Tethered humanity: Humanizing self and others in response to interpersonal harm

Abstract

We propose an integrative framework in which the self‐image of perpetrators and victims in interpersonal conflictual relationships becomes tethered to each other. To the extent that both parties stop seeing themselves as fully human when interpersonal harm is inflicted, we theorize that this state motivates attempts at restoration. Specifically, we propose the tethered humanity hypothesis which ascertains that perpetrators or victims can reclaim their full human status by re‐establishing the humanness of the opposing party. This hypothesis was analyzed from both the perspective of the perpetrator (Studies 1–3) and the victim (Study 4). In all studies, results indicated that perpetrators or victims self‐dehumanize in response to interpersonal harm and managed to regain a full human status when re‐humanizing the opposing party. Interestingly, this process was interrupted when the opposing party did not accept attempts at reconciliation. Our findings offer a new interpersonal perspective on the implications of immoral behavior.

Apology and Its Acceptance: Perceived Reconciliatory Attitudes Reduce Outgroup Dehumanization

“…Similar to the current study, Borinca et al (2021 , Study 3) investigated the effect of the perpetrator group’s apology on the improvement of intergroup relations through the victims’ perception of humanness, and Vaes and Bastian (2021 , Study 3) investigated whether accepting an apology or not affects dehumanization toward the perpetrator. However, Borinca and colleagues only focused on the position of the victim group members and did not verify the impact of intergroup apology on specific dimensions of humanness, and Vaes and Bastian primarily focused on interpersonal rather than intergroup conflict.…”

“… Borinca et al (2021 , Study 3) demonstrated that an apology offered by the perpetrator group (i.e., Serbians) reduced victims’ (i.e., Albanians) dehumanization of them more than when the apology was refused by the perpetrator group, and then, such lessened dehumanization facilitated the victims’ willingness to intergroup contact and reconciliation. In a study by Vaes and Bastian (2021 , Study 4), a victim who suffered social exclusion exhibited less dehumanization and more intention to forgive the perpetrator when they received an apology than when they did not receive it from the perpetrator. According to Leidner et al (2013 , Study 1), if the victims receive apologies from the perpetrators, they would be more likely to reappraise the perceived sentience of the perpetrators and to perceive their HN.…”

“…On the other hand, when perpetrators’ apology was accepted rather than rejected by the victim group, the perpetrators showed more positive attitudes toward the victims and stronger intentions for reconciliatory actions (e.g., willingness to compensate; Harth et al, 2011 ). For instance, according to Vaes and Bastian (2021 , Study 3), a perpetrator was less willing to dehumanize the victim when the apology for wrongdoing (i.e., treating the victim rudely) was accepted vs. rejected by the victim. Considering that the need to justify that the ingroup’s wrongdoings instigated the perpetrators’ dehumanization of the victim group ( Castano and Giner-Sorolla, 2006 ), the victims’ acceptance of the perpetrators’ apologies may relieve perpetrators of their collective self-threat and guilt, resulting in increased perception of HU in the victim group members.…”

Harnessing Dehumanization Theory, Modern Media, and an Intervention Tournament to Reduce Support for Retributive War Crimes

“…To do so, we leveraged the rich media content at our fingertips by searching open-access online repositories (e.g., YouTube, Vimeo) for videos that humanized Russian soldiers. We identified six videos we believed would humanize Russian soldiers by individuating them 54,63,64 , highlighting their moral agency through their opposition to the invasion 42,65,66 , and revealing their remorse for their participation in it 53,67,68 .…”

The tethered humanity hypothesis among victims of interpersonal harm: The role of apologies, forgiveness, and the relation between self-, other-, and meta-perceptions of humanity

“…Such immoral offenses have psychological and relational consequences (Baumeister et al, 1990), but have also shown to lead to changes in the way we perceive ourselves and the perpetrators in human terms (Bastian & Haslam, 2010, 2011). Recent theoretical advances have introduced the tethered humanity hypothesis (Vaes & Bastian, 2021) that allows us to make predictions about the way self and other humanness judgments change and are interconnected in response to interpersonal harm. While previous research has shown how both perpetrators and victims self-dehumanize when they commit or suffer immoral treatment (Bastian & Haslam, 2010; Bastian et al, 2012, 2013, 2014), the tethered humanity hypothesis states that the humanity of the perpetrator or the victim can get caught up in the humanity of the opposing party when attempts at reconciliation are undertaken and accepted, resulting in the rehumanization of both parties involved.…”