American Gratitude-plus-Pride Differentially Predict Benevolent and Activism Support Across Political Ideology

Given rising anti-immigrant sentiment in the West, it is increasingly important to further investigate which psychological factors may facilitate helping towards immigrants. In two studies with White Americans (Total N = 1,139) we investigated whether (and when) two positive emotions — group-based gratitude and group-based pride — influence benevolent and activism support toward immigrants in the U.S. Although previous research on individual-level gratitude and pride suggests that they are distinct emotions, at the group-level, we find that American gratitude and pride clustered together and were statistically indistinguishable. Importantly, this combination of American gratitude-plus-pride had differential effects on helping towards immigrants, depending on two key factors: political orientation of the perceiver, and the type of support rendered. Among conservatives and moderates, American gratitude-plus-pride was predictive of increased benevolent support. However among liberals, it was related to decreased activism support. Our findings suggest that the impact of group-based gratitude and pride on helping towards immigrants is complex, and contingent upon preexisting dispositions.