Measurement of the out-group infrahumanization effect using human-related and animal-related words

This paper reports studies on adaptation of a measure of an out-group infrahumanization effect introduced by Viki (Viki, Winchester, Titshall, Chisango, Pina i Russel 2006), which is based on differential attribution of typically human and typically animal related words. In the first experiment Polish research participant attributed significantly less human-related words and significantly more animal-related words to residents of Asia and Africa than to Europeans. In the second experiment Poles attributed less human-related words and more animal-related words to Gypsies and animals than to the other Poles. The outcomes confirm an infrahumanization hypothesis formulated by Leyens (Leyens, Paladino, Rodriguez-Torres, Vaes, Demoulin, Rodriguez-Perez, & Gaunt, 2000; Leyens, 2009). Moreover the results of the second experiment indicate that there is no correlation between the out-group infrahumanization and in-group bias effects. peerReviewed publishedVersion