Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-l7hp2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-29T11:00:33.092Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Prejudice and personality: A role for positive-approach processes?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 November 2012

Charles Seger
Affiliation:
School of Psychology and Centre for Behavioural and Experimental Social Sciences (CBESS), University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom. [email protected]@uea.ac.ukhttp://www.uea.ac.uk
Philip J. Corr
Affiliation:
School of Psychology and Centre for Behavioural and Experimental Social Sciences (CBESS), University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom. [email protected]@uea.ac.ukhttp://www.uea.ac.uk

Abstract

Individuals differ in their support for social change. We argue that examinations of inequality and change would benefit from consideration of underlying personality processes. New data suggest that Right-Wing Authoritarianism and Social Dominance Orientation, indicators of support for inequality, may be motivated by biologically driven personality processes, particularly those related to positive-approach motivation.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Altemeyer, B. (1988a) Enemies of freedom: Understanding right-wing authoritarianism. Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Altemeyer, B. (1998b) The other “authoritarian personality.” In: Advances in experimental social psychology, vol. 30, ed. Zanna, M. P., pp. 4792. Academic Press.Google Scholar
Cohrs, J. C. & Asbrock, F. (2009) Right-wing authoritarianism, social dominance orientation, and prejudice against threatening and competitive ethnic groups. European Journal of Social Psychology 39:270–89.Google Scholar
Corr, P. J., ed. (2008) The reinforcement sensitivity theory of personality. Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Corr, P. J., ed. (2009) The reinforcement sensitivity theory of personality. In: The Cambridge handbook of personality psychology, ed. Corr, P. J., pp. 347–76. Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from http://www.ueapsychology.net/uploads/downloads/15.pdf.Google Scholar
Corr, P. J., Hargreaves-Heap, S., Russell, A. & Seger, C. R. (2012) Prejudice and personality: The role of basic motivational states and processes. Unpublished manuscript.Google Scholar
Duncan, L. E. (1999) Motivation for collective action: Group consciousness as a mediator of personality, life experiences, and women's rights activism. Political Psychology 20:611–35.Google Scholar
Ekehammar, B., Akrami, N., Gylje, M. & Zakrisson, I. (2004) What matters most to prejudice: Big five personality, social dominance orientation, or right-wing authoritarianism? European Journal of Personality 18:463–82.Google Scholar
Ferguson, E., Heckman, J. J. & Corr, P. (2011) Personality and economics: Overview and proposed framework. Personality and Individual Differences 51:201209.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jost, J. T. & Burgess, D. (2000) Attitudinal ambivalence and the conflict between group and system justification motives in low status groups. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 26:293305.Google Scholar
Pratto, F., Sidanius, J., Stallworth, L. M. & Malle, B. F. (1994) Social dominance orientation: A personality variable predicting social and political attitudes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 67:741–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sibley, C. G. & Duckitt, J. (2008) Personality and prejudice: A meta-analysis and theoretical review. Personality and Social Psychology Review 12:248–79.Google Scholar
Son Hing, L. S., Bobocel, D. R., Zanna, M. P. & McBride, M. V. (2007) Authoritarian dynamics and unethical decision making: High social dominance orientation leaders and high right-wing authoritarianism followers. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 92:6781.Google Scholar
Whitley, B. E. Jr. (1999) Right-wing authoritarianism, social dominance orientation, and prejudice. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 77:126–34.Google Scholar