What Does It Mean to be a “Citizen of the World”: A Prototype Approach

Abstract

The superordinate social category “ citizen of the world” is used by laypeople and scholars to embody several constructs (e.g., cosmopolitanism; global identity and citizenship), and prior research suggests that the concept is better represented as a prototype rather than having a clear-cut definition. This research aims to systematically examine the prototypical meaning of this social category, and how it is cognitively processed. Relying on a prototype approach, six studies ( n = 448) showed that certain attributes of this category were communicated more frequently and were regarded as more central (e.g., multiculturalism), and that central (vs. peripheral) attributes were more quickly identified, more often remembered, and more appropriate to identify a group member, as well as the self, as a “ citizen of the world.” These results systematically demonstrated that this category has a prototypical structure and there is a differentiated cognitive automatic processing for central and peripheral attributes. We propose that the specific content activated by the attributes regarded as central to the prototype of “citizens of the world” (e.g., intercultural contact; diversity), and the fact that these are more accessible in memory to form a mental representation, are important aspects to understand identity processes and their impact on intergroup outcomes.

Unpacking all-inclusive superordinate categories: Comparing correlates and consequences of global citizenship and human identities

“…Importantly, one explanation for one’s group to be seen as less prototypical may be related to the potentially malleable prototypical meaning of citizens of the world . In certain circumstances people use this label to describe those who move around the world, who interact with different cultures and seem to have “no roots” nor a special bond to their country of origin ( Türken and Rudmin, 2013 ; Carmona et al, 2022 ). Considering this meaning, the prototype of migrants (as those who live outside their country of origin) may be seen as more similar to the prototype of citizens of the world , than the one of one’s own national group, which may therefore be seen as less prototypical for this superordinate category.…”

“…We aim to explore whether citizens of the world might be perceived as less essentialized and more entitative than humans , considering their differences in meaning. Being a human being has strong biological connotation; whereas citizens of the world seems to activate less biological-related content, as it tends to describe individuals who hold a beyond-nation scope of concern and responsibility ( Carmona et al, 2022 ).…”

“…We aim to explore whether citizens of the world might be perceived as less essentialized and more entitative than humans, considering their differences in meaning. Being a human being has strong biological connotation; whereas citizens of the world seems to activate less biological-related content, as it tends to describe individuals who hold a beyondnation scope of concern and responsibility (Carmona et al, 2022). Second, making common identity salient can alter the way people cognitively represent groups through the process of recategorization that changes an initial representation of different groups as separate groups to a shared identity, either as one single group emphasizing similarities among members (i.e., one-group representation) or as two subgroups on the same team, which recognizes and values both similarities and differences between subgroups (i.e., dual-identity representation; Gaertner and Dovidio, 2000).…”

“…We selected these two categories for comparison in the present work because they are frequently used in the largest cross-national surveys (e.g., EVS, 2020), as well as because they have attributes that may activate different psychological processes. For example, the category of humans, because it seems to activate more biological attributes (e.g., nature of the human species; appearance; need of bonding; Carmona et al, 2020), may influence perceptions of essentialism and motivate prosocial action toward others defined as human more than would the category of citizens of the world, which seems to activate more attitudinal attributes (e.g., multiculturalism; cosmopolitanism; Carmona et al, 2020Carmona et al, , 2022.…”