Terror Management Theory and Self-Esteem
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Questions and Answers

What is one of the criticisms of the claim that fear of death is a universal motivating force?

  • It only applies to certain cultures
  • It is only applicable to young people
  • It is only applicable to old people
  • There are examples of more positive reactions to mortality (correct)

    • What is stigma, according to Brown (2010)?

  • A characteristic that marks a group for social valuation
  • A characteristic that marks a person for social devaluation (correct)
  • A characteristic that marks a person for social valuation
  • A characteristic that marks a group for social devaluation

    • What is one of the negative experiences that stigmatised individuals often face?

  • Applause
  • Exclusion (correct)
  • Compliments
  • Encouragement

    • What is one of the coping strategies used by people belonging to stigmatised groups?

    <p>Attributing negative outcomes to prejudice of others</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the term for when groups that people are judged on can also be an important source of support?

    <p>Social Cure</p> Signup and view all the answers

    According to Realistic Conflict Theory (RCT), what happens when the interests of two groups coincide?

    <p>Relations between groups will be relatively harmonious</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is an example of a conflict that RCT can explain?

    <p>Conflict between men and women</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a criticism of Sherif's classic field experiments?

    <p>The complexity of the camp setting</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is one of the negative outcomes of stigma, according to Swim et al. (2001)?

    <p>Low self-esteem</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is an example of a coping strategy that may be linked to lower perceived control?

    <p>Attributing negative outcomes to prejudice of others</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a limitation of the studies confirming Sherif's ideas?

    <p>They were set up to confirm Sherif's ideas, potentially biasing the results</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a condition for the Contact Hypothesis to be effective?

    <p>Intergroup cooperation</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What did a meta-analysis by Pettigrew & Tropp (2006) find?

    <p>A highly significant effect size (r = -.23) across 714 independent samples and 250,000 people</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is an alternative explanation for how contact reduces prejudice?

    <p>Increased empathy and reduced anxiety</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What has been found to be more potent than positive contact?

    <p>Negative contact</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a concern with the generalization of effects in the Contact Hypothesis?

    <p>That improved attitudes only extend to outgroup members encountered during contact</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What did a study of white housewives in desegregated housing projects find?

    <p>More favorable attitudes towards integrated housing</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the Secondary Transfer Effect?

    <p>Contact between two groups leads to reduced prejudice towards other ethnic minorities</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is an important factor for generalization in the Contact Hypothesis?

    <p>The typicality of outgroup members in contact situations</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why may contact not be beneficial for minorities?

    <p>Because it undermines attempts to achieve equality</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary goal of Terror Management Theory (TMT)?

    <p>To explain the role of self-esteem in anxiety reduction</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the consequence of humans' intellectual abilities, according to Becker's TMT?

    <p>Awareness of vulnerability and inevitable death</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of self-esteem in TMT?

    <p>A buffer against death anxiety</p> Signup and view all the answers

    According to Greenberg's study, what is the effect of increasing self-esteem?

    <p>Reduced anxiety and defensiveness</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the outcome of mortality salience (MS) on one's worldview, according to a study?

    <p>Increased faith in one's worldview</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the developmental origin of the link between self-esteem and protection from anxiety, according to TMT?

    <p>Early childhood interactions with parents</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of parents in shaping self-esteem, according to TMT?

    <p>They show goodness and value, helping children internalize standards</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a criticism of Terror Management Theory (TMT)?

    <p>It has a few criticisms despite a lot of research supporting it</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is genocide?

    <p>An attempt to exterminate a group by creating conditions that lead to the group's destruction</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is mass killing?

    <p>Killing group members of a group without the intention to eliminate the whole group</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are the three major factors that contribute to genocide?

    <p>Difficult life conditions, certain cultural-societal characteristics, and a continuum of destruction</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a consequence of genocide on individuals?

    <p>A threat to self-concept and feelings of disorganization and anxiety</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why do people turn against outgroups in times of crisis?

    <p>To devalue the outgroup and enhance their own self-esteem</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a cultural-societal characteristic that contributes to genocide?

    <p>Cultural devaluation of a subgroup</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of bystanders in genocide?

    <p>They can be either passive or active, and their inaction can contribute to the genocide</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is an example of how people learn to harm others?

    <p>Through gradual escalation of harm, as shown in the Zimbardo experiment</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why did the Nazis treat everyone badly in the concentration camps?

    <p>To break the will of the inmates and make them easier to control</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a consequence of genocide on society?

    <p>A sense of collective guilt and responsibility</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What type of bystanders are characterized as passive?

    <p>External bystanders</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the outcome of the protest by German women during the Holocaust?

    <p>The men were all freed and defined as 'privileged persons'</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary goal of Social Identity Theory (SIT)?

    <p>To explain intergroup behavior and discrimination</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a key assumption of Social Identity Theory (SIT)?

    <p>That individuals engage in social categorization</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a prediction made by Social Identity Theory (SIT)?

    <p>That comparisons favoring the ingroup lead to positive self-esteem</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a criticism of Social Identity Theory (SIT)?

    <p>That the relationship between self-esteem and intergroup discrimination is more complex than initially proposed</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is an example of a self-esteem enhancement strategy according to Social Identity Theory (SIT)?

    <p>Social mobility to join a higher-status group</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a factor that can influence the choice of self-esteem enhancement strategies according to Social Identity Theory (SIT)?

    <p>Group boundary permeability</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a limitation of Social Identity Theory (SIT)?

    <p>Its predictions may not hold in all contexts</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a type of strategy used when group boundaries are impermeable according to Social Identity Theory (SIT)?

    <p>Social creativity</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Study Notes

    Terror Management Theory (TMT)

    • Proposes that people are motivated to maintain a positive self-image because self-esteem protects them from anxiety
    • According to Becker, humans' intellectual abilities lead to awareness of vulnerability and inevitable death, causing potential for debilitating anxiety
    • To manage this, people often adopt cultural worldviews that provide a sense of meaning and order, and self-esteem serves as a buffer against death anxiety
    • The link between self-esteem and protection from anxiety develops in early childhood through interactions with parents
    • Parents' love and protection can show goodness and value, which can help children internalize these standards
    • Meeting these internalized standards (self-esteem) becomes associated with feelings of safety and security

    Research Supporting TMT

    • Greenberg's study showed that increasing self-esteem reduces anxiety and defensiveness in response to threatening stimuli
    • Mortality salience (MS) has been found to increase the need for faith in one's worldview

    Criticisms of TMT

    • People have questioned whether fear of death is truly a universal motivating force
    • Others have proposed alternate explanations for MS effects, such as motives for uncertainty reduction, meaning, and belonging
    • MS can also lead to opposing effects

    Stigma and Well-being

    • Stigma is defined as any characteristic that marks a person for social devaluation
    • Stigmatised individuals often face a range of negative experiences, including harm, exclusion, and verbal and physical abuse
    • These experiences can lead to anger, anxiety, low self-esteem, stress, and shame
    • Coping strategies used by stigmatised individuals to protect themselves include restricting comparisons to within-group members, disengaging from dimensions, and attributing negative outcomes to prejudice

    The Social Cure

    • Group identification has been linked to reduced depression, increased control, resilience, better health, and improved well-being
    • Identification with groups can help individuals find ways to protect themselves

    Realistic Conflict Theory (RCT)

    • States that people's attitudes towards ingroup and outgroup members reflect the objective interests of the ingroup
    • RCT assumes that if the interests of two groups coincide, then relations between groups will be relatively harmonious
    • If there is conflict between the two groups, then relations between groups will become hostile

    Evidence Supporting RCT

    • RCT can explain various conflicts, such as those between men and women, Palestinians and Israelis, Catholics and Protestants, and racial groups
    • Economic competition has been linked to intergroup violence
    • RCT can account for historical specificity of prejudice, such as changes in attitudes towards the USSR after WWII and towards Americans before and after the Gulf War

    Criticisms and Limitations of RCT

    • Sherif's studies have been criticized for methodological issues, such as the complexity of the camp setting, experimenter involvement, and ethical concerns
    • RCT may oversimplify the causes of intergroup conflict, as other factors such as beliefs, culture, and individual differences can also play a role
    • The theory assumes that conflict is always perceived as a zero-sum game, which may not always be the case

    The Contact Hypothesis

    • Suggests that intergroup conflict can be reduced by bringing groups into contact under certain conditions, including equal status, common goals, intergroup cooperation, support of authorities, and acquaintance or friendship potential
    • Evidence supporting the contact hypothesis includes:
      • Early evidence from the desegregation of the merchant marine in 1948
      • Studies of white housewives in desegregated housing projects
      • Recent evidence from a wide variety of groups, including Chinese students in the U.S., German and Turkish school children, and various stigmatised groups
      • A meta-analysis found a highly significant effect size across 714 independent samples and 250,000 people

    Criticisms and Limitations of the Contact Hypothesis

    • The assumption that contact reduces prejudice through reduced ignorance has been questioned
    • Alternative explanations focusing on reduced anxiety and increased empathy have been proposed
    • The generalization of effects has been a concern, with some studies finding that improved attitudes towards outgroup members encountered during contact do not always extend to other outgroup members
    • The typicality of outgroup members in contact situations has been shown to be important for generalization

    Genocide and the Holocaust

    • Genocide refers to an attempt to exterminate a group by creating conditions that lead to the group's destruction
    • Mass killing is apart from genocide, and refers to killing group members of a group without the intention to eliminate the whole group
    • The Holocaust resulted in the deaths of 6 million Jews and 5 million others
    • Factors contributing to genocide include:
      • Difficult life conditions
      • Cultural-societal characteristics
      • A continuum of destruction
      • Economic, political, and cultural factors
    • The way in which we attempt to resolve this problem of genocide can cause us to turn against outgroups

    Social Identity Theory (SIT)

    • Aims to explain intergroup behavior and discrimination
    • Assumes that individuals engage in social categorization to simplify the complex social world
    • Social categorization is not neutral but occurs with respect to the self, leading to the formation of a 'social identity' or 'social self'
    • SIT predicts an inherent need to evaluate the self positively, which is achieved through comparisons with relevant outgroups
    • Comparisons favoring the ingroup lead to a positive social identity and self-esteem, while comparisons favoring the outgroup result in a negative social identity and poor self-esteem

    Evidence Supporting SIT

    • Studies provide support for SIT's predictions regarding the link between social identity and intergroup discrimination

    Criticisms and Limitations of SIT

    • The relationship between self-esteem and intergroup discrimination is more complex than initially proposed by SIT
    • SIT does not always predict intergroup discrimination as a means of enhancing self-esteem
    • The theory's predictions may not hold in all contexts, as factors such as group boundary permeability, status stability, and perceived legitimacy of status differences can influence the choice of self-esteem enhancement strategies

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    Description

    Evaluating the Terror Management Theory proposed by Solomon et al. in 1991, which explains the human need for self-esteem and its role in protecting against anxiety. This essay examines the key aspects, evidence, and criticisms of TMT.

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