Varieties of group self-centeredness and dislike of the specific other

This investigation tests relationships between three kinds of group self-centeredness and their relationship with negativity towards specific outgroups. A questionnaire study with 270 undergraduates focused on three prominent kinds of group self-centeredness: ethnocentrism, fundamentalism, and anthropocentrism. Although overall ethnocentrism, fundamentalism, and anthropocentrism were positively intercorrelated, fundamentalism was positively associated with one ethnocentrism dimension (intragroup) and negatively with the other (intergroup). A path analysis showed that each kind of group self-centeredness was related only to negativity to specific and relevant outgroups and not to other outgroups. Implications of the research, particularly for the study of religiosity and prejudice, are discussed.