The perceived threat of demographic shifts depends on how you think the economy works

2020 ◽  
pp. 136843022095162
Author(s):  
Krystal M. Perkins ◽  
Alexia Toskos Dils ◽  
Stephen J. Flusberg
Keyword(s):  
Political Attitudes ◽  
Online Dating ◽  
Perceived Threat ◽  
White Americans ◽  
Group Status ◽  
Majority Group ◽  
Economic Beliefs ◽  
Demographic Shifts ◽  
Zero Sum ◽  
The U.S

Research shows that people exhibit a conservative shift in their politics when their majority group status is threatened. We reasoned that perceptions of threat posed by shifting demographics might depend on individuals’ folk economic beliefs. Across three experiments, White Americans read about projected demographic changes (“threat”) or changes in online dating (“control”) before expressing support for political policies. They also indicated whether they viewed the U.S. economy as a zero- or non-zero-sum system. Relative to controls, participants in the threat condition expressed more support for conservative policies, but only if they conceptualized the economy in zero-sum terms; those who conceptualized the economy in non-zero-sum terms actually endorsed slightly more liberal positions under “threat.” However, these effects obtained only when participants expressed their economic views before their political attitudes. This suggests folk economic beliefs shape how people respond to threats to their majority status, provided those beliefs are first made explicit.

scholarly journals Intergroup Threat as a Mediator of Ethnic Identification and Intergroup Orientations

2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 534-550 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margareta Jelić ◽  
Ena Uzelac ◽  
Dinka Čorkalo Biruški
Keyword(s):  
Minority Groups ◽  
Group Identification ◽  
Mediating Effect ◽  
Ethnic Identification ◽  
Perceived Threat ◽  
Group Status ◽  
Right To Education ◽  
Majority Group ◽  
Prejudice And Discrimination ◽  
The Relationship

In Croatia, four minority groups practice their right to education in their respective mother tongues. Relations between the majority and minority groups in the four multiethnic communities have developed under different historical circumstances. Thus, in some regions the different language of the minority and the majority group can be perceived as a threat to identity and result in intergroup prejudice and discrimination, whereas in others it might not. In this study, we wanted to examine: (a) the mediating effect of perceived threat on the relationship between in-group identification and intergroup orientation, (b) whether those relationships are moderated by the group status, and (c) contextual specificities, that is, we wanted to test the model in four different contexts. Results showed that ethnonationalism (rather than ethnic identity) is detrimental for intergroup relations, partially due to its connection to the perception of the out-group as a threat. Model tests in different contexts revealed some contextual differences.

scholarly journals Christian No More: Christian Americans are Threatened by Their Impending Minority Status

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosemary Lyn Al-Kire ◽  
Michael H. Pasek ◽  
Jo-Ann Tsang ◽  
Wade C. Rowatt
Keyword(s):  
Political Ideology ◽  
Perceived Threat ◽  
Total N ◽  
Majority Group ◽  
Group Members ◽  
Election Results ◽  
Demographic Shifts ◽  
Religious Landscape ◽  
Christian Nationalism

Christian Americans are on track to become a minority of the U.S. population by midcentury. Research on racial demographic shifts shows majority-group members experience status threat when reminded of similar demographic changes. Public debate about religious freedom and the role of Christianity in America suggest that fast-changing religious demographics similarly elicit threat, and trigger defensive political stances, among Christian Americans. In two preregistered experiments (total N = 766 Christian Americans), reminders of religious demographic shifts evoked perceived threat to religious rights and freedoms, which in turn accounted for increases in Christian nationalism, conservative political ideology, and support for Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Results illustrate how America’s fast-changing religious landscape can evoke threat for Christians and how this threat may influence political reasoning.

Fighting death with health inequality: The role of mortality cognition and shifting racial demographics in policy attitudes

2020 ◽  
pp. 136843022092037
Author(s):  
Tyler Jimenez ◽  
Peter J. Helm ◽  
Jamie Arndt
Keyword(s):  
Health Inequalities ◽  
Causal Chain ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
Demographic Changes ◽  
White Americans ◽  
Group Status ◽  
Policy Attitudes ◽  
Demographic Shifts ◽  
Racial Demographics

White Americans are predicted to soon comprise less than half of the U.S. population. Such demographic changes can affect political attitudes by threatening group status. The present studies built from this literature to examine a process in which information about such demographic shifts can also affect health policy attitudes, in part by increasing death-related thoughts, and that health inequalities may in turn buffer such cognitions. Three experiments ( N = 1,651) adopted a causal chain approach to test these ideas. In Study 1, exposure to demographic changes decreased support for equitable health policies. In Study 2, the demographic manipulation increased death-thought accessibility, unless paired with information about worsening health inequalities. In Study 3, contemplation of mortality lessened both support for equitable health policies and resources allocated to health equity. Health inequalities may mitigate existential concerns raised by shifting racial demographics.

Questions

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
James L. Gibson ◽  
Michael J. Nelson
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
African Americans ◽  
Supreme Court ◽  
Legal System ◽  
Public Support ◽  
The United States ◽  
Future Research ◽  
White Americans ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
The U.S

We have investigated the differences in support for the U.S. Supreme Court among black, Hispanic, and white Americans, catalogued the variation in African Americans’ group attachments and experiences with legal authorities, and examined how those latter two factors shape individuals’ support for the U.S. Supreme Court, that Court’s decisions, and for their local legal system. We take this opportunity to weave our findings together, taking stock of what we have learned from our analyses and what seem like fruitful paths for future research. In the process, we revisit Positivity Theory. We present a modified version of the theory that we hope will guide future inquiry on public support for courts, both in the United States and abroad.

Latino Continual Demographic Growth: Implications for Educational Practices and Policy

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-148
Author(s):  
Rogelio Sáenz
Keyword(s):  
Undocumented Students ◽  
Population Data ◽  
Community Survey ◽  
Ethnic Composition ◽  
Educational Practices ◽  
American Community Survey ◽  
Undergraduate Enrollment ◽  
Demographic Shifts ◽  
Demographic Growth ◽  
The U.S

Demographic shifts have transformed the racial and ethnic composition of the U.S. undergraduate population. Data from the American Community Survey are used to analyze Latino undergraduate enrollment as well as factors that contribute to the matriculation of undocumented Latino young adults. The article concludes with an overview of the implications of the growth of the Latino population and the experience of undocumented students on educational practices and policies.

scholarly journals EXAMINING AGEISM IN UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS THROUGH DRAWING

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S47-S48
Author(s):  
Katherina N Terhune ◽  
Aaron Guest ◽  
Tina M Kruger
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Aging Process ◽  
Aging Population ◽  
Assistive Devices ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Demographic Shifts ◽  
Physical Changes ◽  
The U.S

Abstract Substantial demographic shifts in the U.S. will result in the growth of the aging population and the need for qualified professionals entering the field of aging. Yet, these emerging professionals have limited exposure to aging curricula. It is vital that gerontologists recognize the ageism present in how older adults and the aging process are viewed, as this ultimately impacts how they are treated. Data from 1,609 undergraduate surveys from the multi-institution, multi-year Gerontological Literacy Network can assist in our understanding emerging professionals’ perspectives. Results indicate students incorrectly associate aging with loss of function and a reliance on assistive devices (canes 29.3% and glasses 19.6%), physical changes (balding 27.3% and wrinkles 30.3%), and greater likelihood of being male (32.5%). Aging is thought of as time passing (16.1%) and death (14.2%). Findings reveal a need to reframe students’ understanding of aging from that of decline to recognizing the strengths associated with age.

Racial and Political Dynamics of an Approaching “Majority-Minority” United States

2018 ◽  
Vol 677 (1) ◽  
pp. 204-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maureen A. Craig ◽  
Julian M. Rucker ◽  
Jennifer A. Richeson
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Future Research ◽  
White Americans ◽  
Psychological Mechanisms ◽  
Political Outcomes ◽  
Essential Questions ◽  
Social Scientific ◽  
Demographic Shifts ◽  
Projected Changes

Do demographic shifts in the racial composition of the United States promote positive changes in the nation’s racial dynamics? Change in response to the nation’s growing diversity is likely, but its direction and scope are less clear. This review integrates emerging social-scientific research that examines how Americans are responding to the projected changes in the racial/ethnic demographics of the United States. Specifically, we review recent empirical research that examines how exposure to information that the United States is becoming a “majority-minority” nation affects racial attitudes and several political outcomes (e.g., ideology, policy preferences), and the psychological mechanisms that give rise to those attitudes. We focus primarily on the reactions of members of the current dominant racial group (i.e., white Americans). We then consider important implications of these findings and propose essential questions for future research.

The Rhetorical Psychology of Trumpism: Threat, Absolutism, and the Absolutist Threat

The Forum ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 313-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Morgan Marietta ◽  
Tyler Farley ◽  
Tyler Cote ◽  
Paul Murphy
Keyword(s):  
Original Data ◽  
Perceived Threat ◽  
Economic Decline ◽  
Personal Safety ◽  
Group Status ◽  
Strategy Analysis ◽  
Rhetorical Strategy ◽  
Electoral Success ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Positive Character

Abstract Conventional wisdom suggests that Donald Trump’s rhetoric – aggressive, insulting, often offensive – would be counterproductive to electoral success. We argue that Trump’s surprising victories in both the primary and general campaigns were partly due to the positive effects of his appeals grounded in the intersection of threat and absolutism. The content of Trump’s rhetoric focused on threats to personal safety (terrorism), personal status (economic decline), and group status (immigration). The style of Trump’s rhetoric was absolutist, emphasizing non-negotiable boundaries and moral outrage at their violation. Previous research has shown perceived threat to motivate political participation and absolutist rhetoric to bolster impressions of positive character traits. Trump employed these two rhetorical psychologies simultaneously, melding threat and absolutism into the absolutist threat as an effective rhetorical strategy. Analysis of Trump’s debate language and Twitter rhetoric, as well as original data from political elites at the Republican National Convention and ordinary voters at rallies in New Hampshire confirm the unconventional efficacy of Trump’s rhetorical approach.

The Trouble With Tinder

2022 ◽  
pp. 1651-1670
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Mazur
Keyword(s):  
Emerging Adults ◽  
Online Dating ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
Step Process ◽  
Dating Apps ◽  
Disability Stigma ◽  
Almost All ◽  
The U.S

Although research indicates that almost all emerging adults in the U.S. use the internet, little is known about the online dating experiences of persons with disabilities. Particularly in developed countries, online dating currently accounts for a substantial proportion of the initiation of romantic relationships and promises numerous advantages for persons with disabilities. Online dating includes a way to escape disability stigma, at least initially, access to a wide network of potential partners, and a convenient, private, and efficient method of meeting them. Online daters can be strategic in how they present both themselves and their disabilities, the manner in which they communicate with potential partners, and whether they join a large, popular dating site or a specialized disability-oriented one. The chapter discusses how the nine-step process of online dating might differ for or challenge emerging adults with various types of disabilities, sharing relevant research and media examples when available. The implications of popular mobile dating apps are also considered.

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