In- and out-groups across cultures: Identities and perceived group values

: Hitlin Steven, Kwon Hye Won, Firat Rengin

Publisher: Elsevier

: 2021

: Social Science Research

: Social science research

: Soc Sci Res

: 102569

: 97

: 0049-089X

: 1096-0317

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2021.102569

Distinguishing and privileging one's in-groups from out-groups appears to be a human universal, though theories about why and how this happens diverge. This paper contributes to understanding these processes by adding cross-cultural, ecological validity to a demographic understanding of a) which in- and out-groups are prevalent in four distinct societies and b) discernible patterns in the values that members of these groups are perceived to hold. Our results suggest that respondents see in-groups, often their family, as conventionally moral (caring for others) across societies, while typically perceiving a range of disparate out-groups as hedonistic and self-serving. We find both commonalities and distinctions in third-order beliefs ('what I believe they believe') across four samples, yet all highlight one axis of Schwartz's value scheme capturing conventional morality as central for feelings of affiliation with in-groups and 'othering' for out-groups.