Ethnic in-group bias among minority and majority early adolescents: The perception of negative peer behaviour

Using social identity theory (SIT) as a framework, this study investigates in-group bias in the context of negative social behaviour among Dutch and Turkish children (10–13 years of age) living in the Netherlands. Using stories about peer behaviour in which ethnicity was an available dimension, the children were asked to evaluate the perpetrator and to explain the negative behaviour. Explanations were analysed in terms of the locus of explanation and the level of linguistic abstraction at which the perpetrator’s behaviour was explained. Hence, there were three measures of in-group bias. In addition, ethnic identification, perceived multicultural education and participants’ experiences with ethnic victimization were considered as predictor variables. The results revealed a small degree of in-group bias for the evaluation and the locus of explanation, but not for linguistic abstraction. Furthermore, for both ethnic groups, it was found that stronger ethnic identification was related to a less negative evaluation of an in-group perpetrator. A higher degree of ethnic victimization was related to a less negative perception of the perpetrator. In addition, a higher degree of perceived exposure to multicultural education was associated with a more negative perception of the perpetrator, particularly among the Dutch participants. It was concluded that the study of ethnic attitudes among children should focus more on the perceptions of actual ethnic conflicts and on specific settings such as schools. Furthermore, it is important to use explicit and implicit measures and to include both majority and minority group children.