Davide Morselli | University of Lausanne (original) (raw)

Papers by Davide Morselli

Sociological Methodology, 2013

drafted the paper and coordinated the working group, which developed the spatially weighted conte... more drafted the paper and coordinated the working group, which developed the spatially weighted context data approach. Sandra Penic performed most of the final data analyses presented in the paper. All other co-authors, who appear in alphabetical order, made a substantial contribution to the conceptualisation of spatially weighted context data and to the implementation of the approach within the TRACES project.

Two concurrent positions have driven research on the relationship between economic factors and so... more Two concurrent positions have driven research on the relationship between economic factors and social trust across countries: While some research has shown that unequal wealth distribution leads to poor social trust, other research has argued that social trust is the precondition to a country’s economic performance and distribution of economic resources. Using an ecological linear growth model, this study tests these two concurrent positions with data from the first six rounds of the European Social Survey (ESS). This study focuses on the links between socio-economic conditions and inclusive social capital climates, i.e., social climates where inclusive attitudes and generalized trust are widely extended to outgroups. Two models are estimated with Bayesian methods and then compared. The results support the hypothesis that the diffusion of inclusive social capital climates can predict the improvement of a country's socio-economic conditions. However, they also support the opposite hypothesis, according to which the improvement of socio-economic conditions is pivotal in creating a climate of trust. Slightly stronger results are found for the latter hypothesis, suggesting that the enhancement of economic conditions and income distribution may be pivotal in reinforcing the social fabric.

Event history calendar (EHC) methods have received increasing attention from the life-course surv... more Event history calendar (EHC) methods have received increasing attention from the life-course surveys that have been used in recent years. According to the literature, the EHC provides high-quality data in retrospective surveys because it replicates the autobiographical memory retrieval processes. EHC interviewing is processed through the visual display of individual life events, phases and transitions on a chronological calendar grid, which allows respondents to effectively link events as well as to identify and correct possible dating errors. Moreover, interactive interviewing facilitates the retrieval mechanism. In this study, we test whether the absence of an interviewer and/or interactive interviewing are associated with a reduction in data quality. This aspect is particularly relevant for surveys, as the absence of the interviewer would allow the implementation of EHC methods in self-administered questionnaires. In Study 1, an experimental design compared the results of self-administered paper-and-pencil EHCs in the presence and absence of an interviewer. In Study 2, a quasi-experimental approach compared the results of an interactive EHC interview with those of a self-administered paper-and-pencil EHC. Neither of these studies showed systematic differences between self-administered and interviewer-administered EHCs. The self-administered mode performs better when the instructions and layout design of the questionnaire are clear and detailed. Our findings suggest that the visual properties of the EHC could be a sufficient condition for collecting good retrospective data in the self-administered mode once the initial burden of the task is overcome.

Moral exclusion is defined as viewing others as lying beyond the boundary within which moral valu... more Moral exclusion is defined as viewing others as lying beyond the boundary within which moral values and rules of justice apply. In contrast, the process of moral inclusion involves the extension of social justice to several social groups. Thus, both moral inclusion and exclusion are a pivotal dimension in the study of social inequalities. Although the concept of moral inclusion/exclusion has a history of more than 20 years, research still lacks accurate instruments for measuring it. In this article, a first version of a scale that measures moral inclusion/exclusion was constructed and validated. The good reliability and correlation indexes found across the samples suggest that MIEG is a good measure for tapping into moral exclusion/inclusion symptoms.

This paper aims to introduce multilevel logistic regression analysis in a simple and practical wa... more This paper aims to introduce multilevel logistic regression analysis in a simple and practical way. First, we introduce the basic principles of logistic regression analysis (conditional probability, logit transformation, odds ratio). Second, we discuss the two fundamental implications of running this kind of analysis with a nested data structure: In multilevel logistic regression, the odds that the outcome variable equals one (rather than zero) may vary from one cluster to another (i.e. the intercept may vary) and the effect of a lower-level variable may also vary from one cluster to another (i.e. the slope may vary). Third and finally, we provide a simplified three-step " turnkey " procedure for multilevel logistic regression modeling: • Preliminary phase: Cluster-or grand-mean centering variables • Step #1: Running an empty model and calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) • Step #2: Running a constrained and an augmented intermediate model and performing a likelihood ratio test to determine whether considering the cluster-based variation of the effect of the lower-level variable improves the model fit • Step #3 Running a final model and interpreting the odds ratio and confidence intervals to determine whether data support your hypothesis Command syntax for Stata, R, Mplus, and SPSS are included. These steps will be applied to a study on Justin Bieber, because everybody likes Justin Bieber. 1

In this research, we focus on the effects of the individual's social dominance orientation (SDO) ... more In this research, we focus on the effects of the individual's social dominance orientation (SDO) on the expression of prejudicial attitudes. Furthermore, we examine the mediational effect of moral exclusion on this relationship. The literature has shown a strong correlation between SDO and prejudice. However, we hypothesize that the processes of moral exclusion (i.e., covert and institutionalized forms of excluding social groups from the community to which the rules of justice apply) should mediate the effect of SDO on the expression of prejudice, particularly with regard to subtle forms of prejudice. The results from 276 Italian participants support this hypothesis. The effects of SDO are mediated by the inclusive level of the moral community, and this effect is stronger for subtle prejudice than for blatant prejudice. The results suggest that modern prejudice is hidden by subtle forms of moral exclusion.

Perceptions of the future are crucial components of individual well-being. Hopelessness, which is... more Perceptions of the future are crucial components of individual well-being. Hopelessness, which is the sense that the future is a dead end, begins with the occurrence of negative life events and develops through the perception of consistent and pervasive negative outcomes. This study investigated the role of the socioeconomic aspects of the context and shared emotions (emotional climates) within a region in reducing or exacerbating hopelessness. Emotional climates have been defined as the emotional relationships constructed among members of a society, and they describe the environmental quality of a particular community. Multilevel modeling with individuals nested into regions (i.e., Swiss cantons) was used to explore the relationship between context and hopelessness. Data from the project ''Vulnerability and Growth,'' the Swiss Household Panel and official socioeconomic indicators were used. Spatial-weighting methods were applied to estimate depressive and optimistic emotional climates at the canton level. The results show that hopelessness is primarily affected by individual factors such as personality and life events. However, the analyses revealed that socioeconomic conditions and the optimistic and depressive climates that prevail in cantons also affected individuals' perceptions of hopelessness. Individuals were more likely to feel hopeless in cantons with high unemployment rates and high levels of shared negative emotions. In contrast, positive emotional climates played a protective role against hopelessness. Acknowledgment of the influence of context on individuals' perceptions of the future and the correlation of their states of anxiety and depression is pivotal for planning effective interventions to prevent depression.

ABSTRACT Life-history calendar (LHC) methods have been increasingly used in surveys in the last t... more ABSTRACT Life-history calendar (LHC) methods have been increasingly used in surveys in the last two decades. There is indeed a general consensus on the fact that the highly structured but flexible approach of the LHC facilitates the memory of past events. Respondent's past experiences provide a context for retrieval of autobiographical memories and they are used as anchoring points and time landmarks for remembering. While there is a general agreement that the LHC methods improve accuracy of retrospective data even for different populations and cultures with a non-linear representation of time, the reasons for this performance (i.e., retrieval processes) are less clear. The literature suggest that the LHC performance is amplified by the interviewer-respondent interaction via conversational and flexible interviewing, either in CATI or CAPI. However, studies using self-administered LHC on youth sex behavior argued that LHC can be used also used in self-administered modes reducing social desirability bias. In this study we present data from two surveys conducted in Switzerland (the Swiss Household Panel pilot study and the Family tiMes survey) between 2011 and 2013. Results show that self-administered LHC could produce equally valid data in terms of completeness (measured with five indicators: number of residential moves, number of intimate partners, number of children, number of jobs, and number of years of unemployment) than interviewer-respondent interactive interviewing. Moreover, self-administered LHC transmitted by mail data had even higher levels of internal coherence than self-administered LHC completed during face-to-face interviews. We argue that improvements in the layout (i.e., graphical visualization) of the LHC, as well as an increasing popularity of life calendar model in social media, may have increased in recent years the accuracy and feasibility of self-administered LHC for data collection.

Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 2015

http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/gpir Group Processes and Intergroup Relations SYMPATHETIC COLLECT... more http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/gpir Group Processes and Intergroup Relations SYMPATHETIC COLLECTIVE ACTION 1 Abstract Inspired by the popular Arab protests against oppressive regimes that began in 2010, people around the world protested in sympathy with the Arab peoples. The present research draws on two major theories of intergroup relations to develop an initial integrative model of sympathetic collective action. We incorporate social dominance theory's (SDT) concept of (rejectionist) legitimizing myths with the solidarity and emotional mediation concept of the social identity model of collective action (SIMCA) to understand motivations for sympathetic collective action among bystanders. Using data from 12 nations (N=1480), we tested three models: (a) SIMCA (i.e., solidarity, anger, and efficacy), (b) a social dominance theory model of collective action (i.e., social dominance orientation and ideologies concerning Arab competence), and (c) an integrated model of sympathetic collective action combining both theories. Results find the greatest support for an integrated model of collective action. Discussion focuses on theoretical pluralism and suggestions for future research.

Prenatal Diagnosis, 2013

This study aims to explore the psychosocial factors which influenced the undergoing of prenatal g... more This study aims to explore the psychosocial factors which influenced the undergoing of prenatal genetic testing (PGT) in a sample of pregnant women. An online questionnaire was emailed to a convenient sample of 105 pregnant women, recruited from among those attending two antenatal education programmes and via snowball sampling. A minority of respondents underwent chorionic villous sampling and amniocentesis (12 and 11, respectively). Advanced maternal age was related to undertaking PGT. The path analysis model (χ(2) (16, N = 97) = 19.01, ns; TLI = 0.95; RMSEA = 0.04; WRMR = 0.64) confirmed that three dimensions, namely having a more supporting attitude towards PGT (β = 0.54, p < 0.001), perceiving PGT as reliable (β = 0.29, p < 0.05) and the request for more scientific information (β = 0.22, p < 0.01), related to test uptaking. Empirical researches investigating pregnant women's beliefs and attitudes relating to actual test uptake could help genetic counsellors and policy makers to better understand their client's profile in relation to the determining factors affecting the undertaking of PGT.

Social Psychological and Personality Science

We tested the internal reliability and predictive validity of a new 4-item Short Social Dominance... more We tested the internal reliability and predictive validity of a new 4-item Short Social Dominance Orientation (SSDO) scale among adults in 20 countries, using 15 languages (N ¼ 2,130). Low scores indicate preferring group inclusion and equality to dominance. As expected, cross-nationally, the lower people were on SSDO, the more they endorsed more women in leadership positions, protecting minorities, and aid to the poor. Multilevel moderation models showed that each effect was stronger in nations where a relevant kind of group power differentiation was more salient. Distributions of SSDO were positively skewed, despite use of an extended response scale; results show rejecting group hierarchy is normative. The short scale is effective. Challenges regarding translations, use of short scales, and intersections between individual and collective levels in social dominance theory are discussed.

Psychological Science, 2014

Political Psychology, 2000

Crimes of obedience in the form of illegal or immoral acts committed in response to orders from a... more Crimes of obedience in the form of illegal or immoral acts committed in response to orders from authority occur in many contexts. In particular, under some circumstances of threats, people can easily accept restrictions upon democratic procedures. Recent studies have underlined the role of legitimacy in understanding the authority relationship and the importance of evaluating the legitimacy of the request rather than the legitimacy of the authority in preventing the rise of authoritarianism. The purpose of this study was to verify if people respond differently when an illegitimate request is put forward by a democratic or an authoritarian authority. The results on 224 subjects confirmed that people tend to be more obedient when they perceive authorities as democratic, notwithstanding the legitimacy of their requests.

In a social-psychological perspective, many scholars have argued that disobedience plays a signif... more In a social-psychological perspective, many scholars have argued that disobedience plays a significant role in avoiding the degeneration of the authority into autocracy and in promoting social change. In particular, the tripolar model (minority-majority-population) proposed by Mugny (1982) emphasized the role of the population for the stability or the progress of every society. Authority may indeed preserve the status quo only on the grounds of its influence on a large population. Likewise, protesters may achieve social change only by influencing and involving a large part of the population in their struggles. In understanding why people decide to join a protest, the aim of this article is to integrate Kelman and Hamilton’s (1989) analysis of legitimacy with the tripolar model on social influence. The model we propose – namely the triadic legitimacy model (TLM) – explains the dialectic between social stability and social change by considering both authority’s and disobedient groups’ legitimacies.

Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 2000

Obedience has been thoroughly studied in social psychology, both in its positive and negative asp... more Obedience has been thoroughly studied in social psychology, both in its positive and negative aspects. Nevertheless, in these empirical studies disobedience has been considered to be the opposite of obedience and indeed its negation. Instead, some recent studies suggest that if obedience to authority is important in ensuring the continuity of social and group life, disobedience is crucial, under some circumstances, in stopping the authority relationship from degenerating into an authoritarian relationship. In this perspective, disobedience may be conceived of as a protest undermining the legitimacy of authority, or else it can represent an instrument of the community for controlling the legitimacy of the authority's demands, becoming a factor safeguarding against authoritarianism. The aim of the present study was to empirically verify the dynamics existing between disobedience and obedience. The results show that people who attach importance to both obedience and disobedience in the relationship between the individual and society recognize the importance of democratic values and consider themselves responsible for the defence of human rights. Instead, people who only recognize the value of obedience and consider disobedience as a threat to the status quo are more authoritarian, individualistic people. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Recently, some scholars have highlighted a paradoxical phenomenon existing in democratic systems:... more Recently, some scholars have highlighted a paradoxical phenomenon existing in democratic systems: Those people who show the greatest support for democracy are also those most willing to protest against the authority and to question it. However, if we consider the tasks of contemporary democratic citizenship in a social-psychological perspective, this apparent paradox becomes understandable. Obedience to authority may ensure the continuity of social and group life, but disobedience may be crucial in stopping the authority relationship from degenerating into an authoritarian one. Following Kelman and Hamilton’s analysis of legitimacy dynamics, we consider how actions of disobedience may serve the defence of democracy. In particular, by considering the different ways in which people relate to the political system, the relevance of so-called value-oriented citizens in supporting democracy will be considered.

Sociological Methodology, 2013

drafted the paper and coordinated the working group, which developed the spatially weighted conte... more drafted the paper and coordinated the working group, which developed the spatially weighted context data approach. Sandra Penic performed most of the final data analyses presented in the paper. All other co-authors, who appear in alphabetical order, made a substantial contribution to the conceptualisation of spatially weighted context data and to the implementation of the approach within the TRACES project.

Two concurrent positions have driven research on the relationship between economic factors and so... more Two concurrent positions have driven research on the relationship between economic factors and social trust across countries: While some research has shown that unequal wealth distribution leads to poor social trust, other research has argued that social trust is the precondition to a country’s economic performance and distribution of economic resources. Using an ecological linear growth model, this study tests these two concurrent positions with data from the first six rounds of the European Social Survey (ESS). This study focuses on the links between socio-economic conditions and inclusive social capital climates, i.e., social climates where inclusive attitudes and generalized trust are widely extended to outgroups. Two models are estimated with Bayesian methods and then compared. The results support the hypothesis that the diffusion of inclusive social capital climates can predict the improvement of a country's socio-economic conditions. However, they also support the opposite hypothesis, according to which the improvement of socio-economic conditions is pivotal in creating a climate of trust. Slightly stronger results are found for the latter hypothesis, suggesting that the enhancement of economic conditions and income distribution may be pivotal in reinforcing the social fabric.

Event history calendar (EHC) methods have received increasing attention from the life-course surv... more Event history calendar (EHC) methods have received increasing attention from the life-course surveys that have been used in recent years. According to the literature, the EHC provides high-quality data in retrospective surveys because it replicates the autobiographical memory retrieval processes. EHC interviewing is processed through the visual display of individual life events, phases and transitions on a chronological calendar grid, which allows respondents to effectively link events as well as to identify and correct possible dating errors. Moreover, interactive interviewing facilitates the retrieval mechanism. In this study, we test whether the absence of an interviewer and/or interactive interviewing are associated with a reduction in data quality. This aspect is particularly relevant for surveys, as the absence of the interviewer would allow the implementation of EHC methods in self-administered questionnaires. In Study 1, an experimental design compared the results of self-administered paper-and-pencil EHCs in the presence and absence of an interviewer. In Study 2, a quasi-experimental approach compared the results of an interactive EHC interview with those of a self-administered paper-and-pencil EHC. Neither of these studies showed systematic differences between self-administered and interviewer-administered EHCs. The self-administered mode performs better when the instructions and layout design of the questionnaire are clear and detailed. Our findings suggest that the visual properties of the EHC could be a sufficient condition for collecting good retrospective data in the self-administered mode once the initial burden of the task is overcome.

Moral exclusion is defined as viewing others as lying beyond the boundary within which moral valu... more Moral exclusion is defined as viewing others as lying beyond the boundary within which moral values and rules of justice apply. In contrast, the process of moral inclusion involves the extension of social justice to several social groups. Thus, both moral inclusion and exclusion are a pivotal dimension in the study of social inequalities. Although the concept of moral inclusion/exclusion has a history of more than 20 years, research still lacks accurate instruments for measuring it. In this article, a first version of a scale that measures moral inclusion/exclusion was constructed and validated. The good reliability and correlation indexes found across the samples suggest that MIEG is a good measure for tapping into moral exclusion/inclusion symptoms.

This paper aims to introduce multilevel logistic regression analysis in a simple and practical wa... more This paper aims to introduce multilevel logistic regression analysis in a simple and practical way. First, we introduce the basic principles of logistic regression analysis (conditional probability, logit transformation, odds ratio). Second, we discuss the two fundamental implications of running this kind of analysis with a nested data structure: In multilevel logistic regression, the odds that the outcome variable equals one (rather than zero) may vary from one cluster to another (i.e. the intercept may vary) and the effect of a lower-level variable may also vary from one cluster to another (i.e. the slope may vary). Third and finally, we provide a simplified three-step " turnkey " procedure for multilevel logistic regression modeling: • Preliminary phase: Cluster-or grand-mean centering variables • Step #1: Running an empty model and calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) • Step #2: Running a constrained and an augmented intermediate model and performing a likelihood ratio test to determine whether considering the cluster-based variation of the effect of the lower-level variable improves the model fit • Step #3 Running a final model and interpreting the odds ratio and confidence intervals to determine whether data support your hypothesis Command syntax for Stata, R, Mplus, and SPSS are included. These steps will be applied to a study on Justin Bieber, because everybody likes Justin Bieber. 1

In this research, we focus on the effects of the individual's social dominance orientation (SDO) ... more In this research, we focus on the effects of the individual's social dominance orientation (SDO) on the expression of prejudicial attitudes. Furthermore, we examine the mediational effect of moral exclusion on this relationship. The literature has shown a strong correlation between SDO and prejudice. However, we hypothesize that the processes of moral exclusion (i.e., covert and institutionalized forms of excluding social groups from the community to which the rules of justice apply) should mediate the effect of SDO on the expression of prejudice, particularly with regard to subtle forms of prejudice. The results from 276 Italian participants support this hypothesis. The effects of SDO are mediated by the inclusive level of the moral community, and this effect is stronger for subtle prejudice than for blatant prejudice. The results suggest that modern prejudice is hidden by subtle forms of moral exclusion.

Perceptions of the future are crucial components of individual well-being. Hopelessness, which is... more Perceptions of the future are crucial components of individual well-being. Hopelessness, which is the sense that the future is a dead end, begins with the occurrence of negative life events and develops through the perception of consistent and pervasive negative outcomes. This study investigated the role of the socioeconomic aspects of the context and shared emotions (emotional climates) within a region in reducing or exacerbating hopelessness. Emotional climates have been defined as the emotional relationships constructed among members of a society, and they describe the environmental quality of a particular community. Multilevel modeling with individuals nested into regions (i.e., Swiss cantons) was used to explore the relationship between context and hopelessness. Data from the project ''Vulnerability and Growth,'' the Swiss Household Panel and official socioeconomic indicators were used. Spatial-weighting methods were applied to estimate depressive and optimistic emotional climates at the canton level. The results show that hopelessness is primarily affected by individual factors such as personality and life events. However, the analyses revealed that socioeconomic conditions and the optimistic and depressive climates that prevail in cantons also affected individuals' perceptions of hopelessness. Individuals were more likely to feel hopeless in cantons with high unemployment rates and high levels of shared negative emotions. In contrast, positive emotional climates played a protective role against hopelessness. Acknowledgment of the influence of context on individuals' perceptions of the future and the correlation of their states of anxiety and depression is pivotal for planning effective interventions to prevent depression.

ABSTRACT Life-history calendar (LHC) methods have been increasingly used in surveys in the last t... more ABSTRACT Life-history calendar (LHC) methods have been increasingly used in surveys in the last two decades. There is indeed a general consensus on the fact that the highly structured but flexible approach of the LHC facilitates the memory of past events. Respondent's past experiences provide a context for retrieval of autobiographical memories and they are used as anchoring points and time landmarks for remembering. While there is a general agreement that the LHC methods improve accuracy of retrospective data even for different populations and cultures with a non-linear representation of time, the reasons for this performance (i.e., retrieval processes) are less clear. The literature suggest that the LHC performance is amplified by the interviewer-respondent interaction via conversational and flexible interviewing, either in CATI or CAPI. However, studies using self-administered LHC on youth sex behavior argued that LHC can be used also used in self-administered modes reducing social desirability bias. In this study we present data from two surveys conducted in Switzerland (the Swiss Household Panel pilot study and the Family tiMes survey) between 2011 and 2013. Results show that self-administered LHC could produce equally valid data in terms of completeness (measured with five indicators: number of residential moves, number of intimate partners, number of children, number of jobs, and number of years of unemployment) than interviewer-respondent interactive interviewing. Moreover, self-administered LHC transmitted by mail data had even higher levels of internal coherence than self-administered LHC completed during face-to-face interviews. We argue that improvements in the layout (i.e., graphical visualization) of the LHC, as well as an increasing popularity of life calendar model in social media, may have increased in recent years the accuracy and feasibility of self-administered LHC for data collection.

Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 2015

http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/gpir Group Processes and Intergroup Relations SYMPATHETIC COLLECT... more http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/gpir Group Processes and Intergroup Relations SYMPATHETIC COLLECTIVE ACTION 1 Abstract Inspired by the popular Arab protests against oppressive regimes that began in 2010, people around the world protested in sympathy with the Arab peoples. The present research draws on two major theories of intergroup relations to develop an initial integrative model of sympathetic collective action. We incorporate social dominance theory's (SDT) concept of (rejectionist) legitimizing myths with the solidarity and emotional mediation concept of the social identity model of collective action (SIMCA) to understand motivations for sympathetic collective action among bystanders. Using data from 12 nations (N=1480), we tested three models: (a) SIMCA (i.e., solidarity, anger, and efficacy), (b) a social dominance theory model of collective action (i.e., social dominance orientation and ideologies concerning Arab competence), and (c) an integrated model of sympathetic collective action combining both theories. Results find the greatest support for an integrated model of collective action. Discussion focuses on theoretical pluralism and suggestions for future research.

Prenatal Diagnosis, 2013

This study aims to explore the psychosocial factors which influenced the undergoing of prenatal g... more This study aims to explore the psychosocial factors which influenced the undergoing of prenatal genetic testing (PGT) in a sample of pregnant women. An online questionnaire was emailed to a convenient sample of 105 pregnant women, recruited from among those attending two antenatal education programmes and via snowball sampling. A minority of respondents underwent chorionic villous sampling and amniocentesis (12 and 11, respectively). Advanced maternal age was related to undertaking PGT. The path analysis model (χ(2) (16, N = 97) = 19.01, ns; TLI = 0.95; RMSEA = 0.04; WRMR = 0.64) confirmed that three dimensions, namely having a more supporting attitude towards PGT (β = 0.54, p < 0.001), perceiving PGT as reliable (β = 0.29, p < 0.05) and the request for more scientific information (β = 0.22, p < 0.01), related to test uptaking. Empirical researches investigating pregnant women's beliefs and attitudes relating to actual test uptake could help genetic counsellors and policy makers to better understand their client's profile in relation to the determining factors affecting the undertaking of PGT.

Social Psychological and Personality Science

We tested the internal reliability and predictive validity of a new 4-item Short Social Dominance... more We tested the internal reliability and predictive validity of a new 4-item Short Social Dominance Orientation (SSDO) scale among adults in 20 countries, using 15 languages (N ¼ 2,130). Low scores indicate preferring group inclusion and equality to dominance. As expected, cross-nationally, the lower people were on SSDO, the more they endorsed more women in leadership positions, protecting minorities, and aid to the poor. Multilevel moderation models showed that each effect was stronger in nations where a relevant kind of group power differentiation was more salient. Distributions of SSDO were positively skewed, despite use of an extended response scale; results show rejecting group hierarchy is normative. The short scale is effective. Challenges regarding translations, use of short scales, and intersections between individual and collective levels in social dominance theory are discussed.

Psychological Science, 2014

Political Psychology, 2000

Crimes of obedience in the form of illegal or immoral acts committed in response to orders from a... more Crimes of obedience in the form of illegal or immoral acts committed in response to orders from authority occur in many contexts. In particular, under some circumstances of threats, people can easily accept restrictions upon democratic procedures. Recent studies have underlined the role of legitimacy in understanding the authority relationship and the importance of evaluating the legitimacy of the request rather than the legitimacy of the authority in preventing the rise of authoritarianism. The purpose of this study was to verify if people respond differently when an illegitimate request is put forward by a democratic or an authoritarian authority. The results on 224 subjects confirmed that people tend to be more obedient when they perceive authorities as democratic, notwithstanding the legitimacy of their requests.

In a social-psychological perspective, many scholars have argued that disobedience plays a signif... more In a social-psychological perspective, many scholars have argued that disobedience plays a significant role in avoiding the degeneration of the authority into autocracy and in promoting social change. In particular, the tripolar model (minority-majority-population) proposed by Mugny (1982) emphasized the role of the population for the stability or the progress of every society. Authority may indeed preserve the status quo only on the grounds of its influence on a large population. Likewise, protesters may achieve social change only by influencing and involving a large part of the population in their struggles. In understanding why people decide to join a protest, the aim of this article is to integrate Kelman and Hamilton’s (1989) analysis of legitimacy with the tripolar model on social influence. The model we propose – namely the triadic legitimacy model (TLM) – explains the dialectic between social stability and social change by considering both authority’s and disobedient groups’ legitimacies.

Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 2000

Obedience has been thoroughly studied in social psychology, both in its positive and negative asp... more Obedience has been thoroughly studied in social psychology, both in its positive and negative aspects. Nevertheless, in these empirical studies disobedience has been considered to be the opposite of obedience and indeed its negation. Instead, some recent studies suggest that if obedience to authority is important in ensuring the continuity of social and group life, disobedience is crucial, under some circumstances, in stopping the authority relationship from degenerating into an authoritarian relationship. In this perspective, disobedience may be conceived of as a protest undermining the legitimacy of authority, or else it can represent an instrument of the community for controlling the legitimacy of the authority's demands, becoming a factor safeguarding against authoritarianism. The aim of the present study was to empirically verify the dynamics existing between disobedience and obedience. The results show that people who attach importance to both obedience and disobedience in the relationship between the individual and society recognize the importance of democratic values and consider themselves responsible for the defence of human rights. Instead, people who only recognize the value of obedience and consider disobedience as a threat to the status quo are more authoritarian, individualistic people. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Recently, some scholars have highlighted a paradoxical phenomenon existing in democratic systems:... more Recently, some scholars have highlighted a paradoxical phenomenon existing in democratic systems: Those people who show the greatest support for democracy are also those most willing to protest against the authority and to question it. However, if we consider the tasks of contemporary democratic citizenship in a social-psychological perspective, this apparent paradox becomes understandable. Obedience to authority may ensure the continuity of social and group life, but disobedience may be crucial in stopping the authority relationship from degenerating into an authoritarian one. Following Kelman and Hamilton’s analysis of legitimacy dynamics, we consider how actions of disobedience may serve the defence of democracy. In particular, by considering the different ways in which people relate to the political system, the relevance of so-called value-oriented citizens in supporting democracy will be considered.