Examining differences in minority versus majority preschoolers on social categorization and perceived intergroup distance

Abstract

We examined the differences between majority and minority children (i.e., group membership) on racial categorization and perceived cultural distance, among 4‐ to 6‐year‐old children, in low diversified schools. We used a spontaneous social categorization task using pictures of children from three different racial groups broadly represented in France (Europeans, Black‐, and North‐Africans), and an evaluation of the perceived cultural distance between participants' in‐group and the racial group represented in the picture, adapted to children and based on three factors (language, eating habits, and music). Results revealed an effect of age on racial categorization: the older the children, the more successful they are in this task. They showed a significant effect of the racial group represented in the photos on perceived cultural distance: members of minority groups (i.e., Black‐ and North‐Africans) were evaluated as more different compared to those of the majority group on each of the factors. Finally, we got an interaction between participants' in‐group and the racial group represented in the pictures, for the language factor: members of the majority group perceived as more different photographs representing minorities peers than those representing majority peers, while participants belonging to minority groups perceived no differences between photographs, according to the racial criteria.

Trolls Without Borders: A Cross-Cultural Examination of Victim Reactions to Verbal and Silent Aggression Online

“…There is, however, an additional question that this study brings up that could merit further exploration: the difference between an ingroup/outgroup effect and a majority/minority effect. In previous literature, majority vs. minority group situations have been used to simulate ingroups and outgroups, achieving the same effects experimentally (see Schaafsma and Williams, 2012); however, minority and majority group relations have their own separate literature as well (e.g., Hewstone et al, 1993;Jackson, 2002;Dixon et al, 2017;Gedeon et al, 2020). Much of this literature focuses on racial majorities and minorities (e.g., Rattan and Ambady, 2013;Benner and Wang, 2017;Gedeon et al, 2020), which are only a major factor in one of our ingroup/outgroup pairings (Dutch and Moroccans).…”

“…In previous literature, majority vs. minority group situations have been used to simulate ingroups and outgroups, achieving the same effects experimentally (see Schaafsma and Williams, 2012); however, minority and majority group relations have their own separate literature as well (e.g., Hewstone et al, 1993;Jackson, 2002;Dixon et al, 2017;Gedeon et al, 2020). Much of this literature focuses on racial majorities and minorities (e.g., Rattan and Ambady, 2013;Benner and Wang, 2017;Gedeon et al, 2020), which are only a major factor in one of our ingroup/outgroup pairings (Dutch and Moroccans). In the majority/minority literature that does not specifically examine race, majorities and minorities seem to function largely the same way ingroups and outgroups do: differences between the two groups are exaggerated and similarities minimized (Hewstone et al, 1993).…”

Racial Categorization and Intergroup Relations in Children: The Role of Social Status and Numerical Group Size

“…However, members of low-status groups may show an opposite tendency to favor the outgroup (Jost and Burgess, 2000). Preschool children follow a similar pattern as adults regarding intergroup attitudes from high-status and low-status racial groups, where children from high-status groups show robust ingroup favoritism but children from low-status groups show more mixed outcomes (e.g., out-group favoritism, pro-White bias, or neither in-group or out-group favoritism; Corenblum and Annis, 1993;Griffiths and Nesdale, 2006;Gedeon et al, 2021). This expression of an out-group bias by low-status children can be the reflection of an internalization of prejudices and intergroup discrimination in society (Bonvillain and Huston, 2000;Masse et al, 2009).…”

“…Forming social categories in children depends both on their cognitive development and on their social experiences (Gedeon et al, 2021). Indeed, social categories do not develop simultaneously and their emergence depends on the age of the child and his or her social environment.…”

“…Social categorization is at the basis of intergroup processes that precedes prejudice and discrimination (Bigler and Liben, 2006). In children, racial categorization development depends on social context which includes ingroup size and social status (Verkuyten and Thijs, 2001;Gedeon et al, 2021). These factors modulate children's experience in a given environment for example in terms of saliency of their group membership and valorization of their social identity and therefore the development of racial categories.…”