Intergroup threat

What is intergroup threat?

Intergroup threat is a perceived danger from another group to one’s resources, security, values, or group identity. It concerns a perception, which must be distinguished from an independently measured danger.

Types of intergroup threat

Realistic threat concerns resources or safety; symbolic threat concerns values or identity. Intergroup anxiety concerns discomfort about interacting with members of another group. These distinguish what someone fears, rather than proving that the danger exists.

Research on intergroup threat

Riek and colleagues’ 2006 review discusses realistic and symbolic threats alongside intergroup anxiety and other related constructs. Its meta-analysis of 95 samples found positive relationships between several threat types and negative out-group attitudes.

Example of perceived resource threat

Members of a group may fear that another group will receive scarce opportunities. That illustrates a resource-related threat perception; it does not establish whether the opportunities are actually scarce or whether the other group causes the problem.

Limits

The evidence does not justify assuming that perceived threats are always exaggerated or that perceived threat inevitably produces violence or discrimination. Reducing threat is a possible intervention target whose effects must be tested in the relevant setting.