Chapter three - Implicit Theories Shape Intergroup Relations
Section snippets
What are implicit theories?
Implicit theories are people's beliefs about the nature of human attributes. People differ substantially and meaningfully in the beliefs they hold about human characteristics. While most people may agree on the basic principles that are the foundation of the physical world (e.g., gravity), there is much more variation in people's understanding of the basic principles of the social world—of the workings and characteristics of people and groups. Research on implicit theories focuses specifically
Implicit Theories and Intergroup Relations
More and more research is revealing the important role that implicit theories play in people's behaviors in intergroup settings—the behavior that emerges when “individuals belonging to one group interact, collectively or individually, with another group or its members in terms of their group identification” (Sherif, 1966; p. 12). As ethnic and racial diversity increases in societies like the United States, intergroup interactions become increasingly important and virtually inevitable (Feagin &
Broader Lessons and Implications for Intergroup Relations
Despite the rise in norms of egalitarianism and despite a decline in overt prejudice, intergroup relations have sadly remained threatening and uncomfortable (e.g., Mendes et al., 2002, Richeson and Trawalter, 2005, Shelton, 2003, Shelton and Richeson, 2006, Trawalter and Richeson, 2008, Trawalter et al., 2009, Vorauer et al., 1998). The findings reviewed here bring a fresh theoretical perspective to the study of intergroup relations, enriching our understanding of these relations. Much previous
Conclusion
Research on implicit theories is enriching our theoretical understanding of the nature of stereotyping, bias, and intergroup relations. The practical implications are clear and hopeful. Fostering a belief in the malleability of people and their attributes has the potential to reduce stereotyping, diminish the power of stereotypes, increase intergroup contact, and create a better climate for intergroup relations. Of course, as we academics are fond of saying, more research is needed, and it is
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Does everyone have the potential to achieve their ideal body weight? Lay theories about body weight and support for price discrimination policies
2020, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision ProcessesCitation Excerpt :To our knowledge, all past research on lay theories about body weight has focused on how individuals’ lay theories influence their own weight-related behaviors. More generally, research on fixed-growth lay theories has typically explored individual-level outcomes rather than population-level outcomes (Burnette, O’Boyle, VanEpps, Pollack, & Finkel, 2013; Carr, Rattan, & Dweck, 2012). In the current research, we examine whether individuals’ lay theories influence their support for weight-related policies that would be applicable to the population as a whole, such as Samoa Air’s “pay as you weight” policy.
Romantic relationship and appearance-based rejection sensitivity: A moderated mediation model of self-rated attractiveness and appearance-contingent self-worth
2019, Personality and Individual DifferencesCitation Excerpt :Particularly for ratings related to appearance, self-report measures might be distorted by social desirability. Future research should record individuals' responses via implicit measures (e.g., Carr, Rattan, & Dweck, 2012). Finally, this study utilized only college students who had never been married, which limits the generalizability of our findings.
How lay theories (or mindsets) shape the confrontation of prejudice
2019, Confronting Prejudice and Discrimination: The Science of Changing Minds and BehaviorsEmbedding mindsets in context: Theoretical considerations and opportunities for studying fixed-growth lay theories in the workplace
2019, Research in Organizational BehaviorCitation Excerpt :Two labs simultaneously investigated people’s beliefs about whether prejudice can change, or are fixed and stable. White Americans who held growth (vs. fixed) mindsets about prejudice were more willing to engage in cross-race interactions, more comfortable when anticipating an interaction, opted to sit closer to a Black conversation partner, and exhibited more learning-oriented strategies during cross-race interactions (Carr, Rattan, et al., 2012; Neel & Shapiro, 2012), even controlling for White participants’ assessed level of prejudice. Ironically, minorities perceived the avoidant and performance-oriented interaction style characteristic of those who held more fixed (vs. growth) mindsets about prejudice as indicating racial prejudice, even when their level of prejudice was not in fact higher (Simon et al., 2019).
Interpersonal relationship mindsets and rejection sensitivity across cultures: The role of relational mobility
2017, Personality and Individual DifferencesCitation Excerpt :This two-dimensional framework is different from other domains of implicit theories. For example, growth- and fixed-oriented beliefs about personality and intelligence are generally found at two ends of a continuum (Carr et al., 2012; Dweck, 1999). Therefore, researchers should be mindful about the complexity of growth and destiny beliefs in the interpersonal relationship domain, as well as their different functions in predicting interpersonal outcomes (Knee, 1998).
The role of growth mindset in shaping teachers' intercultural competencies: A study among Finnish teachers
2023, British Educational Research Journal