University of Rhode Island DigitalCommons@URI Open Access Dissertations 1981 National Stereotypes and Their Relationship to Self-Perceptions in Irish, Italian, and American College Students Caroline M. Salvatore University of Rhode Island Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/oa_diss Recommended Citation Salvatore, Caroline M., "National Stereotypes and Their Relationship to Self-Perceptions in Irish, Italian, and American College Students" (1981). Open Access Dissertations. Paper 1098. https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/oa_diss/1098 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@URI. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Access Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@URI. For more information, please contact [email protected]. NATIONALSTEREOTYPES AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP TOSELF-PERCEPTIONS IN IRISH, ITALIAN,AND A MERICANCOLLEGE STUDENTS BY CAROLINEM. SALVATORE A DISSERTATIONSUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF REQUIREMENTSFORTHE DEGREE OF DOCTOROF PHILOSOPHY IN PSYCHOLOGY UNIVERSITYOF RHODEISLAND 1981 ABSTRACT This study examined self perceptions, and, their relationship to heterostereotypes and autostereotypes in three groups: Irish students from the University Colleges of Dublin, Galway, and St. Patrick's College in Dublin; Italian students from the- University of Palermo in Sicily; and American students at the CommunityCollege of Rhode Island, Bryant Col­ lege, and the University of Rhode Island. It was predicted that, as a reflection of greater cultural homo­ geneity, a higher degree of within-group similarity would be found in the self perceptions of both Italian and Irish students than in the self perceptions of American students. It was further predicted that differ­ ences would be found across the three groups in the saliency of certain 11 self-perceived "traits • Finally, it was predicted that heterostereo­ types would show a substantial degree of correspondence both with auto­ stereotypes and self perceptions. The samples consisted of 186 Irish students, 89 males and 97 females; 179 Italian students, 83 males and 96 females; and 190 American students, 90 males and 100 females. Students in each group responded to two open-ended questions asking them to describe, in ten adjectives or fewer, their picture of the 11typical 11 memberof the other two groups. Ethnic stereotypes of Irish, Italians, and Americans thus elicited were then compared to each group's picture of its own "typical member" (autostereotype), and to the self perceptions of group members. Autostereotypes were measured by asking students to select, from the 81-word checklist of the Activity Vector Analysis (AVA)all those adjectives which best describe the 11typical member11 of their own cultural group. Self perceptions were measured in two ways: the subjects responded to the AVAadjective checklist a second time by choosing all those adjec­ 11 11 tives which best describe the person you really are • Subjects also completed the 126-item, forced-choice Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). The AVAyields scores on four vectors: aggressiveness, sociability, emotional control and social adaptability. Ipsative scores on these four vectors combine in different ways to form 258 possible 11personality profile 11 descriptions. The MBTIyields scores on four dichotomous pre­ ferences: introversion versus extraversion; sensing versus intuition; thinking versus feeling; and judging versus perceiving. A subject's 11 11 preference within each dichotomy yields a four-letter type description ; there are sixteen possible types. Very little correspondence was found among heterostereotypes and either autostereotypes or self-perceptions, except for a few isolated traits. However, distributions of MBTIscores for both the Irish and Italian samples showed greater homogeneity than either the American sample or the normative U.S. sample of 3860 college students used for comparison purposes. The Irish sampl~ was found to have a significantly greater proportion of 11introverted, intuitive, feeling, perceptive 11 types while the Italian sample had a significantly greater proportion of "extraverted, sensing, thinking judging 11 types, than either the American sample or the normative U.S. sample. American students showed a greater-than-expected frequency of 11sensing feeling 11 types than in the U.S. normative sample but overall the American sample was distributed more heterogeneously across the MBTItypes than the Irish and Italian samples. Tight clusters for the self-perceptions of students as mea­ sured by the AVAprofiles were also found for the Italian students, with 84% of the sample clustered tightly around either one of two AVApattern shapes. The AVAdistributions of both Irish and American students were more heterogeneous, with approximately 65% of each sample found in three clusters on the AVApattern universe. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation is dedicated, with the deepest gratitude, affec­ tion, and esteem, to my major professor, Dr. Peter F. Merenda. Words cannot adequately convey my thanks for his unfailing patience, wisdom, and support, not only duri~g the progress of this research, but in the eight years it has been my privilege to be his student. To each of the members of my committee, to Dr. Stanley Berger, Dr. Albert Lott, and Dr. Richard Purnell, for the time, effort, and excellent advice generously given during the successive phases of this research, I extend my deepest appreciation. Research is always a cooperative effort, but the implementation of this particular study would have been impossible without the extraordin­ ary measure of help received from colleagues in Ireland and Italy who obtained samples and collected data for me in those two countries. I offer very special thanks to Dr. Patricia Fontes, research scientist and lecturer at the Educational Research Centre, St. Patrick's College, Dublin; Dr. Christopher Sims, lecturer at the University College of Dublin; Ms. Pamela Merenda, lecturer at the University of Palermo, Sicily; and Ms. Rosalia Sparacino, lecturer at the University of Palermo, Sicily. The translation into Italian of the test instruments used in this study was a crucial step in the research. For the time and painstaking care they generously devoted to this task, I am indebted to my husband, Dr. Santo Salvatore, and to Dr. RemoTrevelli, Professor of Italian in the Department of Languages, University of Rhode Island. vi I also extend my warmest thanks to Dr. William Pacitti, Ms. Jane Carey, Mr. Bob Heder, and Dr. Santo Salvatore for kindly allowing students in their classes at the CommunityCollege of Rhode Island and at Bryant College to participate in this research. I particularly wish to thank Mr. Katchadoor N. Kazarian, President of Walter V. Clarke Associates in Providence, Dr. Peter Merenda, and the office staff at Walter Clarke Associates for making available to me computer facilities for the scoring of the AVA. To Dr. Charles Collyer of the Psychology Department and Dr. Leo Carroll of the Sociology Department, University of Rhode Island, for generously giving their time to serve as additional outside mambers of my committee, and for their thoughtful comments on this dissertation, I give my thanks. Finally, I would like to thank my husband, Dr. Santo Salvatore. The never-failing help and support he has given me throughout every phase of this research is truly beyond measure, as is my abiding love and gratitude. vii TABLEOF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE Abstract . i i i Ackn owl edgements. vi List of Tables . ... ... ........................ ..... ix List of Figures ......... .............. ........... xi Introduction . ........ ·. l Statement of the Problem............ .. ...... l I Review of the Literature. .. ... ................... 3 I I Method. 37 Subjects.... ..................... ............ 37 Instruments... ......... .... .. ... .. .... .... 45 Procedure. 63 III Results ...... ......... ; ...... ....... ............. 65 Demographic Data ......... ....... ; . 65 Heterostereotypes.. .............. .. ... ..... 73 Autostereotypes........... ........ ........... 92 Self-Perceptions .... .. ... .. .. ......... ... 108 IV Discussio n ........ ........ ......... ... ... ...... 136 Appendix I . .. ........... ...... ................... 159 Bibliography .. ... .......... .... ................. 162 viii LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE l Description of Age, Sex, Country of Birth, Citizenship 39 and Undergraduate Status of Subjects in Three Samples 2 Sample Items From the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator 58 3 MBTISixteen Personality Types 59-62 4 Percent of Responses in Categories of Marital Status, 68 Religious Affiliation and Church Attendance for Irish Italians and U.S.Ss 5 Frequencies in Occupational Categories for Irish, 72 Italian and U.S.A. 6 Comparison of the Mean Numberof Adjectives Used by 77 Irish, Italians, and Americans in Forming Hetero- stereotypes 7 Irish Heterostereotypes of Americans 81 8 Irish Heterostereotype of the Italians 84 9 Italian Stereotype of the Americans 86 10 Italian Stereotype of the Irish 88 11 American Stereotypes of the Irish 90 12 American Stereotype of the Italians 91 13 Mean Numberof Adjectives Used in Autostereotype of Irish 94 Italians, and Americans (AVAActivity Level) 14 Irish Autostereotypes: Most Frequently and Least 96 Frequently Used AVAAdjectives 15 Italian Autostereotype: Most and Least Frequently Selected 97 AVAAdjectives 16 American Autostereotype: Most and Least Frequently 99 Selected AVAAdjectives 17 AVAProfile Clusters