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Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, Vol. 9, No. 4, 533-546 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/1368430206067556
© 2006 SAGE Publications

When People Would Rather Switch Than Fight: Out-Group Favoritism Among Temporary Employees

Courtney D. von Hippel

University of New South Wales, c.vonhippel{at}unsw.edu.au

This article relies on social identity theory to examine the intergroup attitudes held by temporary and permanent employees toward each other. Because temporary employees represent a low-status group with permeable boundaries, temporary employees were expected to show an out-group bias in favor of permanent employees. Survey data from 161 temporary and permanent employees revealed this predicted out-group favoritism on the part of the temporary employees on both implicit and explicit measures of intergroup bias. In contrast, the high-status, permanent employee group displayed typical in-group favoritism on both measures. Implications of these results for workplace relations are discussed.

Key Words: out-group favoritism • social identity theory • temporary employees • workplace

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This Article
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