Assaad Elia Azzi

Procedural Justice and the Allocation of Power in Intergroup Relations: Studies in the United States and South Africa

This study explored preferences for the proportionality (PR) versus equality (EQ) principles in the allocation of political power and other resources between majorities and minorities. Preferences for PR were expected when individual-level justice was salient and for EQ when group-level justice was salient. Group-level concerns were expected to be more salient for minorities than majorities for procedural resources and for group-level than individual-level distributive resources. Consistent with expectations, subjects from the United States and South Africa were more likely to divide a procedural resource (political power) equally between two simulated ethnic groups differing in size when led to identify with a minority than a majority. Equality was also more salient to members of real ethnic minorities than members of ethnic majorities. With regard to distributive resources, PR was predominant in the distribution of individual-level material resources and EQ in the distribution of group-level symbolic resources.

Perceived out-group (Dis)continuity and attribution of responsibility for the Lebanese Civil War mediate effects of national and religious subgroup identification on intergroup attitudes:

Successful reconciliation between groups following a violent conflict requires psychological change. We test a model predicting intergroup attitudes towards Muslims in Lebanon among Maronite (Christian) Lebanese youths. Identification with both their religious subgroup and with the superordinate national group predicted attitudes towards Muslims, in opposite directions. These effects of levels of identification on intergroup attitudes were mediated by attributions of responsibility for the war (Muslim responsibility) and perception that the current generation of out-group members is different from the war generation (perceived out-group discontinuity). Identification with Lebanon fosters positive attitudes towards Muslims by lowering Muslim responsibility for the war, and by increasing perceptions of foreign responsibility and perceived out-group discontinuity. In contrast, increased identification with their own religious subgroup undermines attitude change by increasing Muslim responsibility for the war and lessening perception of out-group discontinuity. Representations of the past have implications for attitudes towards former enemies and reconciliation in the present.

Identity and participation in culturally diverse societies : a multidisciplinary perspective

About the Editors and Contributors. Introduction (Xenia Chryssochoou, Assaad E. Azzi, Bert Klandermans, and Bernd Simon). Part I Development, (Re)Construction, and Expression of Collective Identities (Xenia Chryssochoou). 1 The Role of Nationalism, Ethnicity, and Class in Shaping Greek American Identity, 1890-1927: A Historical Analysis (Yannis G. S. Papadopoulos). 2 Religious Identity and Socio-Political Participation: Muslim Minorities in Western Europe (Maykel Verkuyten). 3 The Bicultural Identity Performance of Immigrants (Shaun Wiley and Kay Deaux). 4 Perceptions of (In)compatibility between Identities and Participation in the National Polity of People belonging to Ethnic Minorities (Xenia Chryssochoou and Evanthia Lyons). Part II Collective Identity and Political Participation (Bernd Simon). 5 Winners and Losers in the Europeanization of Public Policy Debates: Empowering the Already Powerful? (Ruud Koopmans and Paul Statham). 6 New Ways of Understanding Migrant Integration in Europe (P. R. Ireland). 7 Collective Identity and Political Engagement (Bernd Simon). 8 Collective Identity, Political Participation, and the Making of the Social Self (Stephen Reicher and John Drury). Part III Radicalization (Bert Klandermans). 9 Radicalization (Jacquelien van Stekelenburg and Bert Klandermans). 10 Citizenship Regimes and Identity Strategies Among Young Muslims in Europe (Catarina Kinnvall and Paul Nesbitt-Larking). 11 Going All the Way: Politicization and Radicalization of the Hofstad Network in the Netherlands (Martijn de Koning and Roel Meijer). 12 Trajectories of Ideologies and Action in US Organized Racism (Kathleen M. Blee). 13 No Radicalization without Identification: How Ethnic Dutch and Dutch Muslim Web Forums Radicalize Over Time (Jacquelien van Stekelenburg, Dirk Oegema, and Bert Klandermans). Part IV Integration (Assaad E. Azzi). 14 Immigrant Acculturation: Psychological and Social Adaptations (John W. Berry). 15 Ethnic Social Networks, Social Capital, and Political Participation of Immigrants (Dirk Jacobs and Jean Tillie). 16 Naturalization as Boundary Crossing: Evidence from Labor Migrants in Germany (Claudia Diehl and Michael Blohm). 17 Confronting the Past to Create a Better Future: The Antecedents and Benefits of Intergroup Forgiveness (Nyla R. Branscombe and Tracey Cronin). Conclusion: From Identity and Participation to Integration or Radicalization: A Critical Appraisal (Assaad E. Azzi). Name Index. Subject Index.

Microjustice and Macrojustice in the Allocation of Resources Between Experimental Groups

Abstract Allocations between experimental groups were hypothesized to be affected by (a) the type of resource being allocated and (b) whether allocations were for groups as whole units or for individuals within the groups. U.S. college students (N = 19) were asked to allocate a property for individual use (money) and a property for social power (calculator time), between either two individuals or two groups. Respondents allocated more money than calculator time to members of a numerical majority group, but only when allocations were made between groups. This pattern of data reached statistical significance for members of the majority and control groups but not for members of the minority group. The evidence suggests that intergroup allocations reflect fairness norms (such as proportionality and equality between groups) as well as in-group favoritism.

Group representation and procedural justice in multigroup decision-making bodies

Representation of groups in policy-making bodies is increasingly at the center of intergroup conflicts in plural societies. This paper proposes a social psychological approach to the issue of group representation which is based on procedural justice and intergroup-relations research and on cross-national analyses of constitutional arrangements. The allocation of representation is central in intergroup relations because it determines the relative control various groups have in important decision-making processes. It is, however, not the only determinant of control. After discussing the principles that people believe to be relevant in the allocation of representation, the paper presents a quantitative model describing how the distribution of control in two-group decision-making bodies varies as a function of both group representation and decision rule. This model is then extended to cases of multigroup decision-making bodies.

Doctoral supervision in the light of the three types of support promoted in self-determination theory

The purpose of the present study was twofold. First, we used the three types of support depicted in Self-Determination Theory (SDT) (structure, involvement and autonomy support) to examine supervision practices in the doctoral context. Conversely, we used this material to discuss the theory and suggest new developments to it. To this end, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 21 former PhD students (8 completers and 13 non-completers). The data were analyzed using deductive content analysis. The first aim led us to illustrate how supervisors offer structure, involvement, and autonomy support to the doctoral students, and to support the relevance of this theoretical framework in this particular context. The second aim led us to provide three avenues for reflection on SDT. First, a set of practices belongs both to structure and involvement and are therefore at risk of being overlooked in research. Second, there is a thin line between structure and control (and between autonomy support and chaos) and intentions to offer the first may easily turn into providing the second in practice. Finally, we developed the hypothesis that a necessary condition for supervisors to be able to offer positive support to their doctoral students is to consider them as trustworthy.

Do Dutch-speakers and French-speakers really disagree?: A longitudinal study of adhesion to justice principles in the context of the Belgian linguistic conflict

According to the “Waffle” model of the Belgian Linguistic Conflict (Klein et al., 2012), this conflict centres around two main dimensions: One concerns the use of language across the territory and the second concerns the distribution of resources between the two main linguistic communities, Dutch-speakers and French-speakers. The model suggests that the two groups adhere to different justice principles regarding these issues and that these disagreements are a function of the intensity of the conflict. With respect to the first dimension, Dutch-speakers are expected to adhere more to a principle of linguistic territoriality than French-speakers who should be more in favor of a free choice of one’s idiom across the territory. With respect to the second dimension, the model posits that Dutch-speakers will adhere more to an equity principle whereas French-speakers should adhere more to a need principle. We tested these hypotheses in the context of a large-scale survey involving two waves: in May 2011 in the middle of a political crisis, and in June 2014, when the conflict was appeased. The pattern of “disagreements” in a subsample that participated in both waves of the survey (N = 378) is consistent with the Waffle model and, as expected, more severe at the heart of the conflict (in 2011) than after pacification (in 2014). However, differences were driven mostly by supporters of the Flemish nationalist party N-VA. Moreover, endorsement of principles on both dimensions are predictive of separatist attitudes in the Dutch-speaking sample whereas only the first dimension plays a role for the French speaking sample.

Misfits between doctoral students and their supervisors: (How) are they regulated?

The purpose of the present study is to explore the “misfits” occurring between doctoral students and their supervisors. More precisely, we investigate the types of incongruences that occur, whether and how they are regulated and their consequences on students’ outcomes. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 21 former PhD students (8 completers and 13 non-completers). Results show that, when facing a misfit, PhD students either (1) learn to live with it and/or turn to alternate resources, (2) suffer from it without being able to address the problem with their super-visor, (3) address the issue with their supervisor and try to solve it in various ways, or (4) are unable to address the issue because it reached a point of no return. Further, types of misfit regulation are likely to have an influence on students’ motivation and engagement. These results are discussed in the light of person-environment fit, coping, emotional regu- lation, and conflict management frameworks.

Volition and low back pain: When patients talk

OBJECTIVE Our objective was to explore, describe and understand volition of chronic low back pain (LBP) patients, highlighting barriers and facilitators to practicing regular physical activity in order to develop a questionnaire assessing those volitional competencies. METHODS A content analysis of semi-structured interviews with 30 chronic LBP patients was performed. Participants were asked about their pain, motivation, physical abilities, barriers and facilitators to regular exercises and finally strategies implemented to achieve the exercise program. RESULTS Patients often reported that they were motivated and that exercises had no negative effects on LBP. Many patients recognized having difficulties performing all their exercises regularly. The main barriers were: lack of time, fatigue, lack of visible results, pain and other daily priorities. The main facilitators were: group exercise, help from the therapist, strategic planning, favorable environment, pleasure associated with exercises, fear of pain recurrence and pain itself. CONCLUSION Content analysis showed that sharing stories allowed patients to express their experience of LBP in their own words. It provides a solid ground to develop a questionnaire assessing volitional competencies in chronic LBP patients in order to identify patients who will not realize their exercises and help them be (more) active and avoid chronicity.