Allport’s personality-based victimization model misses group-level and cultural dynamics

Evidence

In this chapter I will summarize Allport’s analysis and suggest broadly that (a) he was on target by examining the wide variety of ego-defenses that might be recruited to sustain psychological well-being against the relentless nature of racism, but that (b) his personality-based analysis was not fully adequate to capture the dynamic, multidimensional connections between individuals and their groups. These connections among personal cognitions and collective actions, and the recurring role that cultural patterns play in shaping adaptive responses to racism, are critical in understanding the responses of victims of discrimination. — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 1036

Categorization

• XREF: A critique that parallels later sociological critiques of individualistic psychological models — echoes the collective-action turn in stigma research.