A Privileged Point of View: Effects of Subjective Socioeconomic Status on Naïve Realism and Political Division

Is contact among social class groups associated with legitimation of inequality? An examination across 28 countries

Is class-based contact associated with legitimation of inequality? Drawing from the idea that people adopt beliefs predominant in groups with whom they interact, we hypothesized that upper-class contact would correspond to greater legitimation of inequality, whereas lower-class contact would correspond to lesser legitimation of inequality among lower- and upper-class individuals. We also hypothesized that middle-class individuals might possess a more precarious identity, leading lower-class contact to correspond to higher legitimation of inequality. We tested hypotheses using a nationally representative sample from Chile (N = 4446; Study 1), and nationally representative samples from 28 countries (N = 43,811; Study 2). Support for hypotheses was mixed. Upper-class contact was often associated with greater legitimation of inequality, whereas lower-class contact was frequently related to lower legitimation of inequality. Patterns emerged among most social class groups, but there was also variation across groups. We discuss potential explanations for results along with theoretical implications for class-based contact.

Desirable Biases: Self-Enhancement Is Seen as Biased and Bad, Other-Enhancement Is Seen as Biased but Good

People who describe themselves as better than others are evaluated negatively, particularly when such self-enhancement is perceived as biased. This research replicates this finding, but it shows the opposite pattern for other-enhancement. People making flattering descriptions of their relatives and loved ones were seen as biased but likeable, whereas people who did not do so were seen as more realistic but less likeable. Critically, the enhancement of other people only inspired favorable impressions when it was perceived as sincere (i.e., true in the eyes of the enhancer). Moreover, and in line with an attributional account, the fewer people shared that assessment, the more it was perceived to reveal about the enhancer and how much they liked the target of the enhancement. This research suggests a nuanced version of the role of bias perception in impression formation, whereby biased appraisals are expected in certain domains, and they can inspire favorable impressions.