We blame innocent victims more than I do: self-construal level moderates responses to just-world threats.
This study investigated the impact of self-construal levels on people's tendency to blame innocent victims for the victims' fates. The authors hypothesized that when the belief in a just world is threatened, social self-construal is associated with more victim blaming than individual self-construal is. In Experiments 1 and 2, participants were primed with either the individual self (with the word I) or the social self (with the word we). Results indeed showed that when threats to just-world beliefs were high, social self-activation produced more victim blaming than individual self-activation did. This effect was not found when just-world threats were low. Extending on these findings, Experiment 3 revealed that, following a just-world threat, an independent self-construal measure was negatively related to victim blaming, and an interdependent self-construal measure was positively related to victim blaming. It is concluded that self-construal levels are important to understanding the justice motive.
van Prooijen
Jan-Willem
JW
Department of Social Psychology, VU University Amsterdam, Van der Boechorststraat 1, 1081 BT Amsterdam, the Netherlands. jw.van.prooijen@psy.vu.nl
van den Bos
Kees
K
D000293:Adolescent; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology*; D003674:Defense Mechanisms; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D007600:Judgment; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D012649:Self Concept; D012935:Social Justice; D012938:Social Perception; D012941:Social Responsibility; D055815:Young Adult