Intergroup attitudes and attitudes towards devolution: Field and laboratory experiments

Abstract

A field experiment provided the first test of the hypothesis that intergroup attitudes within a nation predict the group members' attitudes toward the break-up of the nation. Prior to a referendum on the devolution of power from Britain to Wales, Welsh (minority) and English (majority) participants indicated their attitudes towards each other and towards devolution. As expected, there were significant correlations between intergroup attitudes and attitudes towards devolution, and these relations were different for Welsh vs. English participants. English respondents who held more positive attitudes towards Welsh people were significantly more favourable toward devolution, whereas Welsh respondents who held more positive attitudes towards English people were significantly less favourable towards devolution. A subsequent laboratory experiment provided a conceptual replication of this result, using manipulations of majority vs. minority status and of intergroup attitudes towards potentially devolving groups in psychology. These findings demonstrate that intergroup attitudes are highly relevant to understanding attitudes regarding devolution.

Corruption and support for decentralisation

“…Empirical research finds some support for these expectations. Using field and laboratory experiments prior to a referendum on the devolution from Britain to Wales, Maio et al (2003) find that intergroup attitudes are significantly related to support for devolution. Analysing survey data from Catalonia, Serrano (2013) finds that Catalan identifiers are more likely to support Catalan independence.…”

“…The other key explanation of support for decentralisation refers to collective identity (Forsyth 1989;Keating 2001;Liñeira & Cetra 2015;Maio et al 2003;Marks et al 2008;Serrano 2013;Henderson et al 2015). Culturally and/or ethnically distinct regions develop competing subnational identities, which lead to public demands for sovereignty.…”

“…Firstly, it provides a new theoretical framework by highlighting the importance of low quality of governance at different geographical levels of government. With the exception of Guinjoan & Rodon (2014) who see support for decentralisation as endogenous to the political system, extant research has almost exclusively focused on collective identity (Liñeira & Cetra 2015, Maio et al 2003Serrano 2013), economic considerations (Balcells et al 2015;Beramendi 2012;Muñoz & Tormos 2015) and party politics (Amat 2012;Brancati 2006;Torcal & Mota 2013;Toubeau & Wagner 2016) as main explanations for decentralisation preferences. Our approach brings political factors back in, and it challenges the conventional view that claims for decentralisation and independence are limited to regions that are economic and/or cultural outliers vis-à-vis the rest of the state.…”

Hypotheses for the Reasons behind Beer Consumer’s Willingness to Purchase Beer: An Expanded Theory from a Planned Behavior Perspective

“…Constructs related to injunctive norms and descriptive norms were measured using two 3-item scales developed by Wang and Lin [49]. A 3-item scale was used to measure attitude (Maio et al, 2003) [50], and perceived behavioral control was measured using a 3-item scale modified from the study of Gao et al [51]. A 3-item scale was adapted from the study of Barbarossa and De Pelsmacker [39] to measure alcohol identity.…”

A cross-cultural analysis of the modes and effectiveness of collaborative production of knowledge on Quora

“…In addition, the positive results of cross-cultural communication include the enhancement of communication competence, the improvement of language skills (Bauer et al, 2005), and the reduction of stereotypes and discrimination (Hewstone and Brown, 1986;Maio et al, 2003). In other words, factors such as stereotyping may decrease the effectiveness of cross-cultural collaboration.…”