Cognitive styles and contextual variables as the factors of ingroup bias and outgroup stereotyping in the perception of artificial social groups

The problem considered in the article is connected with the establishment of interrelations between cognitive styles and subjectively constructed contextual factors in the process of social perception. Hypotheses about the presence of statistically significant effects and interactions of these factors on the variables of ingroup bias and outgroup stereotyping are tested. Participants (103 students, including 24 males and 79 females, from 17 to 22 years old, M = 19,29, SD = 0,77) were presented with specially constructed target text contained information on artificial social groups, as well as tools for measuring the bias, stereotyping and cognitive styles. It was found that the field-dependency, rigid control, impulsiveness and cognitive simplicity contributed to the stereotyping of the Other (p <0.08 ÷ 0.001), but not to the ingroup bias. It was shown that the growth of field-independence and flexible cognitive control decreased stereotyping faster, if the information about the social groups was of little importance for the subject (p <0,07 ÷ 0,05). The obtained facts indicate that the stereotyping has rather cognitive and the bias presumably motivational causality

The role of the group type and the characteristics of self-attitude in students’ social perception

The article deals with the problem of disparate studies in social perceptions of different types of groups, which impede the understanding of its fundamental mechanisms. Different types of social groups appear in the research as stimulus descriptions of their artificial analogues, singled out according to ethnic, ideological and stratification criteria. As a mediating factor of social perception, the features of subject’s self-attitude (self-acceptance and self-rejection) are considered. The study involved 307 females and 109 males from 17 to 22 years old (M = 18.92, SD = 0.93). It was found that perceiving of different types of social groups determines the varying degrees of stereotyping and bias intensity. Both of these phenomena are most observable for the groups identified by stratification criterion. Ingroup favoritism is also more conspicuous for the subject’s “ideological” ingroup in comparison with the groups of different types. It was also shown that self-attitude plays a facilitating role in the manifestations of ingroup favoritism: both self-acceptance and self-rejection contribute to the growth of perceptional bias, but do not “participate” in outgroup stereotyping

THE DARK TRIAD TRAITS AND ECONOMIC BEHAVIOR IN RELATION TO TOLERANCE TO UNCERTAINTY

The relevance of this research lies in the fact that it investigates psychological characteristics as predictors of economic behavior, specifically personal financial management and risky economic decisions. The purpose of this study is to examine 1) the characteristics of economic behavior concerning tolerance to uncertainty, 2) the impact of dispositional variables in economic behavior decisions made by individuals with various levels of the Dark Triad traits (Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy), and different levels of materialism. The methodological basis of the research is the theory of psychological traits. Economic behavior and decision-making were analyzed using the perspective theory and an economic-psychological approach.&nbsp;&nbsp; Two studies are presented, one using correlational method and the other using quasi-experimental design. The research was conducted online, with diagnostic methods including a survey and resolution of situational tasks. The research sampling consists of undergraduate students.&nbsp;&nbsp; Principal findings. Tolerance to ambiguity and the level of Dark Triad traits raise the chance of making risky economic decisions in actual behavior. With varying degrees of tolerance to uncertainty and the Dark Triad traits, framing has the same influence on economic decision-making. While the combination of the Dark Triad traits and materialism contributes to disparities in personal financial management, an inclination toward materialism is more predictive of economic behavior. Economic behavior varies according to the mix of materialistic orientation and the Dark Triad. The findings of the study can serve as the basis for additional research into economic behavior and the creation of practical programs to develop and prevent dangerous economic behavior.&nbsp;&nbsp

Evaluation of the Semantic Dynamics of Educational Space of University in the Process of Nurturing Critical Thinking in Students of Liberal Arts and Sciences Programme

The study is devoted to the analysis of the connotative dynamics of the concepts describing the educational space of university in students of Liberal Arts and Sciences degree programme who took a course in “Thinking and Writing”. The hypothesis tested was that there would be a dynamic trend towards greater differentiation and individualization of concepts "student", "learning" and "training group" in the experimental group as compared to the control sample. The participants (152 students, including 126 females and 26 males aged from 17 to 23, M = 17.91, SD = 0.79) evaluated these concepts using the Semantic Differential Scale before and after the course. It was found (p <0.10 ÷ 0.05) that in the experimental sample the connotations for "student" showed an increase in imagery and subjective evaluation component, and the concept "learning" was assessed as less hostile and more diverse. In turn, the connotative dynamics of the meanings for "training group" was similar to that of the control group. The obtained results are of primary interest in the context of shaping the students’ learning motivation and can be employed in comparative studies of the effects produced by conceptually different educational programs