The Effects of Cognitive and Emotional Empathy on the Perception and Prejudice towards Migrants: An Exploratory Study

Improving intergroup attitudes and relationships have been largely studied. Empathy appears to play a mediational role between perspective taking and prejudices or attitudes towards out-groups (Baston et al., 1997; Finlay & Stephan, 2000; Vescio et al., 2003). The aim of this exploratory study is to examine how cognitive and emotional components of empathy (Jolliffe & & Farrington, 2006) were linked to the perception of immigrant targets who behave depending on the four acculturation strategies (integration, assimilation, separation and marginalization) as defined by Berry (1997). Participants first filled in a French version of the Basic Empathic Scale. Second, they read and evaluated one of the four acculurative migrant profiles (Maisonneuve & Testé; 2007) and third they filled in the blatant and subtle prejudices questionnaire (Pettigrew & Meertens, 1995). The results replicated preference for integration before assimilation and marginalization. Separated profiles were less appreciated than the three others. More interestingly, an interaction effect between conservation and emotional empathy suggests that the more people declare themselves high on the emotional component of empathy, the more they appreciate the target that conserves his culture. On subtle prejudice, no interaction effect was found. But, on blatant prejudice, interaction effects were obtained between acculturative strategies and the two components of empathy. For example, concerning participants who read the scenario of separation, the higher they declared themselves on emotional component of empathy, the less they declare blatant prejudice. More surprisingly, for participants who were in the “assimilation” condition, the higher they declared themselves on cognitive component of empathy, the higher they scored on blatant prejudice. Theoretical contributions of this study are discussed as the importance to distinguish the effects of emotional and cognitive components of empathy on perception of migrants and prejudices, depending on the migrants’ acculturative strategies. Finally, implications of these results are proposed

Etre ou ne pas être catégorisé comme « personne âgée »: influence des stéréotypes

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Facteurs explicatifs du décrochage scolaire : rôle des émotions et de l’estime de soi

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Action positive, discrimination positive un levier efficace contre les discriminations ?

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Too similar or too different: Effect of acculturation strategies on judgments of a violent act committed by a Vietnamese offender

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Cognitive and affective empathy effects on perception of migrants and prejudices

International audienceImproving intergroup attitudes and relationships have been largely studied. Empathy appears to play a mediational role between perspective taking and prejudices or attitudes towards out-groups (Baston et al., 1997; Finlay & Stephan, 2000; Vescio et al., 2003). The aim of this exploratory study is to examine how cognitive and emotional components of empathy (Jolliffe & & Farrington, 2006) were linked to the perception of immigrant targets who behave depending on the four acculturation strategies (integration, assimilation, separation and marginalization) as defined by Berry (1997). Participants first filled in a French version of the Basic Empathic Scale. Second, they read and evaluated one of the four acculurative migrant profiles (Maisonneuve & Testé; 2007) and third they filled in the blatant and subtle prejudices questionnaire (Pettigrew & Meertens, 1995). The results replicated preference for integration before assimilation and marginalization. Separated profiles were less appreciated than the three others. More interestingly, an interaction effect between conservation and emotional empathy suggests that the more people declare themselves high on the emotional component of empathy, the more they appreciate the target that conserves his culture. On subtle prejudice, no interaction effect was found. But, on blatant prejudice, interaction effects were obtained between acculturative strategies and the two components of empathy. For example, concerning participants who read the scenario of separation, the higher they declared themselves on emotional component of empathy, the less they declare blatant prejudice. More surprisingly, for participants who were in the “assimilation” condition, the higher they declared themselves on cognitive component of empathy, the higher they scored on blatant prejudice. Theoretical contributions of this study are discussed as the importance to distinguish the effects of emotional and cognitive components of empathy on perception of migrants and prejudices, depending on the migrants’ acculturative strategies. Finally, implications of these results are proposed

Empathy Arousal and Emotional Reactions to Victims of the Gender Pay Gap

Men and women are well aware of the gender pay gap. The present study involved four experiments (N = 341, student sample, N = 203 general population sample) in which we indirectly measured empathy by asking participants to rate the non-complex and complex emotions they felt when reading a scenario in which a woman described her pay situation. Experiments 1 (equal pay vs. unequal pay) and 2, 3 & 4 (angry vs. depressed reaction to pay inequality) investigate differences in empathy arousal between men and women by assessing their emotions. Globally, both men and women identified correctly emotions expressed by the women victim of pay inequity. On complex emotions, women express more other suffering emotions than men, only in Experiment 4. Coupled with expression of guilt/shame for men only, these results are discussed in the perspective of future research

The effects of cognitive and emotional empathy on the perception and prejudice towards migrants: an exploratory study

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Attitudes toward Affirmative action programs and their beneficiaries in French society: the role of social dominance orientation and belief in a just world

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