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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Psychology

University of Massachusetts Amherst

Open Access Dissertations

Theses/Dissertations

Threat

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Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

The Devil's In The Details: Abstract Vs. Concrete Construals Of Multiculturalism Have Differential Effects On Attitudes And Behavioral Intentions Toward Ethnic Minority Groups, Kumar Yogeeswaran May 2012

The Devil's In The Details: Abstract Vs. Concrete Construals Of Multiculturalism Have Differential Effects On Attitudes And Behavioral Intentions Toward Ethnic Minority Groups, Kumar Yogeeswaran

Open Access Dissertations

The current research integrates social cognitive theories of psychological construals and information processing with theories of social identity to identify the conditions under which multiculturalism helps versus hinders positive intergroup relations. Three experiments investigated how abstract vs. concrete construals of multiculturalism impact majority group members' attitudes and behavioral intentions toward ethnic minorities in the US. Experiments 1 and 2 demonstrated that construing multiculturalism in abstract terms by highlighting its broad goals reduced majority group members' prejudice toward ethnic minorities by decreasing the extent to which diversity is seen as threatening the national group. However, construing multiculturalism in concrete terms by …


The Role Of Perceived Collective Anger And Fear On Policy Support In Response To Terrorist Threat, Jaeshin Kim Feb 2010

The Role Of Perceived Collective Anger And Fear On Policy Support In Response To Terrorist Threat, Jaeshin Kim

Open Access Dissertations

The current research investigates how the perceived emotional responses of a majority of Americans to 9/11 (i.e., collective anger and fear) affect individuals’ support for governmental policies, in particular, military intervention, anti-immigration policy, and restricting civil liberties. Study 1 found that perceived collective anger was associated with support for military intervention and anti-immigration policy, and that those effects of perceived collective anger on policy support were significantly driven by individuals’ own anger. Study 2 showed that experimentally manipulated collective anger (i.e., exposure to the majority’s anger relative to the minority’s anger) had marginal effects on support for anti-immigration policy and …