The cultural boundaries of perspective-taking: When and why perspective-taking reduces stereotyping

• Main Authors: WANG, Cynthia S., LEE, Margaret, KU, Gillian, LEUNG, Angela K. Y.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2018
• Subjects: perspective-taking; stereotyping; cultural differences; relational mobility; Multicultural Psychology; Social Psychology
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/2689; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/soss_research/article/3946/viewcontent/The_cultural_boundaries_of_perspective_taking_When_and_why_perspective_taking_reduces_stereotyping.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Research conducted in Western cultures indicates that perspective-taking is an effective social strategy for reducing stereotyping. The current article explores whether and why the effects of perspective-taking on stereotyping differ across cultures. Studies 1 and 2 established that perspective-taking reduces stereotyping in Western but not in East Asian cultures. Using a socioecological framework, Studies 2 and 3 found that relational mobility, that is, the extent to which individuals’ social environments provide them opportunities to choose new relationships and terminate old ones, explained our effect: Perspective-taking was negatively associated with stereotyping in relationally mobile (Western) but not in relationally stable (East Asian) environments. Finally, Study 4 examined the proximal psychological mechanism underlying the socioecological effect: Individuals in relationally mobile environments are more motivated to develop new relationships than those in relationally stable environments. Subsequently, when this motivation is high, perspective-taking increases self-target group overlap, which then decreases stereotyping.