Eliciting Positive Attitudes Towards Minority Ethnic Groups Among Adolescents: The Role of Self-Transcendence Values and Moral Anger

Objectives: The present study, funded by the Lottomatica Foundation, sought to investigate the effect of self-transcendence values, elicited by a psychosocial intervention, on adolescents’ positive attitudes towards multi-ethnic minority groups via moral anger. We hypothesized that the indirect effect of self-transcendence values on positive attitudes toward multi-ethnic groups via moral anger (H1) is stronger for the adolescents who participated in the psychosocial intervention than the control group (H2). Design: The present study adopted a quasi-experimental and longitudinal (T1-T2) design. Methods. Six classes of a high school located in central Italy were involved (N=96; F=80%; Mage=14.39, SD=0.62). Three classes were assigned to the control condition, while three classes carried out a psychosocial intervention aimed at enhancing prosocial attitudes towards minority ethnic groups. A mediation-moderated model has been tested, in which self-transcendence values, detected at T1, represent the predictor; moral anger, detected at T2, the mediator; and positive attitudes towards ethnic groups, detected at T2, the outcome. The group (control vs. intervention) has been included as the moderator. Results: Findings showed that the interaction self-transcendence*group on moral anger is significant (b=0.92; SE=0.26; 95%CI=0.39, 1.46) in favour of the intervention group. Moreover, the indirect effect of self-transcendence on positive attitudes towards multi-ethnic groups via moral anger varies as a function of the group (IMM=0.22; SE=0.08, 95%CI=.08, 0.41) in favour of the intervention group (Point estimate=0.19; SE=.06; 95%CI=0.09, 0.32). Conclusions: Especially when activated, self-transcendence values act as “motivators” of prosociality, eliciting moral emotions. Limitations of the study and future research directions will be discussed.