Ludwin E. Molina

Prejudice at the nexus of race and gender: an outgroup male target hypothesis.

Adopting an evolutionary approach to the psychology of race bias, we posit that intergroup conflict perpetrated by male aggressors throughout human evolutionary history has shaped the psychology of modern forms of intergroup bias and that this psychology reflects the unique adaptive problems that differ between men and women in coping with male aggressors from groups other than ones own. Here we report results across 4 studies consistent with this perspective, showing that race bias is moderated by gender differences in traits relevant to threat responses that differ in their adaptive utility between the sexes-namely, aggression and dominance motives for men and fear of sexual coercion for women. These results are consistent with the notion that the psychology of intergroup bias is generated by different psychological systems for men and women, and the results underscore the importance of considering the gender of the outgroup target as well as the gender of the agent in psychological studies on prejudice and discrimination.

Exemplary Efforts in Psychology to Recruit and Retain Graduate Students of Color.

Many psychology departments are striving for a greater representation of students of color within their graduate preparation programs with the aim of producing a more diverse pool of psychological service providers, scientists, and educators. To help improve the minority pipeline in psychology, the authors identify and describe recruitment and retention strategies used at 11 departments and programs considered to be making exemplary efforts to attract and retain minority students of color. The strategies most consistently used included engaging current minority faculty and students in recruitment activities, offering attractive financial aid packages, having faculty members make personal contacts with prospective students, creating linkages with historical institutions of color, having (or approached having) a critical mass of faculty and students of color, offering a diversity issues course, and engaging students in diversity issues research. Despite the similarities, the programs and departments were each distinctive and innovative in their overall approaches to student recruitment and retention. Highlighting the strategies used at successful institutions may help others develop plans for improving the minority pipeline within their own departments and programs.

Testing an Integrative Model of Respect: Implications for Social Engagement and Well-Being

Prior research demonstrates that feelings of respect affect important aspects of group functioning and members’ psychological well-being. One limitation is that respect has been variously defined as reflecting individuals’ status in the group, degree to which they are liked by the group, and how fairly they are treated in interactions with group members. These different conceptions are integrated in the dual pathway model of respect. The authors tested the model’s prediction that fair treatment from group members shapes attitudes toward the group and self via two distinct pathways: status and inclusion. Findings from a field study supported the model and yielded new insights: Whereas perceptions of status predicted social engagement, liking was more important in predicting well-being (especially among dominant subgroups). Discussion focuses on the utility of the dual pathway model for understanding how respect perceptions are formed and how they affect the welfare of groups and individuals.

Subgroup respect, social engagement, and well-being: A field study of an ethnically diverse high school.

Recent research points toward the utility of the pluralist (multicultural) model as a viable alternative to the traditional assimilation model of cultural integration. In this study, we extend this work by evaluating when and to what extent feelings that members of a common group respect and value ones ethnic group membership (subgroup respect) shape social engagement and well-being. We do so in the context of a survey of students at a diverse, public high school. Subgroup respect was linked to more positive evaluations of both school authorities and students from ethnic outgroups as well as to lower levels of school disengagement. Consistent with past research, these relationships held only among ethnic minority groups (African Americans, Asian Americans, and Latinos) but not among Whites. Findings about the relationship between subgroup respect and indicators of well-being were more mixed, with the relationship most evident among Asians Americans and Latinos and especially on indicators of physical health. Implications for understanding the consequences of pluralism are discussed in light of the observed ethnic group differences.

Personal reflections: barriers and strategies in increasing diversity in psychology.

In this article, six faculty and students of color who participated in a panel discussion at a symposium during the National Multicultural Conference and Summit of 2003 talk about the barriers they encountered and continue to encounter in their graduate training and places of employment. They also discuss strategies they found to be effective, enhancing, and positive and suggest other possibilities. The contributors describe their relationships with dominant-group and minority peers and talk about how issues of social class, disability, and sexual orientation as well as color have been part of their experience.

Mutual acculturation and social categorization: A comparison of two perspectives on intergroup bias

Using Berry, Trimble, and Olmedos (1986) theorizing as a foundation, the present article applies acculturation constructs to the domain of intergroup bias and compares them to social categorization variables. The paper comprises three school-based studies that test the predictive and mediating roles of acculturation and social categorization, respectively. Results of Studies 1 and 2 with ethnically diverse classes of ninth graders support the hypothesis that outgroup orientation, a dimension of acculturation, mediates the interracial classroom climate-intergroup bias relationship, and independently boosts the prediction of bias. Although social categorization variables do not mediate this relationship reliably, as a group they predict bias. Study 3 replicates these findings in a different context with a largely European American class of seventh grade students.

National and ethnic identity in the face of discrimination: ethnic minority and majority perspectives.

Does the United States afford people of different backgrounds a sense of equal identification with the nation? Past research has documented ethnic/racial group differences on levels of national identity but there has been little research examining what psychologically moderates these disparities. The present research investigates how perceived group discrimination is associated with national and ethnic identification among ethnic majority and minority groups. Study 1 examines whether perceived group discrimination moderates subgroup differences on national and ethnic identification. Study 2 makes salient group discrimination--via an item order manipulation--and examines the effects on national and ethnic identification. In general, the 2 studies demonstrate that for most ethnic minorities higher perceptions of group discrimination are related to lower levels of national identity and higher ethnic identity. Conversely, among majority group members, higher levels of perceived discrimination predict higher levels of national identity with little influence on ethnic identification.

Museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity.

The present research draws upon a cultural psychological perspective to consider how psychological phenomena are grounded in socio-cultural contexts. Specifically, we examine the association between representations of history at Ellis Island Immigration Museum and identity-relevant concerns. Pilot study participants (N = 13) took a total of 114 photographs of exhibits that they considered as most important in the museum. Results indicate that a majority of the photographs reflected neutral themes (n = 81), followed by nation-glorifying images (n = 24), and then critical themes that highlight injustices and barriers faced by immigrants (n = 9). Study 1 examines whether there is a preference for glorifying images, and if that preference is related to cultural-assimilationist conceptions of national identity (i.e., defining American identity in dominant group standards). We exposed a new sample of participants (N = 119) to photographs reflecting all three themes. Results indicate that participants expressed greater liking for glorifying images, followed by neutral images, and critical images. National identity moderated within-subject variation in liking scores. Study 2 included 35 visitors who completed a survey before engaging with the museum or after their visit. Results indicate that participants who had completed their visit, compared to participants who had not entered the museum, reported (i) higher endorsement of cultural-assimilationist identity, and (ii) increased support for exclusive immigration policies. Study 3 exposed participants (N = 257) to glorifying, critical, or neutral images. Results indicate that participants who were exposed to glorifying images, especially those endorsing cultural-assimilationist identity, demonstrate decreased perception of current-day racial injustice, and increased ethnocentric enforcement bias. We discuss how engagement with privileged narratives may serve dominant group ends and reproduce systems of privilege.

Chapter 4 The Interplay between fairness and the experience of respect: Implications for group life

Purpose – To present a new conceptual framework for understanding how perceptions of fairness shape the experience of respect in groups and its implications for individuals’ engagement in groups, their psychological well-being, and intergroup relations. Design/methodology/approach – Research on fairness perceptions and respect emerge from different theoretical traditions including theories of justice, social identity theory, and social context and health. We review this body of work and present the dual pathway model of respect, developed to integrate the different lines of research into a single testable framework. Research testing the models predictions is presented. Findings – The dual pathway model posits that concerns about respect follow from the need for social inclusion and for status attainment. Fair treatment from group peers and authorities communicates the extent to which these needs are satisfied, and as such, perceptions of being liked (indicative of inclusion) and of being judged worthy (indicative of status attainment) independently and differentially predict social engagement and psychological well-being. Originality/value – The dual pathway model provides a framework for integrating and extending existing research on the experience of respect in groups. The model highlights how the inclusion and status dimensions of respect differentially shape outcomes relevant to group functioning: social engagement and psychological well-being. Insights from the model address a broad array of challenges faced by organizations, including building commitment, managing diversity, and promoting health and well-being among its members.

Gender Asymmetry in the Construction of American National Identity

Dominant groups (e.g., White U.S. citizens) are more associated with “American” identity and they feel greater ownership over American national identity compared to ethnic minority groups. We extended this perception to gender and tested whether American national identity is constructed in masculine, versus feminine, terms. We examined whether U.S. men feel greater symbolic ownership over the nation and represent what it means to be a prototypical American, more than U.S. women. In Study 1, men and women considered male-associated traits more American than female-associated traits and listed more men as examples of “true” Americans than women. In Study 2, men reported higher levels of nationalism than women. Women’s nationalism was moderated by their conception of male-associated traits as American—women who viewed American identity as more masculine were less nationalistic. Men showed a stronger correlation between gender identity and American identity compared to women. However, correlations between gender identity and nationalism did not differ by participant gender. Results suggest men and masculinity are considered more American than are women and femininity. We provide support for the subgroup asymmetry hypothesis through the novel lens of gender. We discuss means of attenuating the gendered construction of national identity in terms of media, policy, and education. Additional online materials for this article, including study materials, a podcast interview with the author, and slides for instructors who want to use this article for teaching, are available on PWQ’s website at http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/suppl/10.1177/0361684317707710