Seeing and Treating the Out-group Like Family: Transference Effects in an Ethnic Context

Transference effects occur when our impressions are guided by our mental representations of significant others. For instance, if a target resembles an individual’s significant other, then that person’s feelings toward their significant other will be transferred onto the target. The present research examines whether transference effects emerge even when the target belongs to an ethnic out-group. In two experiments, participants received descriptions of in-group and out-group targets who partly resembled their own (or another’s) positive significant other. The findings showed that resemblance to one’s own significant other improves attitudes and behavior toward both in-group and ethnic out-group targets, as found across two nations and three different ethnic out-groups. The present research hence provides evidence of robust transference effects across ethnic group boundaries.