How the Linguistic Intergroup Bias Affects Group Perception: Effects of Language Abstraction on Generalization to the Group

International audienceThe present research investigated whether the impact of the Linguistic Intergroup Bias (LIB; Maass, 1999 Maass, A. 1999. “Linguistic intergroup bias: Stereotype perpetuation through language”. In Advances in experimental social psychology, Edited by: Zanna, M. P. Vol. 31, 79–121. San Diego, CA: Academic Press. doi:10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60272-5[Crossref], [Google Scholar]) is related to the effects of linguistic abstraction on social attribution (Yzerbyt & Rogier, 2001 Yzerbyt, V. Y. and Rogier, A. 2001. “Blame it on the group: Entitativity, subjective essentialism, and social attribution”. In The psychology of legitimacy: Emerging perspectives on ideology, justice, and intergroup relations, Edited by: Jost, J. T. and Major, B. 103–134. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. [Google Scholar]). We did this by assessing the impact of abstract descriptions versus concrete descriptions on the generalization of a group member's behaviors to the whole group. A target's behaviors were more attributed to the group when the description was abstract than when it was concrete, and this effect of language abstraction was stronger when the description was positive than when it was negative. Our results provide an insight into how the LIB is involved in the perpetuation of intergroup bias