HUMILITY SHAPING SOCIAL JUDGMENTS: THE EFFECT OF HUMILITY ON STEREOTYPING MEDIATED BY EGALITARIAN BELIEFS

Abstract

Based on the conceptualization of humility, this research hypothesized that humility can decrease stereotyping and the effect is mediated by egalitarian beliefs. Four studies were conducted to examine the hypotheses. Study 1 showed that dispositional humility was negatively associated with gender stereotyping. Study 2 showed that this association was mediated by egalitarian beliefs. Study 3 further replicated the mediating role of egalitarian beliefs using an experimental blockage manipulation design. Finally, Study 4 was a longitudinal study examining whether humility would predict prejudice change using a large Singaporean sample. The results revealed that humility predicted more positive attitudes towards the homosexuals over time. This research provides consistent evidence that humility can reduce the use of stereotypes and prejudice. The effect of humility on stereotyping is mediated by the egalitarian beliefs: humble individuals regard others in a more egalitarian way and therefore are less likely to be stereotypical in making social judgments.