Group-serving Bias - Group-serving Bias and Cultural Differences

Group-serving Bias and Cultural Differences

Leung et al. conducted an experiment to compare the reward allocation biases of Americans and Chinese in different group outcome conditions. The first, participants' Need for Cognitive Closure (NFCC) were measured with the 42-item NFCC scale. Next, participants performed the reward allocation task. The result demonstrated that both high NFCC Americans and Chinese showed the culturally typical allocation bias in success experience. They concluded that Chinese are more likely to show the group-serving bias which means they are rewarding the group more than the group deserve. Also, Americans are to give extra credit to the self, because the self is regarded as a more powerful causal entity in American contexts.

The differences between Western and Eastern culture on attributing group-serving bias were also explained by individualism and collectivism. Heine and Lehman demonstrated that North Americans are better able to achieve the cultural ideals associated with independence and individualism by viewing themselves positively. An opposite view, Japanese culture encourages individual to keep a self-critical view of themselves which means collectivistic society require individual to satisfy others instead of themselves. Taylor and Jaggi have showed the clearest example of the operation of a group-serving bias. The study found that South Asians who believe Hindu made internal attributions for in-group members when they perform desirable acts, and external attributions for undesirable acts. However, when Hindus see Muslims performing the same acts, their thinking were reversed. Also, Taylor and Doria found the significant evidence for a group-serving bias. The group-serving attributions reflect social desirability in responding to the questionnaires, because group's image is an important for understanding the social norm.