Ascent of Humans: Investigating Methodological and Ethical Concerns About the Measurement

In this pre-registered study on a representative Polish sample (n = 1751), we aimed to test two potential critical issues with the Ascent of Humans scale. First, we tested whether the scores may be influenced by peripheral and previously undiscussed properties of the measurement: position of the slider-scale dot and the pattern of groups’ display. Second, we tested whether participation in Ascent of Humans measurement may influence the attitudes towards out-groups, making participants more prejudiced. All our predictions were conclusively disconfirmed. Additionally, we explored the distribution of Ascent of Humans, discovering large inflation of scores indicating the absence of dehumanisation. We discuss implications of our findings for improving theoretical grounds of dehumanisation and its measurement.