Stereotype threat stigmatizes the target group and its members and may induce social defense. As a protective mechanism against threats, self-esteem may influence the relation between stereotype threat and social defense, but the direction of this effect may be related to social value orientation. This study examines the effect of stereotype threat, relative to no threat, on the strategies stigmatized individuals use to protect themselves (i.e., the adoption of avoiding social comparison) and the moderating effect of intrinsic self-protection structures (i.e., self-esteem and social value orientation).
Two parallel experiments using the gender-mathematics stereotype investigated the impact of self-concept threat (Experiment 1) and group-concept threat (Experiment 2) on social comparison avoidance and its boundary mechanisms, under the theoretical underpinnings of the Multi-Threat Framework. A total of 534 female college students took part in Experiments 1 and 2. Students of non-mathematics and non-psychology majors were selected as participants. Social value orientation and self-esteem were measured 1~2 weeks prior to the experiment. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all official experiments were made available via web links (programmed in JavaScript) and administered individually by a female experimenter. Participants were assigned randomly to either a threat group (Experiment 1: self-concept threat; Experiment 2: group-concept threat) or a no threat group. Participants first completed threat (or non-threat) manipulation and its checks, and then took a standardized math test and social comparison avoidance measure in order. The threat manipulations used a news digest about “men’s outstanding achievements in mathematics” and test instructions of “anonymous diagnosis of math ability”. In the self-concept threat manipulation, the test instruction was “diagnosis of individual math ability”; and in the group-concept threat manipulation, the test instruction was “diagnosis of group math ability”. The standardized math test with a time limit of 10 minutes was administered, with one question per minute and 4 seconds pause between each question. The avoidance of social comparison was measured by the test-selection paradigm in Experiment 1, which required participants to choose 5 out of 20 Derivative math problems for themselves and 5 for others. Experiment 2 required participants to choose 5 out of 20 derivative math problems for females and 5 for males.
The results showed that: (1) both self-concept threat and group-concept threat triggered avoidance of social comparison (p < .05), but the social defense effect of self-concept threat was relatively weak. Self-concept threat only reduced the degree of comparison, but did not affect individuals’ choice of engaging in social comparison. (2) Self-esteem and social value orientation played a co-moderating role (p < .05). As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the self-esteem of individuals with a prosocial-value orientation increased social defenses against threats to self-concept and group-concept, whereas the self-esteem of individuals with a proself-value orientation did not affect social defenses against threats to the self-concept and decreased social defenses against threats to group-concept. This research shows that stereotype threat triggers the avoidance of social comparison, and that the threat defense effect is limited by self-esteem and social value orientation.
Stereotype threat is based on stigmatized identities and rooted in the social structure. Its threat effects span time and place, which is very noteworthy. Compared to previous studies, this study extends the effect of stereotype threat from internal negative experiences (such as poor performance, emotion exhaustion, cognitive impairment, etc.) to the level of social connection, and details the differences between the social defense effect of self-as-target and group-as-target stereotype threat, to provide scientific basis for future psychological interventions. Research focuses on the female identity, which is border impermeable, and contributes to the social defense effect of gender identity and even border impermeable identity threats. In addition, this study examines the boundary mechanism of the social defense effect of stereotype threat from the inner self-protection structure. It turns out that the relations between self-esteem and defense is not unitary and that social value orientation plays an essential role in predicting the internal and external value basis of self-esteem, which highlights the importance of considering the value basis of self-esteem in future research.
Key words
stereotype threat /
avoidance of social comparison /
self-esteem /
social value orientation /
self-concept threat /
group concept threat
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