Psicothema was founded in Asturias (northern Spain) in 1989, and is published jointly by the Psychology Faculty of the University of Oviedo and the Psychological Association of the Principality of Asturias (Colegio Oficial de Psicología del Principado de Asturias).
We currently publish four issues per year, which accounts for some 100 articles annually. We admit work from both the basic and applied research fields, and from all areas of Psychology, all manuscripts being anonymously reviewed prior to publication.
Raúl Piñuela Sánchez and Carlos Yela García
Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Background: From the framework of Terror Management Theory, the objective of the present research is to analyze the effect of mortality salience (MS) on the minimization of Muslim terrorists’ secondary emotions (MSE, which can be understood as a particular kind of dehumanization), as a function of political orientation. Method: An experimental design was used, in which the participants (university students, N= 293) were randomly assigned to a control or experimental group, their political orientation was taken note of, and they were asked to attribute emotions to Muslim terrorists. Results: In accordance with the hypotheses, the results indicate that, among those supporting tenets of the political left, MS originates less minimization of secondary emotions of the terrorists (MSE). However, among people who stand on the right, MS inspires greater MSE (that is, a lower attribution of these emotions). Conclusions: These results support the thesis that the effects of MS are not to be found exclusively in conservative people, and that they do not necessarily imply a conservative shift, but constitute a polarization in previous ideological tendencies or cultural worldview.
Recuerdo de la mortalidad, orientación política y minimización de las emociones secundarias de los terroristas. Antecedentes: desde el marco de la Teoría del Manejo del Terror (TMT), la presente investigación se centra en analizar los efectos del recuerdo de la propia mortalidad (mortality salience, MS) sobre la minimización sentimental (MSE, una forma particular de deshumanización) de los terroristas islamistas, en función de la orientación política. Método: se utilizó un diseño experimental en el cual los participantes (293 estudiantes universitarios) fueron asignados aleatoriamente a un grupo control o un grupo experimental, tomando nota sobre su orientación política, pidiéndoles que atribuyeran emociones a terroristas musulmanes. Resultados: en coherencia con las hipótesis planteadas, los resultados indican que, entre personas de izquierdas, la MS da lugar a una menor MSE emocional de los terroristas. Entre personas de derechas, sin embargo, la MS promueve mayor MSE de dicho grupo. Conclusiones: estos resultados apoyan la tesis de que los efectos de la MS no se dan exclusivamente en personas conservadoras, y que suponen más bien una polarización en las tendencias ideológicas previas que una deriva hacia el conservadurismo.
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https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2015.147