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Choosing Fusion: the Effects of Diversity Ideologies on Preference for Culturally Mixed Experiences☆

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Choosing Fusion: the Effects of Diversity Ideologies on Preference for Culturally Mixed Experiences☆ Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 69 (2017) 163–171 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Experimental Social Psychology journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jesp Case Report Choosing fusion: The effects of diversity ideologies on preference for culturally mixed experiences☆ Jaee Cho a,⁎, Michael W. Morris a, Michael L. Slepian a,CarmitT.Tadmorb a Management Division, Columbia University, United States b Coller School of Management, Tel-Aviv University, Israel HIGHLIGHTS • We explore when and why cultural fusion is welcomed. • We introduce that diversity ideologies matter in choices about cultural consumption. • Polyculturalism (the belief cultures interact with each other) predicts preference for consuming culturally mixed activities. • Polyculturalism increases preference for cultural mixing but not for other kinds of mixing. • Polyculturalism heightens one’s preference for cultural fusion options, mediated by reduced cultural-purity concerns. article info abstract Article history: Globalization brings new cultural experiences and choices. Not only can people choose musical, culinary, and lit- Received 21 March 2016 erary activities from other cultures, but they also can choose experiences that mix cultures together. We propose Revised 26 June 2016 that preference for culturally mixed experiences hinges on preconceptions about cultural differences, or “diver- Accepted 30 June 2016 sity ideologies,” namely colorblindness, multiculturalism, and polyculturalism. In Study 1, we measured partici- Available online 28 October 2016 pants' endorsement of these three diversity ideologies and their preferences for culturally unitary versus mixed experiences. Results showed that polyculturalism (the mindset that cultures interact and contribute to each Keywords: Cultural mixing other) was positively associated with liking of culturally mixed experiences. In Study 2, we experimentally in- Diversity ideologies duced these three mindsets and found that the polycultural mindset heightened preferences for culturally Preferences mixed experiences. In Study 3, we replicated the positive effect of polyculturalism on preference for cultural mixes but not other kinds of mixes. Further, the effect of polyculturalism on people's choice of cultural mixes was mediated by purity concerns. We discuss implications for the psychology of globalization. © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction mixed options, as opposed to culturally unitary options, follows from preconceptions about cultural differences. Globalization has produced flows of cultures across borders and Most past research on cultural mixes has presented culturally mixed swirls of cultural mixing. People consume culturally mixed experiences stimuli as primes rather than as choice options. Studies have found that in museums, music, films, restaurants, and more. While laboratory stud- simultaneous exposure to stimuli from different cultures can induce a ies predominantly demonstrate negative responses to cultural mixing focus on features that differentiate the cultures, and a heightened (e.g., Chiu, 2007), the rise of cultural fusion consumption reveals that sense of cultural differentiation (Chiu, Mallorie, Keh, & Law, 2009). It some people have a preference for it. We investigated individuals' con- can give rise to defensive concerns about cultural conflict and contami- sumption of foreign cultures, and tested how preference for culturally nation (Chiu, 2007) and, for people who do not identify with foreign cultures, to heightened need for closure (Morris, Mok, & Mor, 2011). However, some evidence suggests that these negative responses are ☆ We are grateful for Stacey Sasaki's insightful feedback on an earlier version, and not inevitable. They were allayed, for instance, by an intervention that Melanie Langer, Sarah Gordon, and Seulki Chin for research assistance. We also thank asked people to consider the complexity of cultures (Torelli, Chiu, the Editor and three anonymous reviewers for their critical comments and insightful Tam, Au, & Keh, 2011). Another study found that biculturals who see feedback. their two cultures as interconnected are better at creating fusion cuisine ⁎ Corresponding author at: Columbia University, Columbia Business School, Uris Hall 3022 Broadway, New York, NY 10027-6902, United States. menus (Cheng, Sanchez-Burks, & Lee, 2008). One might surmise then E-mail address: [email protected] (J. Cho). that they feel less threatened by and more open to such cultural fusion http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2016.06.013 0022-1031/© 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 164 J. Cho et al. / Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 69 (2017) 163–171 options. These clues in the literature suggest that people's responses to this paper, we reported all exclusions, measures, and manipulations in culturally mixed experiences may hinge upon their assumptions about the studies. the nature of cultural differences – or diversity ideologies (Rattan & Ambady, 2013; Thomas, Plaut, & Tran, 2014). 2. Study 1 Although diversity ideologies have been studied in relation to preju- dice and stereotyping (e.g., Richeson & Nussbaum, 2004), no prior re- We first examined diversity ideologies and choice in a tourism search has probed their relation to the evaluation of cultural mixes. In context. an increasingly globalizing world, it is important to understand what leads people to accept or to reject emerging cultural mixes. We 2.1. Method investigate three ideologies—colorblindness, multiculturalism, and polyculturalism—which lead to different ways of understanding cultural 2.1.1. Participants differences and boundaries (Morris, Chiu, & Liu, 2015; Rosenthal & Levy, We posted a survey seeking 150 U.S. participants on www.mturk. 2010; Rosenthal & Levy, 2013). While colorblindness deemphasizes cul- 1 com, and 152 participants completed the survey. The sample size of tural categorization and underscores commonality as humans, multicul- 150 was chosen because we considered any correlational effect that turalism emphasizes cultural group differences and the need to could not be uncovered with this sample size to be too small to be preserve these legacies (Rosenthal & Levy, 2010). Polyculturalism like- meaningful (with 80% power, this sample size can detect a r effect wise celebrates cultures but instead of understanding them as separate size = 0.2263 at α = 0.05; calculated with R package “pwr”; independent traditions to be preserved, it understands them as systems Champely, 2013; see Fritz, Morris, & Richler, 2012). Thirty-six partici- that define themselves through interacting with each other and that re- pants failed to answer the attention check questions correctly, and generate themselves through hybridity (Kelley, 1999; Morris et al., were thus excluded, yielding a final sample of 116 participants (66 fe- 2015; Prashad, 2001, 2003; Rosenthal & Levy, 2010). males, 50 males; Mage =34.47,SD = 11.38; 110 European Americans, Past studies of laypersons' ideologies or mindsets contrasted multi- 4 Latin Americans, 1 Native American, 1 South Asian American). culturalism and colorblindness, generally finding positive outcomes of multiculturalism, such as reducing racial bias (Richeson & Nussbaum, 2.1.2. Materials and procedure 2004), reducing ethnocentrism (Wolsko, Park, Judd, & Wittenbrink, Participants were told the survey session comprised two separate 2000), and enhancing the self-esteem of minority group members studies. In ostensibly the first, they completed scales about social (Verkuyten, 2009). However, experiments priming multiculturalism groups, rating their agreement (1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly find that (relative to a colorblindness condition) multiculturalism also agree) with five statements for each of three diversity ideologies: induces endorsement of categorical stereotypes about ethnic groups colorblindness (e.g., “Ethnic and cultural group categories are not very (Wolsko et al., 2000) and dislike for counter-stereotypical target per- important for understanding or making decisions about people”; sons (Gutiérrez & Unzueta, 2010). If an ostensible threat from an Rosenthal & Levy, 2012; α = 0.81), multiculturalism (e.g., “We must ap- outgroup was present, multiculturalism (relative to colorblindness) preciate the unique characteristics of different ethnic groups in order to made people more prejudiced toward out-groups (Correll, Park, & have a cooperative society”; Wolsko, Park, & Judd, 2006; α = 0.87), and Smith, 2008). Multiculturalism may strengthen people's defensive reac- polyculturalism (e.g., “There are many connections between different tions when other cultures are involved. Based on these findings, we hy- cultures”; Rosenthal & Levy, 2012; α = 0.86). pothesized that the concern about preserving cultural categories that is In ostensibly the second study, participants were asked about activ- integrated to multiculturalism may have a consequence in choice: de- ities that they would choose on a trip to Paris, much like a travel website creasing preference for culturally mixed options. that asks consumers to assemble an itinerary through a series of choices. As yet, the effects of the polyculturalism are little researched com- Some choices contrasted a culturally unitary French activity against a pared to the two other ideologies. When all three ideologies are mea- culturally mixed one. We asked the participants to imagine that they sured and entered into regression models, polyculturalism correlates were choosing options as part of
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