Most ingroup bias is overvaluation of one’s own group, not active dislike of outsiders

Evidence

Let us conclude this section by returning to the distinction between negative intergroup attitudes and ingroup bias. Consistent with the “positive distinctiveness” postulate of Social Identity Theory, most of the research reviewed above focused on “bias” as a dependent variable, which only demands that the ingroup be seen or treated better than the outgroup. However, such measures may only speak indirectly to those manifestations of prejudice which involve some explicit derogation of or hostility toward an outgroup. As Brewer (1979) pointed out some years ago, most ingroup bias phenomena involve a relative overevaluation of the ingroup (or its products) and not a devaluation of the outgroup (and its products). Allport himself also underlined the importance of this distinction: “what is alien is regarded as somehow inferior, less “good,” but there is not necessarily hostility against it” (1954/1979, p. 42). — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 445

Categorization

Category: Definitional Content

• DEFINE: Clarifies the conceptual line between ingroup bias (positive distinctiveness) and genuine outgroup hostility, a distinction that shapes how prejudice itself should even be measured.
• XREF: Connects to Milgrom’s and Shapiro’s work on how communities sustain cooperation via reputation within one’s own group without necessarily denigrating outgroups.

Related

• Ingroup preference need not translate into any particular attitude toward outgroups (similarity 0.93)
• Ingroup attachment does not necessarily produce outgroup hostility (similarity 0.91)
• In-group bias mostly reflects positive self-regard, not hostility toward outsiders (similarity 0.89)
• Most ingroup bias overvalues the ingroup rather than devaluing the outgroup (similarity 0.88)
• Favoring one’s own group does not require hating other groups (similarity 0.86)
• Intergroup discrimination arises from ingroup favoritism, not outgroup hostility. (similarity 0.86)
• Ingroup favoritism operates independently of outgroup hatred (similarity 0.85)
• Groups split favorably toward their own members and derogate outgroup attributes (similarity 0.85)
• Love of one’s ingroup drives intergroup bias as much as hatred of outgroups (similarity 0.84)
• Allport held ingroup positivity need not require outgroup opposition (similarity 0.84)
• Allport held ingroup favoritism only weakly predicts outgroup hostility, unlike SIT (similarity 0.84)
• Ingroup favoritism stems from projecting self onto ingroup, not from self-enhancement striving (similarity 0.84)
• Ingroup love is more fundamental to human life than outgroup hate. (similarity 0.83)
• Liking one’s own group does not predict hostility toward other groups (similarity 0.83)
• Ingroup-favoritism mechanisms can be redirected to reduce outgroup bias (similarity 0.83)