In our study, we investigated the relationship between collective narcissism and group-based moral exclusion. Since collective narcissists are motivated to see their group as unique and superior, and tend to show hostility towards outgroups threatening this presumed superiority, we hypothesized that perceived intergroup threat and social distance can mediate the relationship between collective narcissism and group-based moral exclusion. We tested this assumption in two intergroup contexts by investigating the beliefs of members of the Hungarian majority population about Muslim immigrants and Roma people. Our results showed that collective narcissism had a positive indirect effect on group-based moral exclusion in the case of both outgroups. Furthermore, both threat and social distance were significant mediators in the case of Muslim immigrants, but mostly social distance mediated the indirect effect of collective narcissism on moral exclusion of the Roma. These results indicate that collective narcissists tend to rationalize their intergroup hostility by the mechanism of motivated moral exclusion, and to find suitable justifications for doing so.
Growing global inequality, violent conflicts, and climate change increasingly draw attention to questions of intergroup solidarity between the citizens of the world and dilemmas about which groups of people are worthy of support, help, and fair treatment, or quite the contrary, which groups deserve indifference or retaliation. The recent rise of right-wing populism across Western democracies, or the outcome of the Brexit vote are closely related to the dilemma about where to draw the borders of one’s moral community, about whether ethnic minorities, immigrants, or refugees from war zones are entitled to the same moral treatment and concern as “regular” citizens. It seems, decisions about these dilemmas partly depend on beliefs about the ingroup (i.e., the nation), as glorification or narcissistic beliefs about the nation are closely associated with intergroup hostility and exclusion (
In this paper we show evidence supporting the assumption that narcissistic national ingroup identification is connected to the moral exclusion of outgroups (i.e., decisions about fair treatment or the lack thereof). By integrating the theoretical frameworks of collective narcissism (
The definition of collective narcissism consists of two interconnected beliefs about the ingroup: one is about its exaggerated greatness and the other is the insufficient recognition and admiration of this greatness by others. Collective narcissists believe that their group is special and therefore deserves special treatment and respect (
Among others, a great deal of evidence shows that narcissistic ingroup attachment is closely connected to an exaggerated level of perceived intergroup threat. At least partly, it is based on collective narcissists’ continuous need for approval by others and the validation of the superiority of their group. Seemingly, if they feel that they do not get this recognition, they tend to perceive it as a hostile act on the behalf of others, that is why they are more sensitive to perceived insults, criticism, or the lack of proper recognition than other group members. Empirical studies have shown that collective narcissists express hostile intergroup intentions in the presence of ingroup image threat (
Nonetheless, it seems that collective narcissism is related to perceived intergroup threat in a broader sense that is beyond direct ingroup image threat, and collective narcissists tend to perceive the otherwise neutral or equivocal acts of other groups as intentional hostilities that threaten the well-being, central values, or goals of the ingroup. One line of research demonstrates this by showing a strong link between collective narcissism and a general tendency to believe in conspiracies against the ingroup (e.g.
Other evidence suggests that collective narcissism results not just in a higher level of intergroup threat but also in an elevated perception of social distance. As we saw, one of the core constituents of collective narcissism is an exaggerated sense of ingroup greatness (
Moral exclusion happens “when individuals or groups are perceived as outside the boundary in which moral values, rules, and considerations of fairness apply” (
People have a tendency to deny positive and fair treatment from members of outgroups that they cannot identify with, or perceive them endangering the ingroup’s well-being, goals, or cultivated norms and values. Therefore, perceived characteristics of the outgroup (i.e., target perceptions) can contribute to their moral exclusion by justifying their moral disregard (
In this context, social distance refers either to the perceived similarity between the ingroup and the outgroup (
When people engage in group-based moral exclusion (i.e., accept immoral behavior toward members of the outgroup), they nevertheless want to maintain a sense of personal moral integrity. On the one hand, this positive moral self-image is maintained if the outgroup is not regarded as worthy of moral concern (
As we have seen, collective narcissists may be especially sensitive to intergroup threat and may be motivated to maintain intergroup distance. Therefore, we can assume that moral exclusion can serve as a strategic tool for collective narcissists to justify intergroup aggression. Since perceived social distance and intergroup threat are of the most important bases of group-based moral exclusion, it is reasonable to assume that the relationship between collective narcissism and moral exclusion is mediated by intergroup threat and social distance, two characteristics being very likely to be perceived by collective narcissists.
Our hypothesis about this mediation process is further supported by the assumed directions of the relationships between these variables both in the moral exclusion and the collective narcissism literature. In the former, perceived outgroup characteristics are often called as
Meanwhile, in the collective narcissism literature, variables related to intergroup threat and social distance are much more considered as consequences of collective narcissism. In her extensive review,
We investigated the mediating role of perceived intergroup threat and social distance between collective narcissism and group-based moral exclusion. These relationships were tested in two intergroup contexts: between ethnic majority Hungarians and Muslim immigrants on the one hand, and Roma people on the other. These two intergroup contexts can be characterized by important similarities and differences. Roma people have lived in Hungary for centuries, they are the largest ethnic minority group in the country, making up 5 to 8% of the population (
Our sample consisted of 1080 participants from an online participant pool using a multiple-step, proportionally stratified, probabilistic sampling method. Due to this method our sample was demographically similar to the Hungarian population in terms of age, gender, type of residence, and level of education. The recruitment was carried out by a professional public opinion company. Our survey was part of an omnibus survey where other research questions were tested parallelly.i We report all measures and data exclusions related to the variables of the research question.
All participants reported Hungarian as their nationality, no participants indicated that they were Muslim, ten respondents reported that they were Roma, and 11 participants did not wish to report their ethnicity. These 21 participants were removed from the analysis, since our main focus was on the beliefs of the Hungarian majority population. Our respondents did not receive any material reward for their participation, and they completed the anonymous questionnaire after accepting an informed consent form on the first page of the questionnaire. The sample was randomly split: half of the respondents completed the questionnaire related to the Roma (
We used two standard items from the
Threat was measured by 3 items adapted from
We measured moral exclusion of the Roma and Muslim immigrants with
We measured collective narcissism with the 5-item version of the
First, we checked the adequacy of our measures by setting up a measurement model in the case of both groups. These measurement models were estimated using confirmatory factor analysis. To test the mediating role of perceived intergroup threat and social distance between collective narcissism and moral foundations we applied structural equation modeling (SEM) with the SPSS AMOS 25.0 software (
The hypothesized four-factor solution, with collective narcissism, social distance, intergroup threat, and moral exclusion represented as separate factors, fitted the data adequately in both groups (Muslim: χ2 = 177.36;
The four latent variables were checked for internal consistency (composite reliability), construct validity and divergent validity in the case of both CFA models. The composite reliability (CR) values of all latent variables were between .80 and .91, showing an adequate internal consistency. Average variance extracted (AVE) was then calculated to confirm constructs’ convergent validity, and we found that all AVE values ranged between .63 to .79 confirming the convergent validity for all latent variables. After establishing convergent validity, discriminant validity of each construct was evaluated by contrasting the square root of AVE values (ranging from .79 to .89) for each construct with the values of intercorrelations between constructs (ranging from .19 to .78, see
Variable | 1 | 2 | 3 |
---|---|---|---|
Group 1 (Muslim) | |||
1. Collective Narcissism | – | ||
2. Social Distance | .60*** | ||
3. Intergroup Threat | .71*** | .76*** | |
4. Moral Exclusion | .52*** | .78*** | .77*** |
Group 2 (Roma) | |||
1. Collective Narcissism | |||
2. Social Distance | .30*** | ||
3. Intergroup Threat | .29*** | .73*** | |
4. Moral Exclusion | .19*** | .75*** | .63*** |
***
We set up a structural model for the two subsamples separately to test how collective narcissism is related to moral exclusion, and to what extent this relationship is mediated by social distance and intergroup threat. All these variables were set up as latent variables, and we controlled both models with the effects of respondents’ gender, age, education level, subjective financial status, and left-right political preference.
Subjective financial status was measured on a 5-point scale (1 =
Political preference was incorporated in the models because both collective narcissism and negative beliefs about culturally different outgroups are more closely associated with the political-ideological right (
Results of the hypothesized models testing (see
***
Probing the bases of the hypothesized mediations further, we found that collective narcissism showed a positive relationship with both intergroup threat (Muslim: β = 0.63;
To reveal the extent to which the relationships between collective narcissism and moral exclusion is mediated by social distance and threat, a series of mediation analyses was conducted with the bootstrapping technique as suggested by
We also tested the equivalence of each pathway between the main variables across the two models. For this purpose, we set up a multigroup model, and constrained the pathways one by one to be equal across the two groups. After that, based on Δχ2-tests and AIC fit values, we checked whether the fit indices of these constrained models were significantly worse than the fit of the original non-constrained multigroup model (fit of the non-constrained multigroup model: χ2 = 558.83;
Constrained path | Δχ2 | Δ |
ΔAIC | |
---|---|---|---|---|
CN-ME | 0.87 | 1 | .351 | 1.13 |
CN-IT | 35.21 | 1 | < .001 | 33.21 |
CN-SD | 13.34 | 1 | < .001 | 11.34 |
IT-ME | 14.75 | 1 | < .001 | 12.75 |
SD-ME | 0.44 | 1 | .507 | 1.60 |
Finally, we tested whether it is more reasonable and parsimonious to consider perceived threat and social distance as mediators between collective narcissism and moral exclusion than to treat either collective narcissism or moral exclusion as mediators. We set up three models in both groups for this purpose. In the first pair of models, perceived threat and social distance were mediators between collective narcissism and moral exclusion but the direct relationship between these latter two variables was erased to test the importance of the mediator variables. The fit of these models was only slightly worse than the fit of the original ones reported above. (Muslim: χ2 = 265.04;
In the second pair of models, collective narcissism was set as mediator between the two perceived outgroup characteristics and moral exclusion, and direct relationships were erased again. These models showed a much worse fit to the data compared to the fit of the original ones, and even to the fit of their counterparts with the outgroup characteristics as mediators (Muslim: χ2 = 545.08;
We found that collective narcissism was related to group-based moral exclusion, and perceived intergroup threat and social distance were important mediators in this relationship. We collected evidence from two intergroup contexts, between the Hungarian majority population on the one hand, and the Hungarian Roma and Muslim immigrants on the other. Although some differences could be observed between these two cases, similarities in the results suggest that collective narcissists tend to perceive outgroups in a more negative way what makes their moral exclusion more probable.
It has already been known that collective narcissists tend to treat outgroups with a certain extent of hostility (e.g.
Beside the generally similar pattern of relationship between the variables, we also found some differences between the intergroup contexts. Most importantly, three of the four relationships involved in the mediations were stronger in the case of the Muslim model, and both social distance and intergroup threat were important mediators in that model, whereas it was mainly social distance that mediated the indirect effect of collective narcissism on moral exclusion in the Roma model. These differences fit with the dominant stereotypes about these two target groups in the Hungarian contexts. While Roma people are generally treated with hostility on the basis of stereotypes of laziness and petty criminality, and a preference for low contact with them (
The most important difference between these two intergroup contexts, that can be relevant to our results, is probably their salience within the Hungarian public thought. It is worth highlighting that immigration from Muslim countries has become a central topic within the Hungarian domestic political discourse since the beginning of the European Refugee Crisis started in 2015, and it was also the most emphasized topic by the Hungarian government party (Fidesz) during the parliamentary elections campaign in 2018 (
To highlight the differences between the two intergroup contexts in terms of salience at the time of data collection, we checked the number of hits for the expressions
The threat of Muslim immigration has dominated public discourse in Hungary since 2015. This context may have increased the strength of the relationship between collective narcissism and perceived threat of Muslim immigrants. This is in accordance with the approach of ideological thinking as motivated social cognition (
The salience and the framing of the issue of Muslim immigration can also offer a possible explanation to our finding that both perceived outgroup characteristics mediated the effect of collective narcissism on moral exclusion in case of the Muslim outgroup, but it was mainly social distance that served the same function in the Roma model. Although previous research on moral exclusion emphasizes the importance of social distance and intergroup threat as antecedents of moral exclusion (
After interpreting our results, it is necessary to highlight some limitations in our study. We have to stress that our study was a cross-sectional survey study, and as being such, it is not suitable to conclude on the directions of the investigated relationships. Although our model comparison procedure supports that it is reasonable to handle social distance and intergroup threat as mediators in the relationship between collective narcissism and moral exclusion, based on a correlational study we cannot say it with certainty that it is collective narcissism per se that makes people perceive outgroups as either threatening or being psychologically distant.
Although as we saw, intergroup threat and social distance is mostly considered as antecedents of moral exclusion (e.g.
In another possible model, collective narcissism can be the mediator between intergroup threat and moral exclusion. This can be based on the fact that one important antecedent of collective narcissism is a frustrated need for personal control (
Future research might verify these other possible directions between the investigated constructs, but we have to stress that these potential alternative directions and mechanisms do not falsify the mechanism described in our study, and our mediation tests based on different models did not support these alternatives.
Furthermore, we have to note that some indicators of secure or positive national identity is also measured in several studies about the influence of defensive national identity on intergroup relations, but our study did not include such a measure. However, these positive indicators are typically not related or negatively related to negative outgroup attitudes if their negative or defensive counterpart is controlled for (e.g.
Finally, we conducted our study in the context of Hungary which has some unique characteristics that are relevant to the current research. Although both anti-Roma and anti-immigrant attitudes are prevalent in all East-Central European countries, and these issues can be found in the Western European context as well, democratic institutions and media freedom have been severely weakened in the country resulting in an uncontrolled level of governmental propaganda. This context may therefore be unique, and generalizations limited. However, with the growing populism and growing anti-immigrant movements around the world, insights from Hungary may carry important messages outside the country and the region, and highlight the specific importance of understanding the consequences of an inflated but fragile national identification.
In our study, we integrated the literatures of collective narcissism and moral exclusion, and collected empirical evidence to the link between these constructs. Our findings support the idea that the darker side of national identification does not only increase the willingness to commit hostile acts towards certain outgroups as previous research suggested, but it also enhances the chances of the moral justification of these acts. Nonetheless, these justifications do not emerge randomly, but they are the results of motivated social cognition, as it is shown by collective narcissists’ tendency to use perceived social distance and threat - two characteristics they are especially sensitive to - to rationalize their moral indifference.
The online supplementary material contains descriptive statistics of all the analyzed variables and the correlations between them (Table S1), and all the correlations (Table S2), regression coefficients (Table S3), and factor loadings (Table S4) from our Muslim and Roma SEM models (for access see Index of
The study was funded by the National Research, Development and Innovation Office (Grant No.: NKFI-K119433).
The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
The authors have no support to report.
Study 1 from the publication of
For more information on the demographic characteristics of the Hungarian population see:
Descriptive statistics and correlations between the items can be found in the
All correlations, pathways, and factor loadings within these models can be found in the
We also have to note that many hits for “roma” included items related to the capital of Italy (Rome), what might easily led to an overestimation of relevant hits for the Roma.