Browsing by Author "MacInnis, Cara C."
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Item Open Access Assessing the Impact of Intergroup Contact and Diversity training on Employers’ Hiring Attitudes, Intentions and Behaviours Toward Refugees(2019-09-10) Boss, Harrison; MacInnis, Cara C.; Murry, Adam Thomas; Bourdage, Joshua S.The aims of this research project are to examine the impact of intergroup contact and diversity training on the general attitudes, hiring attitudes, hiring intentions, and hiring behaviour toward refugees among hirers residing in the United States. Hirers are operationalized as individuals with the final authority to make hiring decisions within their organizations. Refugees are a vulnerable and disadvantaged social group who face a number of barriers to successful employment. Studies exploring refugees in employment contexts are exceedingly rare, but integral to understanding refugee employment outcomes. Based on previous literature, two mediators for why intergroup contact and diversity training may impact attitudes toward social groups were examined: group empathy and intergroup anxiety. A sample of hirers (N = 379) was recruited from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk using a two-step methodology, with the goal of increasing data quality through the reduction of participant misrepresentation. Intergroup contact quantity, intergroup contact quality and diversity training all were associated with general attitudes toward refugees, with intergroup contact quantity/quality both being fully mediated by empathy and intergroup anxiety. The impact of diversity training on general attitudes was fully mediated only by group empathy. When comparing the predictors simultaneously, intergroup contact quality appears to have the strongest relationship on most hiring outcomes. However, hiring intentions were not found to predict hiring behaviour toward refugees. Several explanations for this are explored. Nonetheless, this research provides valuable contributions to knowledge surrounding intergroup contact theory and diversity training, and their relations with hiring of disadvantaged social groups, specifically refugees. Future research on this topic should explore these variables experimentally, to help establish causality and temporal directionality of these variables.Item Open Access Collective Action Undertaken by Advantaged Group Members: Examining the Potential Role of Cross-Group Friendship(2023-07) Buliga, Elena; MacInnis, Cara C.; Boon, Susan; Murry, Adam; Exner-Cortens, DeineraIn order to promote social change and improve conditions for disadvantaged social groups it is important for both advantaged and disadvantaged group members to engage in collective action. What motivates heterosexual and cisgender individuals to engage in collective action in support of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, asexual and other sexual orientation and gender identity groups (LGBTQIA+)? I examined intergroup contact (e.g., contact between people belonging to different groups) as a possible motivation using a mixed-method approach. Close intergroup contact, such as cross-group friendship has been found to lead to positive intergroup outcomes and in this mixed-method research, I explored it as a pro-outgroup collective action factor. Study 1 included conducting structured interviews with 22 heterosexual and cisgender university students (21 female, 1 male; Mage = 22.59) who have engaged in pro-LGBTQIA+ collective action. Thematic analysis was used to construct the following themes: 1) being motivated by experienced discrimination, 2) the critical importance of values, 3) driven by their beliefs, 4) feeling a sense of responsibility and 5) having intergroup contact. A focus of this study included understanding how cross-group friendships can motivate collective action engagement. When participants discussed their cross-group friendship experiences, the following subthemes were constructed: 1) becoming aware of group inequality, 2) discussing opposite experiences and plans, 3) learning about and / or witnessing discrimination and prejudice, 4) having a high relationship quality with their cross-group friend, and 6) supporting their cross-group friend. Findings from this qualitative study were used to inform Study 2, a cross-sectional study. Heterosexual and cisgender participants (158 female, 176 male; Mage = 35) completed a survey including a social network questionnaire for assessing cross-group friendships, recognition and condemnation of group inequality, negative emotions toward the ingroup, intergroup attitudes and collective action past engagement and intentions. Mere cross-group friendship (e.g., having any cross-group friends versus no cross-group-friends) was associated with more past engagement in collective action, but not with future intentions. Recognition and condemnation of inequality was expected to moderate the relationship between intergroup contact and collective action, but instead was found to play more of a direct role. Recognition and condemnation of inequality was associated with past and future collective action, both directly and indirectly through more positive intergroup attitudes. Findings from both studies suggest that there are various motivations for engaging in pro-LGBTQIA+ collective action among heterosexual and cisgender individuals, with recognition and condemnation of group inequality being a critical factor in driving pro-outgroup collective action.Item Open Access The Effect of Political Ideology on Moral Judgments of Minority Group Members(2019-09-30) Parker, Daniel J.; Ellard, John H.; MacInnis, Cara C.; Lee, Kibeom; Godley, JennyThere is evidence liberals are more likely to perceive minority group members as victims of racial discrimination and unfair treatment compared to conservatives. We examined whether perceived victim status affects people's moral judgments towards minority groups by exploring the effect of political ideology on people's moral judgments of crimes committed by minority group members. A sample of white University undergraduates (N = 365; 299 women; 65 men; 1 non-binary, Mage = 20.96, SD = 8.16) were assessed on their political orientation, completed relevant individual difference measures, and then read a fabricated news article describing an identical looting and assault committed by either a white man, a Muslim man, or an unidentified man. Overall participants were less morally outraged and less punitive towards the Muslim perpetrator compared to the white perpetrator and this relationship was further moderated by political ideology. The findings suggest that not only was liberalism associated with being less morally outraged and less punitive towards a minority group member compared to a white ingroup member but also more outraged and more punitive towards a white person compared to an unidentified person. This study was limited by its use of an all white undergraduate sample with overall ideological orientation skewed towards liberalism. Future research should explore this phenomenon using a non-student sample, should include other minority groups as targets, and test more thoroughly for the ways granting victim status can affect moral judgments.Item Open Access Exploring cross-group relationships among students at a Canadian university: what factors promote lasting relationships and positive university experiences?(2018-09-11) Buliga, Elena; MacInnis, Cara C.; Boon, Susan; Lee, Kibeom; Bierman, AlexCross-group friendships, defined as close and meaningful relationships among individuals belonging to different social groups (e.g., different nationality groups) are associated with positive outcomes but are more likely to dissolve relative to friendships between individuals belonging to same social group. The aims of this research project are to examine potential conditions under which cross-group relationships last and promote positive outcomes among students at a Canadian university. Based on previous literature, several qualities that may promote lasting cross-group friendships were examined: closeness (both subjective and inclusion of other in self), perceived similarity (both subjective and personality similarity), social network integration and salience of group membership. In Study 1 the extent to which these qualities existed in self-reported current and past cross-group friendships was explored in a sample of 325 students. The friendship qualities listed above were present to a greater extent in current than in past same- and cross-group friendships, although there were some differences based on cross-group friendship type. Thus, these qualities may contribute to cross-group friendships lasting versus dissolving. In Study 2 outcomes of cross-group relationships between international students and students at a Canadian university registered in a peer mentoring program were explored as well as the influence of friendship promoting qualities in these relationships. Although sample size was lower than anticipated for this study (mentee N = 16, mentor N = 29, control N = 30), some promising outcomes were observed. For new international student mentees, mentoring relationships promoted university engagement and for domestic student mentors mentoring relationships reduced intergroup anxiety. Friendship qualities were associated with more positive attitudes toward the partner. Findings from this research can inform efforts to promote the development of cross-group friendships.Item Open Access Investigating the Influence of Media Articles on the Stigma of Suicide and other Campus-Related Factors after a Suicide on Campus(2020-08-26) Lindsay, Brittany Lee; Szeto, Andrew C. H.; Dobson, Keith Stephen; MacInnis, Cara C.Objective: This study investigated whether different media articles (i.e., mass-media intervention) from a post-secondary institution (in response to a student suicide) could influence the stigma towards suicide behaviours and suicide death from students and whether certain variables (empathy, interpersonal anxiety, and modern prejudice) mediated this relationship. Other campus-related factors (e.g., opinions on acknowledging a suicide, resources, campus perceptions) were also explored. Method: Undergraduate participants (N=500) read a fictitious scenario about a student suicide on their campus and were randomly assigned to one of four articles: a control article about health that did not mention the suicide or one of three intervention articles that acknowledged the suicide and was knowledge based (psychologist) or also included interpersonal exposure/media contact (a friend of the decedent, or a suicide survivor). Suicide stigma measures, mediators, and other variables of interest were collected. Results: The stigma towards suicide survivors, particularly stereotypes, was significantly less after the three intervention articles compared to the control; no differences were found between the intervention articles. No significant differences were observed regarding stigma towards suicide decedents or campus perceptions. A mediation model was not supported. Most students believed that campuses should acknowledge a suicide and they provided numerous explanations for this. Students were knowledgeable on suicide prevention resources. Conclusions: Mass media interventions (with and without media contact) can be effective in reducing some aspects of suicide stigma. Post-secondary institutions should consider respectfully acknowledging a suicide on their campuses in a similar way, especially since most students are supportive of this.Item Open Access Team Adaptation in High Reliability Teams(2020-06-17) Deacon, Amanda; O'Neill, Thomas A.; Gilfoyle, Elaine; Caird, Jeffrey K.; MacInnis, Cara C.; Cheng, Adam; Grossman, RebeccaThis research attempts to identify key components of adaptation in high reliability teams, with the goal being error reduction. The current literature is limited in its lack of empirical evidence showing how these models may differ based upon specific characteristics of high reliability teams. This topic is explored through three separate studies using resuscitation teams faced with family presence as a representation of a high reliability team requiring adaptation. Our first study sought to cultivate deeper understanding of the trigger and how it may potentially affect a team via a scoping study of family presence. The second study used qualitative analysis of debriefs with the sample population to identify key processes of successful team adaptation. In our third study, we used a mixed methods approach to test and provide evidence for the existence of the key processes and states identified in the second study. How this evidence contributes to our understanding of team adaptation in high reliability teams is discussed in the final chapter. Our findings indicate that high reliability teams differ from the standard team during the adaptation process and this may impact how we should approach training these teams.