The Effect of Media Exposure on Perceptions of Group Entitativity: A Preliminary Investigation

Group entitativity (i.e., the perception that a group is a coherent unit) has been found to play an important role in governing intergroup judgments and behaviors. Accordingly, considerable attention has been devoted to documenting both the factors that influence perceptions of entitativity and the effects of entitativity on group-based outcomes. Conspicuously absent from this research, however, is an assessment of the media's influence on these relationships. This is surprising, given the well-documented role of media exposure on an array of intergroup processes and effects. The current study tackles this issue by experimentally examining the impact of media exposure on perceptions of in-group entitativity and self-esteem among Latino news viewers. Although preliminary, the results found here suggest that media exposure can influence entitativity judgments.