Perceived Category Entitativity and Label Use: How Social Category Perceptions Are Reflected in Language Use

• In Event: Top Papers in Intergroup Communication

Abstract

Perceived category entitativity (PCE) plays a fundamental role in stereotype formation and use. In this experiment (N = 98) we investigate the connection between PCE and language production. Participants wrote a spontaneous story about a fictional group of individuals, which were presented at different levels of entitativity (low, high). Results of self-reported and actual coded language use showed that participants perceiving a higher level of category entitativity wrote more about the group as a whole (i.e., use generic labels), while participants perceiving a lower level of entitativity wrote more about subgroups and individual category members. These findings highlight the important role of language in the consensualization of category perceptions and the formation and maintenance of generalized stereotypes.

Authors

• Camiel J. Beukeboom, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

• Christian Burgers, Vrije U Amsterdam

• Ursula Kamsteeg, Vrije U, Amsterdam