JUDGING THE TRANSGRESSOR: EFFECTS OF CULTURAL TENDENCIES IN AN INTERGROUP CONTEXT

Abstract

People generally treat ingroup members more leniently than outgroup members. However, people also derogate a transgressive ingroup deviant more than a similarly transgressive outgroup deviant (i.e., the black sheep effect). To reconcile this discrepancy, we hypothesized that individual differences in the cultural tendency to prioritize within-group hierarchy (i.e., vertical collectivism; VC) over within-group equality (i.e., horizontal collectivism; HC) would influence whether ingroup leniency or the black sheep effect would occur when transgressors are judged. Participants first completed a measure of horizontal-vertical individualism-collectivism. Next, after reading a vignette about either an ingroup or an outgroup transgressor who engaged in match-fixing, participants evaluated the transgressor on four positive traits. Results partially supported the hypothesized moderation. As predicted, individuals who strongly prioritized within-group equality over within-group hierarchy (i.e., low VC-HC) evaluated the ingroup transgressor more leniently than the outgroup transgressor, thus demonstrating an ingroup bias. Contrary to predictions, we did not find evidence for the black sheep effect amongst individuals who weakly prioritized within-group equality over within-group hierarchy (i.e., high VC-HC). Our study contributes to the growing literature that interprets intergroup phenomena through a culturally-oriented lens. Implications for jury decision making are discussed.