Collective in-group responsibility specifically reduces attribution of human emotions to victims

Evidence

This pattern of findings was replicated in the context of the relations between Mapuche Indians and nonindigenous Chileans, by Cehajic, Brow, and Gonzalez (2009, Study 1). Across two conditions, these authors varied the level of responsibility of the nonindigenous Chileans for the mistreatment of the Mapuche Indians in the 19th century. In the individual responsibility condition, only few members of the in-group (nonindigenous Chileans) were seen to be responsible for the plight inflicted on the Mapuche, whereas in the in-group responsibility condition, the entire in-group was made to seem responsible. Participants then rated Mapuche people on how likely they are to feel 16 emotions, among which were primary and secondary emotions. Paralleling the findings reported earlier, in-group collective responsibility resulted in the attribution of fewer secondary emotions, but not primary emotions, to the Mapuches. — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 2111

Categorization

• XREF: Replicates the infrahumanization pattern across a different national context (Chile), strengthening generalizability — connects to the broader literature on secondary vs. primary emotions. — connects to: Group glorification increases emotional minimization of outgroup victims’ suffering. — Bernhard Leidner et al., Ingroup Glorification, Moral…, 50; Perpetrator acknowledgment of genocide victimization reduces victims’ anger and hostility. — Johanna Ray Vollhardt and Michelle Sinayobye Twali, Emotion-Based Reconciliation Requires…, 32; Superordinate framing reduces perpetrators’ guilt and raises undue forgiveness expectations. — Johanna Ray Vollhardt and Michelle Sinayobye Twali, Emotion-Based Reconciliation Requires…, 53