Crossed categorization and intergroup bias: The moderating roles of intergroup and affective context

Two experiments explored the effects of, and processes underlying, crossed categorization under different antecedent contextual conditions. Experiment 1 established the baseline conditions under which differential evaluation of crossed category groups occurs. Experiment 2 extended these conditions to more complex affectively toned contexts, demonstrating the moderating effect of performance feedback on evaluations; the additive pattern found under neutral feedback conditions gave way to an equivalence pattern when participants received positive performance feedback and this reduction in bias was mediated by participants' self-reported affective state. In both experiments category differentiation occurred irrespective of different intergroup or feedback conditions, suggesting that cognitive processes underlying the representation of the intergroup structure remain constant in different contexts. The implications of these findings for theoretical progress in, and practical applicability of, multiple categorization are discussed. (C) 2000 Academic Press.