1.4 - key question

Question 1

what is the key question for biological psychology?

Answer 1

how can social psychology explain the rise in prejudice against members of the LGBTQ+ community after Trump’s 2016 election victory?

Question 2

what evidence is there to support the key question?

Answer 2

while running for president Trump criticised the Supreme Court’s decision in 2015 to legalise same-sex marriage
when he became president Trump’s administration announced it wouldn’t be including questions on sexual orientation and gender identity on the 2020 census
in 2017, 52 LGBTQ+ Americans were killed due to hate violence, an increase of 86% from 2016

Question 3

how does the key question impact society?

Answer 3

the prejudice has a negative impact on the lives of LGBTQ+ people
hate violence against them causes an increase in crime rates which means more money must be spent on policing and criminal justice
LGBTQ+ people increase the diversity of American society and contribute to arts and culture - without them these would all decrease
LGBTQ+ people help the economy especially in industries like entertainment and hospitality eg. in LA the economy is positively impacted by ‘gay tourism’ as the area has a reputation for being an LGBTQ+ hotspot - without them there may be economic recession

Question 4

what theories in social psychology can explain the key question?

Answer 4

social identity theory and realistic conflict theory

Question 5

how can social identity theory explain the key question?

Answer 5

1. social categorisation - non-LGBTQ+ Americans see themselves as the in-group and queer people as the out-group
2. social identification - members of the in-group will change their behaviours and beliefs to fit with the group eg. showing disdain when they see gay people in public
3. social comparison - in-group see themselves more favourably and highlight differences between them and LGBTQ+ people (exacerbated by Trump reducing their rights) which increases their self-esteem (personal/social identity), and prejudice would develop eg. using slurs, vandalising pride flag

Question 6

how can realistic conflict theory explain the key question?

Answer 6

1. non-LGBTQ+ people fear there is competition between them and queer individuals for limited resources eg. housing, employment
2. non-LGBTQ+ people are hostile and use prejudice to try and deny these resources to those who are LGBTQ+, ensuring there are more available for themselves
3. Trump’s actions helped imply there was a need to stop the out-group accessing those resources - supported employment discrimination in the workplace and was willing to allow emergency shelters to deny access to transgender/gender non-conforming people

Question 7

how can social psychology be used to reduce prejudice in this situation?

Answer 7

social identity theory - try and remove feeling that LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ are two separate groups eg. through education/interaction, address reason for negative social identity in in-group to remove need for social comparison
realistic conflict theory - introduce superordinate goals between groups eg. in a workplace with LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ people, task employees with completing a project together