When diversity fails to engage: An investigation into the attitudinal, behavioural and physiological correlates of intercultural apathy

Abstract

Despite the rapid ethnic-cultural diversification of present-day societies, research shows that in everyday life, interethnic intergroup encounters are rather scarce. In the present contribution, we considered the concept of intercultural apathy to help explain why increased societal diversity does not necessarily go hand-in-hand with a rise in interethnic mixing. Intercultural apathy was defined as a cognitive, motivational and affective detachment from ethnic outgroups, both at the personal level and at the broader level of society. In four studies (total N = 879), we investigated the role of intercultural apathy in self-reports of intergroup contact (avoidance). Specifically, in survey Studies 1a-1b-2, we showed that interindividual differences in intercultural apathy are associated with lower frequencies of self-reported intergroup contact and stronger contact avoidance and segregation preferences. Importantly, these associations persisted after controlling for general apathy and prejudice, and they emerged among majorities and minorities. Furthermore, in experimental Study 3, we examined physiological intercultural apathy correlates. Our Bayesian results revealed preliminary evidence that intercultural apathy is related to lower physiological engagement (reduced heartrate variability) in response to outgroup – but not ingroup – stimuli in pain. Taken together, our results highlight that intercultural apathy may be germane to our understanding of 21st–century intergroup relations.