Abstract
Recent empirical evidence suggests that essentialist
beliefs about social groups are often associated with
prejudice and discrimination against them. This relation
is moderated by social status and beliefs about system
stability. This study aimed at: first, evaluating the factorial
structure of beliefs about sexual orientation. Second,
evaluating the effect of beliefs in system stability and
the use of essentialist arguments within a normative
social category (heterosexuals) and a non-normative
one (homosexuals) in a community sample in Colombia.
To test this relationship we created a multifactorial design
of 3 (belief in system stability: imminent change,
stability and control) x 2 (sexual orientation), introducing
essentialist beliefs about sexual orientation as a
dependent variable. Findings suggest that beliefs about
sexual orientation load on two essentialist dimensions:
immutability and fundamentality. Also, findings suggest
that beliefs in the immutability of sexual orientation are
unrelated, whereas the beliefs about the fundamentality
of sexual orientation significantly relate to prejudice
and discrimination among heterosexual but not among
homosexual people. The implications of these findings
are discussed.
beliefs about social groups are often associated with
prejudice and discrimination against them. This relation
is moderated by social status and beliefs about system
stability. This study aimed at: first, evaluating the factorial
structure of beliefs about sexual orientation. Second,
evaluating the effect of beliefs in system stability and
the use of essentialist arguments within a normative
social category (heterosexuals) and a non-normative
one (homosexuals) in a community sample in Colombia.
To test this relationship we created a multifactorial design
of 3 (belief in system stability: imminent change,
stability and control) x 2 (sexual orientation), introducing
essentialist beliefs about sexual orientation as a
dependent variable. Findings suggest that beliefs about
sexual orientation load on two essentialist dimensions:
immutability and fundamentality. Also, findings suggest
that beliefs in the immutability of sexual orientation are
unrelated, whereas the beliefs about the fundamentality
of sexual orientation significantly relate to prejudice
and discrimination among heterosexual but not among
homosexual people. The implications of these findings
are discussed.
| Translated title of the contribution | Psychological Essentialism and System Justification in the Face of Social Change |
|---|---|
| Original language | Spanish |
| Pages (from-to) | 157 - 174 |
| Number of pages | 18 |
| Journal | Avances en Psicologia Latinoamericana |
| Volume | 33 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2015 |