SSDO were positively skewed, despite use of an extended response scale; results show rejecting group hierarchy is normative. The short scale is effective. Challenges regarding translations, use of short scales, and intersections between individual and collective levels in social dominance theory are discussed.
Historical figures are often known for specific achievements that are considered as of historical... more Historical figures are often known for specific achievements that are considered as of historical significance. The memory and the perception of the less salient antecedents to these outcomes are likely to be influenced by the knowledge of these achievements. In a study, we varied the outcome of a sequence of ambiguous behaviors performed by an imaginary historical figure during World War II: compared to a control condition where no outcome was presented, this person either ended up saving Jews (heroic behavior) or denouncing Jews to the Gestapo (cowardly behavior). Knowledge of the outcome affected memory and communication about these antecedents were assessed one week later. Behavioral antecedents that were consistent with the outcome were likely to be recalled and communicated. Participants also fall prey to a "hindsight'" bias i.e., they believed that the salient behavior was more predictable than it actually was in the control condition. We suggest that these find...
The present study examines current social representations associated with the origins of the Grea... more The present study examines current social representations associated with the origins of the Great War, a major event that has profoundly affected Europe. A survey conducted in 20 European countries (N = 1906 students in social sciences) shows a high consensus: The outbreak of the war is attributed to the warring nations’ leaders while the responsibility of the populations is minimized. Building on the concept of social representation of history (Liu & Hilton, 2005), we suggest that the social representations of the Great War fulfill social psychological functions in contemporary Europe. We suggest that WWI may function as a charter for European integration. Their content also suggests a desire to distinguish a positively valued ingroup ("the people") from powerful elites, construed as an outgroup.
This international conference is organized in the framework of Cost Action IS1205 “Social Psychol... more This international conference is organized in the framework of Cost Action IS1205 “Social Psychological dynamics of historical representations in the enlarged European Union” (http://costis1205.wix.com/home). The conference is hosted and organized by the Department of Psychology, University of Limerick, in collaboration with the Department of History and the Centre for Irish-German Studies, from University of Limerick.
This conference has 3 main objectives:
- To create interdisciplinary dialogue between participants from different fields (particularly between social psychologists and historians) and national contexts,
- To disseminate research findings on core themes of interest: the interplay between social representations of history or collective memories, social identities, and intergroup relations
- To generate knowledge and discussions between academics and stakeholders on relevant research findings regarding national histories, political mobilization, psychological resistance, coping mechanisms, and the transmission of collective memories.
Invited keynote speakers are internationally renowned experts:
Prof. Dr. Nyla Branscombe, Pioneer in social psychological approaches to history based collective emotions, Department of Psychology, University of Kansas, USA
Prof. Dr. Maria Grever, Director of the Center for Historical Culture, Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Dr. Brigitte Sion, Performance Studies and Memorial Practices, and Associate researcher at the Switzerland Global Studies Institute, University of Geneva.
Submissions are invited for oral or poster presentations
Deadline for the submission of abstracts: 20 March 2016-03-02
Groups that perceive themselves as victims can engage in “competitive victimhood”. We propose tha... more Groups that perceive themselves as victims can engage in “competitive victimhood”. We propose that, in some societal circumstances, this competition bears on the recognition of past sufferings – rather than on their relative severity –, fostering negative intergroup attitudes. Three studies are presented. Study 1, a survey among Sub-Saharan African immigrants in Belgium (N=127), showed that a sense of collective victimhood was associated with more secondary anti-Semitism. This effect was mediated by a sense of lack of victimhood recognition, then by the belief that this lack of recognition was due to that of Jews’ victimhood, but not by competition over the severity of the sufferings. Study 2 replicated this mediation model among Muslim immigrants (N=125). Study 3 experimentally demonstrated the negative effect of the unequal recognition of groups’ victimhood on intergroup attitudes in a fictional situation involving psychology students (N=183). Overall, these studies provide evidence that struggle for victimhood recognition can foster intergroup conflict.
Many European countries have introduced integration programs that oblige immigrants to adopt the ... more Many European countries have introduced integration programs that oblige immigrants to adopt the host culture. Indeed, research has shown that members of national majority groups consider host culture adoption by immigrants as desirable. However, so far, the effect of making host culture adoption mandatory on attitudes towards immigrants has not been investigated. We argue that mandatory adoption yields less positively evaluations than spontaneous adoption. Moreover, we contend that this effect is explained by a lower perception of identification with the host nation by immigrants. Participants received information about an immigrant who either adopted the host culture voluntarily or by obligation. As expected, he was perceived more positively in the voluntary condition, and this effect was fully mediated by perception of national identification. These results highlight the importance of inferred motivations underlying cultural adoption in social judgments about immigrants. Implications for mandatory integration programs are discussed.
Au-delà des problématiques liées à l'accueil des demandeurs d'asile, l'intégration de ces populat... more Au-delà des problématiques liées à l'accueil des demandeurs d'asile, l'intégration de ces populations apparait comme le prochain défi posé aux sociétés européennes. Or, aucune recherche empirique ne s'est penchée sur les perspectives d'intégration envisagées par ces demandeurs d'asile. Au regard de ce manque et de l'urgence sociale, nous avons mené une enquête par questionnaire entre octobre et décembre 2015 auprès de 103 demandeurs d'asile syriens et irakiens afin de mettre en évidence leurs préférences acculturatives ainsi que les facteurs influençant ces attitudes. Suivant les cadres théoriques de Berry (1980) et de Bourhis, Moïse, Perreault et Senécal (1997), nous nous sommes intéressés à leurs attitudes concernant le maintien de leur culture d'origine, la participation à la société d'accueil et l'adoption de la culture d'accueil. Dans l'analyse des facteurs pouvant influencer ces préférences, nous nous attendions à ce que leur perception des attentes du pays d'accueil influence leur choix acculturatif dans la mesure où le futur de ces demandeurs d'asile est suspendu à l'obtention du statut de réfugié délivré par la société d'accueil. De plus, étant donné la nature forcée de leur migration, nous nous sommes intéressés à l'influence de leur volonté de s'implanter durablement au sein du pays d'accueil comme prédicteur des préférences acculturatives. Les résultats ont tout d'abord montré une intention de maintenir leur culture d'origine, d'adopter la culture et de participer à la société d'accueil. Ensuite, à travers des analyses de régressions multiples, nous avons pu corroborer nos hypothèses suggérant un rôle singulier des intentions migratoires et des perceptions des attentes du pays d'accueil. Plus ceux-ci percevaient des attentes de maintien ou d'adoption culturelle, plus ils étaient enclins à vouloir respectivement maintenir ou adopter. Les résultats soulignent également une relation positive entre le désir de s'installer durablement et la volonté tant de participer à la société que d'adopter la culture d'accueil. Du point de vue méthodologique, cette étude a fait l'objet de nombreuses précautions afin de minimiser l'effet de la désirabilité sociale (p. ex. les questionnaires ont été distribués par des personnes d'origine syrienne ou irakienne). Finalement, les implications de l'étude sur les politiques d'intégration et notamment sur l'implantation de parcours d'intégration contraignant l'acculturation des demandeurs d'asile sont discutées. Pour voir les slides de la présentation :
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This conference has 3 main objectives:
- To create interdisciplinary dialogue between participants from different fields (particularly between social psychologists and historians) and national contexts,
- To disseminate research findings on core themes of interest: the interplay between social representations of history or collective memories, social identities, and intergroup relations
- To generate knowledge and discussions between academics and stakeholders on relevant research findings regarding national histories, political mobilization, psychological resistance, coping mechanisms, and the transmission of collective memories.
Invited keynote speakers are internationally renowned experts:
Prof. Dr. Nyla Branscombe, Pioneer in social psychological approaches to history based collective emotions, Department of Psychology, University of Kansas, USA
Prof. Dr. Maria Grever, Director of the Center for Historical Culture, Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Dr. Brigitte Sion, Performance Studies and Memorial Practices, and Associate researcher at the Switzerland Global Studies Institute, University of Geneva.
Submissions are invited for oral or poster presentations
Deadline for the submission of abstracts: 20 March 2016-03-02
Deadline for registration: 25 May 2016