Entitativity and Intergroup Bias:
How Belonging to a Cohesive Group Allows People to Express Their Prejudices
Online Supplemental Material
Daniel A. Effron
London Business School
Eric D. Knowles
New York University
Address correspondence to the first author at deffron@london.edu
ENTITATIVITY AND INTERGROUP BIAS: ONLINE SUPPLEMENT
Appendix A
Measure of the Social Acceptability of Bias
Note: the groups shown in square brackets were varied depending on the study and
condition.
How socially acceptable is it for a [Black American] …
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to tell a joke that plays on negative stereotypes of [Asian Americans]?
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employer to prefer not to hire [Asian Americans]?
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to prefer that her child not marry an [Asian American]?
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to prefer not to associate with [Asian Americans]?
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to make a prejudicial remark about [Asian Americans]?
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to believe that [Black Americans] are superior to [Asian Americans]?
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to avoid shopping at stores owned by [Asian Americans]?
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Appendix B:
Pilot Test of the Group-Type Manipulation Used in Study 3
To test our assumption that a group’s collective interests are more plausibly
threatened by a group of the same type than a group of a different type, we recruited a new
sample of MTurk participants (N = 92 after excluding 10 participants who failed at least one
of the two attention checks, used in the main study). They read about the “Ebbites,” described
as either a religious group composed of a variety of ethnicities, or an ethnic group composed
of a variety of religions. Then they indicated the likelihood that the Ebbites could be
threatened by each of two outgroups: a religious group and an ethnic group. Specifically, they
used 5-point scales (not at all to extremely) to rate the plausibility that the relevant outgroup
“would be in direct competition with the Ebbites,” and “threaten the Ebbites’ interests,” as
well as the likelihood that it would “try to take the Ebbites’ resources” and “would interfere
with the Ebbites’ goals.” These four items formed a reliable composite for both the religious
and the ethnic group (s > .95).
Analysis of this measure showed that the Ebbites’ collective interests seemed more
plausibly threatened by an outgroup of the same type (i.e., when both groups were religious
or both were ethic; M = 3.15, SD = 1.05) than by an outgroup of a different type (i.e., when
one was ethnic and one was religious, M = 2.42, SD = .98), paired t(91) = 5.13, p < .0001, d =
.72. (This effect was significant regardless of whether the Ebbites were a religious or an
ethnic group, but it was larger when they were a religious group, d = 1.09, p < .0001, than
when they were an ethnic group, d = .34, p = .04). Thus, the group-type manipulation had the
intended effect.
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Appendix C:
Text of Articles Used in Study 6 to Manipulate Perceptions of Whites’ Entitativity
High-Entitativity Condition
White Americans: A Cohesive Cultural Group
By CRAIG ROBERTS
Published: February 18, 2013
The American Sociological Association (ASA) has conducted an in-depth study of white
culture in the United States. For the study, ASA researchers interviewed a representative
sample of whites from every U.S. state and territory.
The ASA’s report finds that U.S. whites, regardless of their specific background, are
characterized by overwhelming cultural similarities. Whites in the U.S. possess very similar
social norms and customs, observe most of the same holidays, and interact mainly with other
whites. The researchers determined also that whites tend to cluster in the same
neighborhoods, hold similar jobs, have similar tastes in movies, TV, music, and food, and
communicate primarily with other whites.
Whites are also characterized be a high degree of interdependence, or what the ASA calls
“common fate.” This means that the economic fortunes of whites tend to rise and fall as a
group. Factors, such as unemployment and falling wages, that worsen the condition of whites
from one community or region also tend to affect whites from other areas in the same way.
Conversely, during good economic times, whites’ prospects rise together.
Mark Mather, one of the report’s authors, explains, “These findings came as a real surprise to
us. Whites in the United States are usually thought of as a fairly fragmentary and culturally
diverse group—not as a distinct and cohesive culture unto themselves. It turns out that if you
randomly chose two white people in America, they would probably relate to each other very
well in terms of their cultural outlook, tastes, and background. We should all start thinking
about whites as a highly cohesive and interdependent group just like any other racial or ethnic
group in the U.S.”
The report cautions that its conclusions apply only to whites. Future reports will examine
cultural similarities and differences among members of other racial groups.
The information contained in the ASA’s report is intended to guide educators in devising
curricula that accurately reflect the demographic makeup of American society, and to help
policymakers better understand the needs of different communities.
Control Condition
Social Scientists to Launch Large-Scale Study of Americans
By CRAIG ROBERTS
Published: February 18, 2013
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The American Sociological Association (ASA) is planning to conduct an in-depth study
Americans’ cultural practices. In the study, researchers plan to interview a large sample of
Americans from across the country.
The ASA’s study will be the largest examination Americans’ beliefs and behaviors in the
organization’s history. The study will probe Americans’ social norms and customs, the
holidays they observe, and their patterns of social interaction. The researchers will examine
which neighborhoods people live in, which jobs they hold, their tastes in movies and TV
programs, and whom they communicate with on a day-to-day basis.
The study will also examine how changing economic conditions affect Americans.
Researchers will examine how unemployment and falling wages affect people in different
regions of the U.S., as well as how economic good times can have positive impacts on
communities.
Mark Mather, one of the researchers, explains, “We want this study to be a comprehensive
examination of the American populace. We hope to assess the degree of similarity or
difference between Americans. If you randomly chose two people in America, how well
would they relate to each other in terms of their cultural outlook and background? That’s
what we’re really trying to answer with this project.”
While this study focuses on Americans, researchers in other countries plan to conduct similar
research to examine cultural practices of its own citizens.
The information contained in the ASA’s report is intended to guide educators in devising
curricula that accurately reflect the demographic makeup of American society, and to help
policymakers better understand the needs of different communities.