Crisis overcome?—Affective and instrumental changes of group related attitudes

IntroductionAccording to modern research on diversity, attitudes toward cultural diversity are a main predictor of performance in heterogeneous teams. Social psychological research, however, focuses on the impact of crises on prejudice and disregards instrumental attitudes. It focuses on two distinc...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Petia Genkova, Henrik Schreiber
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-06-01
Series:Frontiers in Social Psychology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frsps.2025.1514677/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849423862543941632
author Petia Genkova
Petia Genkova
Henrik Schreiber
author_facet Petia Genkova
Petia Genkova
Henrik Schreiber
author_sort Petia Genkova
collection DOAJ
description IntroductionAccording to modern research on diversity, attitudes toward cultural diversity are a main predictor of performance in heterogeneous teams. Social psychological research, however, focuses on the impact of crises on prejudice and disregards instrumental attitudes. It focuses on two distinct outcomes: the withdrawal of solidarity toward people with a migration background, and pro-diversity beliefs reflecting positive evaluations of cultural heterogeneity, examining how value orientations, emotional responses, and motivational factors may be linked to these attitudes.MethodData were collected from N = 130 participants without immigration background during the first lockdown period in spring 2020. Structural path analyses were used to examine associations among key variables.ResultsSocial dominance orientation showed statistical associations with intergroup threat and fear, which in turn were linked to reported withdrawal of solidarity. The association between intergroup fear and solidarity withdrawal appeared stronger among individuals reporting lower internal motivation to act without prejudice. In a second model, general solidarity and individualism were associated with pro-diversity beliefs, suggesting that internal motivation and intergroup threat may play mediating roles.DiscussionThe findings point to the relevance of distinguishing between affective and value-based aspects of diversity-related attitudes, particularly under crisis conditions. While emotional responses such as fear and threat were linked to exclusionary tendencies, value-based orientations—such as solidarity and egalitarian motivation—were associated with more inclusive attitudes.
format Article
id doaj-art-155e01cb1ee442af8a1cf893609846da
institution Kabale University
issn 2813-7876
language English
publishDate 2025-06-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Social Psychology
spelling doaj-art-155e01cb1ee442af8a1cf893609846da2025-08-20T03:30:25ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Social Psychology2813-78762025-06-01310.3389/frsps.2025.15146771514677Crisis overcome?—Affective and instrumental changes of group related attitudesPetia Genkova0Petia Genkova1Henrik Schreiber2Department of Social Science and Economics, University of Applied Sciences Osnabrück, Osnabrück, GermanyDepartment for Psychology and Psychotherapy, Universitat Witten-Herdecke, Witten, GermanyDepartment of Social Science and Economics, University of Applied Sciences Osnabrück, Osnabrück, GermanyIntroductionAccording to modern research on diversity, attitudes toward cultural diversity are a main predictor of performance in heterogeneous teams. Social psychological research, however, focuses on the impact of crises on prejudice and disregards instrumental attitudes. It focuses on two distinct outcomes: the withdrawal of solidarity toward people with a migration background, and pro-diversity beliefs reflecting positive evaluations of cultural heterogeneity, examining how value orientations, emotional responses, and motivational factors may be linked to these attitudes.MethodData were collected from N = 130 participants without immigration background during the first lockdown period in spring 2020. Structural path analyses were used to examine associations among key variables.ResultsSocial dominance orientation showed statistical associations with intergroup threat and fear, which in turn were linked to reported withdrawal of solidarity. The association between intergroup fear and solidarity withdrawal appeared stronger among individuals reporting lower internal motivation to act without prejudice. In a second model, general solidarity and individualism were associated with pro-diversity beliefs, suggesting that internal motivation and intergroup threat may play mediating roles.DiscussionThe findings point to the relevance of distinguishing between affective and value-based aspects of diversity-related attitudes, particularly under crisis conditions. While emotional responses such as fear and threat were linked to exclusionary tendencies, value-based orientations—such as solidarity and egalitarian motivation—were associated with more inclusive attitudes.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frsps.2025.1514677/fullsocial dominance orientationindividualismmotivation to respond without prejudice solidarityattitudes toward cultural diversitysolidarity
spellingShingle Petia Genkova
Petia Genkova
Henrik Schreiber
Crisis overcome?—Affective and instrumental changes of group related attitudes
Frontiers in Social Psychology
social dominance orientation
individualism
motivation to respond without prejudice solidarity
attitudes toward cultural diversity
solidarity
title Crisis overcome?—Affective and instrumental changes of group related attitudes
title_full Crisis overcome?—Affective and instrumental changes of group related attitudes
title_fullStr Crisis overcome?—Affective and instrumental changes of group related attitudes
title_full_unstemmed Crisis overcome?—Affective and instrumental changes of group related attitudes
title_short Crisis overcome?—Affective and instrumental changes of group related attitudes
title_sort crisis overcome affective and instrumental changes of group related attitudes
topic social dominance orientation
individualism
motivation to respond without prejudice solidarity
attitudes toward cultural diversity
solidarity
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frsps.2025.1514677/full
work_keys_str_mv AT petiagenkova crisisovercomeaffectiveandinstrumentalchangesofgrouprelatedattitudes
AT petiagenkova crisisovercomeaffectiveandinstrumentalchangesofgrouprelatedattitudes
AT henrikschreiber crisisovercomeaffectiveandinstrumentalchangesofgrouprelatedattitudes