Person perception, prejudice, and hostility as influenced by the use of persuasion: A cross-cultural study.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess whether it is possible to alter the perception of similarity vs. uniqueness of people towards others and if the powerful embedded constructs of prejudice and aggression could be influenced through this alteration. Four hundred forty-five respondents were tested from two different countries; the United States and Cyprus. In an attempt to influence the perception of respondents, two persuasive essays were constructed. One argued that people are all similar to each other (" Alike" essay), and the other argued that people are all different from each other (" Different" essay). Respondents were randomly assigned to three groups (" Alike"-reading the" Alike" essay," Different"-reading the" Different" essay, and" Control"-reading neither essay). Questionnaires were administered to assess the perception of similarity (how …