Gaining assertive identity can make minority groups disparage other minorities

Evidence

For the moment, we can note that both individual mobility and some forms of social creativity can work to reduce intergroup conflict over scarce resources—though with different implications. The former is destructive of subordinate-group solidarity and provides no antidote to negative social identity at a group level. The latter may restore or create a positive self-image but, it can be surmised, at the price either of a collective repression of objective deprivation or, perhaps, of spurious rivalry with some other deprived group. It is interesting in this context that the French Canadians, having recently gained a more assertive identity, are now apparently more disparaging of other minority groups than are the English Canadians (Berry et al., 1977). — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 2751

Categorization

• CANDY: The French-Canadian finding — freshly assertive identity correlating with increased disparagement of other minorities — is a tidy conversational nugget.
• XREF: Echoes intergroup contact and social identity theory’s in-group/out-group bias findings, and the diamond-bourse arbitration literature’s point that group reputation depends on excluding outsiders. — connects to: High identification amplifies whichever norms, fair or biased, the group holds — Nyla R. Branscombe and Bertjan Doosje (eds.), Collective Guilt: International…, 836; Minority groups each claim unique oppression, blocking cross-group alliances — Chen-Bo Zhong, Adam D. Galinsky, and Miguel M. Unzueta, Negational racial identity and…, 7; US minority groups distrust each other more than they do Whites — Chen-Bo Zhong, Adam D. Galinsky, and Miguel M. Unzueta, Negational racial identity and…, 6 (+2 more)