Manipulations in intergroup dynamics: Outgroup collective Machiavellianism polarizes intergroup attitudes

Abstract

Machiavellianism classically refers to the unscrupulous pursuit of interests through manipulations, as reflected in Machiavelli's political philosophy. However, in psychological research, Machiavellianism is conceptualized as an individual trait centered on the pursuit of personal gain. By tracing Machiavelli's original reflections on collective interests, this research extends Machiavellianism to a group characteristic, termed ‘collective Machiavellianism,’ which refers to the extent to which a group employs manipulation strategies when pursuing its collective interests. Accordingly, we examined how perceived outgroup collective Machiavellianism affects intergroup dynamics. Experiment 1 found that fictitious outgroups' collective Machiavellianism polarized participants' intergroup attitudes. Experiment 2 replicated these findings in an international context and investigated the mediating role of perceived interest conflicts. Experiment 3 further validated the mediation model using a moderation-of-process design and examined its generalizability in a different culture. As hypothesized, perceived outgroup collective Machiavellianism intensified the negative attitudes of the ingroup towards the outgroup while simultaneously fostering positive ingroup attitudes through increased perceived interest conflicts. Resonating with Machiavellian philosophy, these findings indicate that collective Machiavellianism serves as a radical ingroup achievement strategy that polarizes intergroup attitudes and has implications for interventions in international conflict.