Neuroscience
Psychology hasn't paid enough attention to the regard people have towards humanity - their "humanity-esteem". That's according to Michelle Luke and Gregory Maio whose new research suggests a person's view of humanity can have important social implications, for example affecting their proclivity for racism. If we think highly of humankind, it follows that we're less likely to have a negative attitude to other ethnic groups - after all, they're human too.
In an initial study, the researchers devised a new 10-item psychology questionnaire (featuring items like "On the whole I am satisfied with the evolution of humanity") and a single-item, 9-point scale version ("Overall, how favourable are you toward human beings in general?"). The researchers confirmed, with the help of hundreds of student participants, that humanity-esteem is a unidimensional construct and that it is related to, but not completely explained by, a person's feelings towards and beliefs about people, such as whether they tend to be trustworthy or not.
In further investigations, the researchers showed that people's humanity-esteem can be influenced by presenting them with images casting humankind in a positive light (e.g. a child kissing an older relative, with a strap-line celebrating the benefit of families) or in a negative light (e.g. a Palestinian man carrying a dying boy, with a strap-line blaming unrest for innocent deaths).
Moreover, increasing people's humanity-esteem with positive images was found to reduce their subsequent tendency to differentiate between groups, whilst negative images had the opposite effect. This has real-world implications, the researchers warned. "Because the media often emphasises the negative side of human nature, it may have a negative influence on humanity-esteem and increase problems of discrimination. Awareness of this potential effect should enter discussions of the ways in which events are covered." Luke and Maio end their paper with a call for more research on this topic. "Evaluations of humanity merit far more attention than they have received," they said.
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LUKE, M.L., & MAIO, G.R. (2009). Oh the humanity! Humanity-esteem and its social importance. Journal of Research in Personality, 43 (4), 586-601 DOI: 10.1016/j.jrp.2009.03.001
Post written by Christian Jarrett (@psych_writer) for the BPS Research Digest.
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Neuroscience
Do you love humanity?
"I love humanity but I hate people"Edna St. Vincent Millay (American poet and playwright).
Psychology hasn't paid enough attention to the regard people have towards humanity - their "humanity-esteem". That's according to Michelle Luke and Gregory Maio whose new research suggests a person's view of humanity can have important social implications, for example affecting their proclivity for racism. If we think highly of humankind, it follows that we're less likely to have a negative attitude to other ethnic groups - after all, they're human too.
In an initial study, the researchers devised a new 10-item psychology questionnaire (featuring items like "On the whole I am satisfied with the evolution of humanity") and a single-item, 9-point scale version ("Overall, how favourable are you toward human beings in general?"). The researchers confirmed, with the help of hundreds of student participants, that humanity-esteem is a unidimensional construct and that it is related to, but not completely explained by, a person's feelings towards and beliefs about people, such as whether they tend to be trustworthy or not.
In further investigations, the researchers showed that people's humanity-esteem can be influenced by presenting them with images casting humankind in a positive light (e.g. a child kissing an older relative, with a strap-line celebrating the benefit of families) or in a negative light (e.g. a Palestinian man carrying a dying boy, with a strap-line blaming unrest for innocent deaths).
Moreover, increasing people's humanity-esteem with positive images was found to reduce their subsequent tendency to differentiate between groups, whilst negative images had the opposite effect. This has real-world implications, the researchers warned. "Because the media often emphasises the negative side of human nature, it may have a negative influence on humanity-esteem and increase problems of discrimination. Awareness of this potential effect should enter discussions of the ways in which events are covered." Luke and Maio end their paper with a call for more research on this topic. "Evaluations of humanity merit far more attention than they have received," they said.
_________________________________
LUKE, M.L., & MAIO, G.R. (2009). Oh the humanity! Humanity-esteem and its social importance. Journal of Research in Personality, 43 (4), 586-601 DOI: 10.1016/j.jrp.2009.03.001Post written by Christian Jarrett (@psych_writer) for the BPS Research Digest.
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Contemptuousness is a distinct personality trait that you can measure with a simple questionnaire. That's according to Roberta Schriber and her colleagues who've devised such a test and described the character of typical contemptuous person –...
- In Search Of The Super-humane (those Who Identify With All Of Humanity)
The pages of psychology's journals are filled with sorry tales of people's intolerance and prejudice towards one another. Against this darkness, Sam McFarland and his colleagues urge us not to forget the brighter stories - the heroes of the...
- Your Left Brain Has A Bigger Ego Than Your Right Brain
Psychologists have used an inventive combination of techniques to show that the left half of the brain has more self-esteem than the right half. The finding is consistent with earlier research showing that the left hemisphere is associated more with positive,...
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Being reminded of our own mortality can sour our attitudes towards animals, psychologists have found. Low self-esteem students who were reminded of their mortality and their similarity to animals subsequently reported more negative attitudes towards animals...
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