Stereotypes and terror management: evidence that mortality salience enhances stereotypic thinking and preferences.
If stereotypes function to protect people against death-related concerns, then mortality salience should increase stereotypic thinking and preferences for stereotype-confirming individuals. Study 1 demonstrated that mortality salience increased stereotyping of Germans. In Study 2, it increased participants' tendency to generate more explanations for stereotype-inconsistent than stereotype-consistent gender role behavior. In Study 3, mortality salience increased participants' liking for a stereotype-consistent African American and decreased their liking for a stereotype-inconsistent African American; control participants exhibited the opposite preference. Study 4 replicated this pattern with evaluations of stereotype-confirming or stereotype-disconfirming men and women. Study 5 showed that, among participants high in need for closure, mortality salience led to decreased liking for a stereotype-inconsistent gay man.
Schimel
J
J
Department of Psychology, University of Arizona, Tucson 85721, USA. jschimel@u.arizona.edu
Simon
L
L
Greenberg
J
J
Pyszczynski
T
T
Solomon
S
S
Waxmonsky
J
J
Arndt
J
J
D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology; D001293:Attitude to Death; D044383:Black People; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003120:Colorado; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D005858:Germany / Q000208:ethnology; D018451:Homosexuality, Male; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011287:Prejudice; D011897:Random Allocation; D012938:Social Perception; D013240:Stereotyping; D014754:Violence / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology*