Determinants of perceived group heterogeneity

The determinants of perceived variability among members of a group were examined. Based on the assumption that one's knowledge about a group involves two components, (a) group-level knowledge and (b) exemplar knowledge, a model of perceived group variability was developed. The model postulated three hypotheses: (1) The more group-level knowledge one has, the more homogeneous the group is perceived to be; (2) The group is perceived as more variable when exemplar knowledge is relatively more salient than group-level knowledge; (3) The effects of the relative salience of exemplars will be more pronounced when greater knowledge is available about the group. In contrast, past studies suggested that judgments of variability would be determined by (4) sum knowledge about the group, and by (5) the perceiver's group membership.The five hypotheses were examined in two studies. Study 1 used five natural groups as targets; the amount of group knowledge and subjects' group membership were measured while the relative salience of exemplars was manipulated. Study 2 used a minimal group; the amount of group knowledge, the relative salience of exemplars, and the group membership were manipulated in a 3 x 3 x 2 factorial design.Both studies supported Hypothesis 1 while rejecting Hypotheses 4 and 5. Study 2 supported Hypotheses 2 and 3, suggesting that the perceived group variability was influenced by the relative salience of exemplars and by its interaction with the amount of group knowledge. These results imply that out-group homogeneity perception may be mediated by both amount of group knowledge and by the relative salience of the exemplar information.U of I OnlyETDs are only available to UIUC Users without author permissio