Outgroup Homogeneity Effect - Research Paper Example

Outgroup Homogeneity Effect Outgroup Homogeneity Effect Introduction In this paper, the will discuss the underlying factors in the challenges faced by minority individuals in finding jobs. Over the years, it has become increasingly obvious that individuals from minority communities find it more difficult to secure employment opportunities compared to individuals from dominant communities. However, research on the phenomenon has been quite limited considering the gravity of the situation. Social categorization and prejudice have been cited as one of the main reasons behind minority persons’ difficulties in finding jobs. The writer will conduct a literature review of the subject, in addition to discussing specific topics such as outgroup homogeneity effect in the workplace and ethnic and job application. This paper aims to shed light on the subject and provide a critical and wider perspective of the issue at hand. Outgroup Homogeneity Effect According to the article by de la Haye (2001), the majority of researches on perceived variability have focused on ingroup/outgroup dynamics. So far, the dominant result on the subject has been the so-called outgroup homogeneity effect, commonly known as OHE. According to de la Haye, outgroups are viewed as more homogenous compared to ingroups. Research into this phenomenon is challenging in at least two ways. In the first place, the subject itself is uncommon (Haye, 2001). According to de la Haye, multiple studies by Simon et al. (1987) revealed that when individuals belong to minority groups, they consider their own group to be more homogenous compared to outgroups. Consequently, minority persons exhibit the ingroup homogeneity effect (IHE). According to de la Haye, Bartsch and Judd (1993) observed a marked distinction between OHE and IHE (Haye, 2001). According to them, OHE and the impacts of intergroup juxtaposition with a majority versus minority outgroup are totally distinguishable and conceptually different (Haye, 2001). According to the article by Thompson, Kohles, Otsuki, and Kent (1997), in spite of extensive studies on the OHE, its generalization to racial and ethnic groups and reasonable scenarios of conflict is not clearly understood. Groups that have major social impacts have been ignored by researches assessing groups that occur naturally. For example, Thompson, Kohles, Otsuki, and Kent (1997), state that according to Jones, Wood and Quattrone (1981), belonging to college social societies is unlikely to be as emotionally and socially significant as ethnic group categorization. Park and Rothbart (1982) agree with this finding, but in relation to sororities. According to the two studies, ethnic group identification has major implications for self-categorization in the United States and, consequently, is a vital place for studying intergroup views (Thompson, Kohles, Otsuki, & Kent, 1997). They argue that although one can expect to discover OHE impacts for groups shaped by ethnicity, there could be other factors that alter or reverse those impacts (Thompson, Kohles, Otsuki, & Kent, 1997). In the article by Rubin and Badea (2007), the authors conduct a literature review of the researches in which scholars gauged adjudged ingroup and outgroup attributes. In line with the authors’ stereotype expression theory, they only assumed the stereotype effect to present in studies in which indicators of adjudged intragroup variability were not followed by indicators that supported the demonstration of attribute stereotypicality. Rubin and Badea’s (2007) literature review also insinuated that the stereotype effect is regulated by the nature of variability indicator that researchers have employed. Most often, researchers have determined that the stereotype effect uses the distribution and similarity indicators. Rubin and Badea state that according to Brown and Wooton-Millward, 1993; Kelly, 1989), just 2 out of the 8 researches have discovered proof of the stereotype effect (Rubin & Badea, 2007). The relative rarity of the stereotype effect on wide measure indicates that there might be something about this indicator that inhibits the effect. Outgroup Homogeneity Effect in the Workplace OHE has a massive impact on the workplace because it leads employees with certain skills or those belonging to specific departments to think that their colleagues are more alike compared to them. In addition, employees in specific organizations seem to think that employees in other firms are more alike while they are more diverse (Rubin & Badea, 2007). OHE creates false perceptions in among employees working in one organization between employees in different organizations. This can lead to an under appreciation of the skills and talents possessed by some workers, leading to the underutilization of their potential. For example, employees in the finance department of a firm may think that all the employees in the human resource department are alike in terms of their personality and abilities (Rubin & Badea, 2007). This may inhibit the ability of the two groups to work together as a team for the benefit of the organization. The result is fractured relationships that slow down progress. Ethnic and Job Application Research shows that individuals belonging to minority groups might find it more difficult to find jobs than those belonging to majority groups (Thompson, Kohles, Otsuki, & Kent, 1997). In terms of ethnicity, racial discrimination plays a part in the phenomenon because employers from a particular race feel more comfortable giving employment opportunities to members of their own race than “outsiders.” This is from strictly racial or ethnic perspective (de la Haye, 2001). Studies show that members of certain races feel that “their people” deserve more employment opportunities than people from other races because of prejudices or just malice. However, this phenomenon can also be explained using the outgroup homogeneity effect (OHE). According to the OHE, people belonging to certain races (in this case employers) feel that members of other races (job seekers) are all alike. For example, a white American human resource manager may think that all African Americans have the same personality and behavior (Thompson, Kohles, Otsuki, & Kent, 1997). The manager might feel, for example, that all African Americans are overly aggressive, unintelligent and lazy, the common stereotypes associated with African Americans (de la Haye, 2001). On the other hand, the manager may be of the opinion that white Americans are diverse in terms of personality and behavior. Of course, there are some overly aggressive, lazy, and unintelligent white people, but these traits are not homogenous in them. As a result, based on the OHE, the manager is likely to hire a less qualified white job applicant over a more qualified or experienced African American job applicant because he is convinced that the African American will be overly aggressive or lazy, traits that may be undesirable to him (Thompson, Kohles, Otsuki, & Kent, 1997). The manager will therefore be read to settle for a less qualified white job seeker than African American male because he thinks there is no difference between the African American applicant and other African American selling drugs and taking part in illegal activities. In the same vein, the OHE indicates that an African American HR manager might prefer a African American applicant over a white applicant because he thinks that all white people are lazy, racist and too opinionated (de la Haye, 2001). Although this is based on stereotype, the manager will reason that not all African Americans are unintelligent, compared to white people who are all racists. These examples show how the OHE can influence hiring and recruitment in various industries. In addition, studies show that these examples are actually true in real life. African Americans with good credentials find it difficult to secure employment in industries dominated by white people (de la Haye, 2001). On the other hand, white people with good credentials also find it difficult to secure employment in industries dominated by African Americans. That is how OHE affects employment opportunities racially. References Haye, A. (2001). False consensus and the outgroup homogeneity effect: Interference in measurement or intrinsically dependent processes? European Journal of Social Psychology, 31(3), 217-230. Rubin, M., & Badea, C. (2007). Why Do People Perceive Ingroup Homogeneity on Ingroup Traits and Outgroup Homogeneity on Outgroup Traits? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 33(1), 31-42. Thompson, S., Kohles, J., Otsuki, T., & Kent, D. (1997). Perceptions of attitudinal similarity in ethnic groups in the U.S.: Ingroup and outgroup homogeneity effects. European Journal of Social Psychology, 27(2), 209-220. Read More