Political ideology and American intergroup discrimination: A patriotism perspective

ABSTRACT

In this research we demonstrate the powerful role of ingroup favoritism, rather than hostility, in American intergroup biases. Specifically, we take a novel perspective to understanding the relationship between political ideology and discrimination against ethnic-minority Americans by focusing on the role of patriotism. Across three studies, we show that political ideology is a strong predictor of resource allocation biases, and this effect is mediated by American patriotism and not by prejudice or nationalism. Conservatives report greater levels of patriotism than liberals, and patriotism is associated with donating more to American, as opposed to ethnic-minority American, organizations. We further show that the link between patriotism and partiality to the national group is mediated by stronger “American = White” associations. These findings have important implications for intergroup relations and diversity-related policy issues in the United States.

KEYWORDS:

• Discrimination
• favoritism
• intergroup biases
• patriotism
• political ideology

Notes

1. In the first two studies we attempted to use subconscious approaches to increasing political conservatism based upon previous research. Specifically, in Study 1 we used a mortality salience threat manipulation (Nail, McGregor, Drinkwater, Steele, & Thompson, 2009) whereas in Study 2 we included a cleanliness manipulation by exposing people to pictures of dirty hands (Helzer & Pizarro, 2011). Neither of these manipulations were effective in altering political conservatism and are not discussed further.

2. However, analyses using a discrepancy score computed by subtracting donations to the ethnic-minority organization(s) from the donations to the national organization reveal similar findings.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Crystal L. Hoyt

Crystal L. Hoyt is a Professor of Leadership Studies and Psychology at the University of Richmond. In her primary area of research, she explores the role of beliefs, such as self-efficacy, implicit theories, and political ideologies, in the experiences and the perceptions of women and minorities across a variety of contexts. Aleah Goldin is a MFA candidate at the University of Alabama. She explores conceptions of gender, prejudice, and belief in writing and research. She conducts research in the United States as well as Mongolia.