Cover not available

Article published In: Gesture
Vol. 19:2/3 (2020) ► pp.223–245

Get fulltext from our e-platform
JBE logo with link
PDF logo with download linkDownload PDF
authorization required

Out-group gestures can lower self-esteem

 | University of Alberta
 | University of Alberta
 | University of Alberta
Published online: 28 September 2021
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/gest.19004.nic
Abstract
Culture-specific symbols can prime aspects of identity, like self-esteem, in bilingual-bicultural individuals. The purpose of the present studies was to test whether gestures that are specific to a culture prime self-esteem and, if so, whether it is due to in-group/out-group association. In Study 1, Chinese Canadians had higher self-esteem scores when primed by Chinese number gestures or characters than by English number gestures or words. In Study 2, we taught Chinese number gestures to non-Chinese adults, with half thinking they were Chinese gestures (out-group) and half that they were old fur traders’ gestures (in-group). The self-esteem scores were higher in the in-group condition than the out-group condition. Comparisons with self-esteem scores from previous studies suggest that the out-group conditions were significantly lower than baseline. These results suggest that out-group gesture primes can lower self-esteem.
Article outline
  • Study 1
    • Methods
      • Participants
      • Materials
      • Procedure
      • Coding
      • Language of self-esteem measure
    • Results
    • Discussion of Study 1
  • Study 2
    • Methods
      • Participants
      • Materials
      • Procedure
      • Coding and comparison to previous studies’ self-esteem measures
    • Results
    • Discussion of Study 2
  • General discussion
  • Acknowledgements
  • References
References (51)
References
Alter, Adam L. & Kwan, Virginia S. Y. (2009). Cultural sharing in a global village: Evidence for extracultural cognition in European Americans. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 961, 742–760. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bagley, Christopher, Bolitho, Floyd, & Bertrand, Lorne. (1997). Norms and construct validity of the Rosenberg self-esteem scale in Canadian high school populations: Implications for counselling. Canadian Journal of Counselling, 311, 82–92.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Benet-Martínez, Verónica, Leu, Janxin, Lee, Fiona, & Morris, Michael W. (2002). Negotiating biculturalism cultural frame switching in biculturals with oppositional versus compatible cultural identities. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 331, 492–516. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bond, Michael Harris, Leung, K., Au, A., Tong, Kwok Kit, De Carrasquel, Sharon Reimel, Murakami, Fumio et al.. (2004). Culture-level dimensions of social axioms and their correlates across 41 cultures. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 351, 548–570. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Buisine, Stéphanie & Martin, Jean-Claude. (2007). The effects of speech-gesture cooperation in animated agents’ behavior in multimedia presentations. Interacting with Computers, 191, 484–493. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Chen, Sylvia Xiaohua & Bond, Michael Harris. (2007). Explaining language priming effects: Further evidence for ethnic affirmation among Chinese-English bilinguals. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 261, 398–406. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cohen, Dov & Leung, Angela K. -Y. (2009). The hard embodiment of culture. European Journal of Social Psychology, 391, 1278–1289. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Costigan, Catherine, Su, Tina F., & Hua, Josephine M. (2009). Ethnic identity among Chinese Canadian youth: A review of the Canadian literature. Canadian Psychology, 501, 261–272. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Fabbri-Destro, Maddalena, Avanzini, Pietro, De Stefani, Elisa, Innocenti, Alessandro, Campi, Cristina, & Gentilucci, Maurizio. (2015). Interaction between words and symbolic gestures as revealed by N400. Brain Topography, 281, 591–605. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Fitzsimmons, Stacey. (2009). Seeing life through bicultural frames: real-life primes for bicultural frame switching. Journal of the Institute for the Humanities, 41, 160–173.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gardner, Wendi L., Gabriel, Shira, & Lee, Angela Y. (1999). “I” value freedom, but “we” value relationships: Self-construal priming mirrors cultural differences in judgment. Psychological Science, 101, 321–326. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Garitte, Catherine & Olteanu, Larisa. (2013). L’apprentissage des gestes conventionnels en roumain et en français chez les enfants bilingues de 7 et 11 ans. Langages, 41, 45–55. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gerwing, Jennifer & Bavelas, Janet. (2004). Linguistic influences on gesture’s form. Gesture, 41, 157–195. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Goldin-Meadow, Susan, Cook, Susan Wagner, & Mitchell, Zachary A. (2009). Gesturing gives children new ideas about math. Psychological Science, 201, 267–272. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Harvey, John H., Town, Jerri P., & Yarkin, Kerry L. (1981). How fundamental is “the fundamental attribution error”? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 401, 346–349. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Heine, Steven J. (2001). Self as a cultural product: An examination of East Asian and North American selves. Journal of Personality, 691, 881–906. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Heine, Steven J. & Lehman, Darrin R. (1997). The cultural construction of self-enhancement: An examination of group-serving biases. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 72 (6), 1268–1283. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Holler, Judith & Wilkin, Katie. (2011). Co-speech gesture mimicry in the process of collaborative referring during face-to-face dialogue. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 351, 133–153. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Hong, Ying-Yi, Benet-Martínez, Verónica, Chiu, Chi-Yue, & Morris, Michael W. (2003). Boundaries of cultural influence: Constructivist activation as a mechanism for cultural differences in social perception. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 341, 453–464. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Hong, Ying-Yi, Morris, Michael, Chiu, Chi-Yue, & Benet-Martínez, Verónica. (2000). Multicultural minds: A dynamic constructivist approach to culture and cognition. American Psychologist, 551, 709–720. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ji, Li-Jun, Peng, Kaiping, & Nisbett, Richard E. (2000). Culture, control, and perception of relationships in the environment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 781, 943–955. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kendon, Adam. (1997). Gesture. Annual Review of Anthropology, 261, 109–128. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. (2000). Language and gesture: Unity or duality? In David McNeill (Ed.), Language and gesture (pp. 47–63). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kil, Hali, Lee, Elizabeth, & Nicoladis, Elena. (2015). Ingroup labeling, ingroup othering: East Asian immigrants’ perceptions of same-ethnicity others. Poster presentation at the Canadian Psychological Association.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kita, Sotaro. (2009). Cross-cultural variation of speech-accompanying gesture: A review. Language and Cognitive Processes, 241, 145–167. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kling, Kristen C., Hyde, Janet Shibley, Showers, Carolin J., & Buswell, Brenda N. (1999). Gender differences in self-esteem: a meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 1251, 470–500. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Köhnen, Ulrich & Hannover, Bettina. (2000). Assimilation and contrast in social comparisons as a consequence of self-construal activation. European Journal of Social Psychology, 301, 799–811. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Lay, Clarry & Verkuyten, Maykel. (1999). Ethnic identity and its relation to personal self-esteem: A comparison of Canadian-born and foreign-born Chinese adolescents. Journal of Social Psychology, 1391, 288–299. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Luhtanen, Riia & Crocker, Jennifer. (1992). A collective self-esteem scale: Self-evaluation of one’s social identity. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 181, 302–318. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Markus, Hazel Rose & Kitayama, Shinobu. (1991). Culture and the self: Implications for cognition, emotion, and motivation. Psychological Review, 981, 224–253. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Masuda, Takahiko, Wang, Huaitang, Ishii, Keiko, & Ito, Kenichi. (2012). Do surrounding figures’ emotions affect the judgment of the target figure’s emotion? Comparing the patterns of attention between European-Canadians, Asian-Canadians, Asian international students, and Japanese using eye-trackers. Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience, 61, 72. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
McNeill, David. Catchments and contexts: Non-modular factors in speech and gesture production. In David McNeill (Ed.), Language and gesture (pp. 312–328). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Morris, Michael W. & Peng, Kaiping. (1994). Culture and cause: American and Chinese attributions for social physical events. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 671, 949–971. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Nicoladis, Elena, Marentette, Paula, Pika, Simone, & Barbosa, Poliana Gonçalves. (2018). Young children show little sensitivity to the iconicity in number gestures. Language Learning and Development, 141, 297–319. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Pika, Simone, Nicoladis, Elena, & Marentette, Paula. (2009). How to order a beer: cultural differences in the use of conventional gestures for numbers. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 401, 70–80. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Radford, Mark H. B., Mann, Leon, Ohta, Yasuyuki, & Nakane, Yoshibumi. (1993). Differences between Australian and Japanese students in decisional self-esteem, decisional stress, and coping styles. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 24 (3), 284–297. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ralston, David A., Cunniff, Mary K., & Gustafson, David J. (1995). Cultural accommodation: The effect of language on the responses of bilingual Hong Kong Chinese managers. Journal of Cross Cultural Psychology, 261, 714–727. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ringberg, Torsten V., Luna, David, Reihlen, Markus, & Peracchio, Laura A. (2010). Bicultural-bilinguals: The effect of cultural frame switching on translation equivalence. International Journal of Cross Cultural Management, 101, 71–92. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ross, Michael, Xun, W. Q. Elaine, & Wilson, Anne E. (2002). Language and the bicultural self. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 281, 1040–1050. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Sinclair, Samuel J., Blais, Mark A., Gansler, David A., Sandberg, Elisabeth, Bistis, Kimberly, & LoCicero, Alice. (2010). Psychometric properties of the Rosenberg self-esteem scale: Overall and across demographic groups living within the United States. Evaluation and the Health Professions, 331, 56–80. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Singer, Melissa A. & Goldin-Meadow, Susan. (2005). Children learn when their teacher’s gestures and speech differ. Psychological Science, 16 (2), 85–89. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Sommer, Kristin L. & Baumeister, Roy F. (2002). Self-evaluation, persistence, and performance following implicit rejection: The role of trait self-esteem. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28 (7), 926–938. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
So, Wing Chee. (2010). Cross-cultural transfer in gesture frequency in Chinese–English bilinguals. Language and Cognitive Processes, 251, 1335–1353. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Straube, Benjamin, Green, Antonia, Jansen, Andreas, Chatterjee, Anjan, & Kircher, Tilo. (2010). Social cues, mentalizing and the neural processing of speech accompanied by gestures. Neuropsychologia, 481, 382–393. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Tajfel, Henri & Turner, John. (1986). The social identity theory of intergroup behaviour. In S. Worchel & W. Austin. (Eds.), Psychology of intergroup relations (2nd edition, pp. 7–24). Chicago: Nelson-Hall.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Usborne, Esther & Taylor, Donald M. (2010). The role of cultural identity clarity for self-concept clarity, self-esteem, and subjective well-being. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 361, 883–897. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Wang, Qi, Shao, Yi, & Li, Yexin Jessica. (2010). “My way or mom’s way?” The bilingual and bicultural self in Hong Kong Chinese children and adolescents. Child Development, 811, 555–567. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Webster, Gregory D., Smith, C. Veronica, Brunell, Amy B., Paddock, E. Layne, & Nezlek, John B. (2017). Can Rosenberg’s (1965) Stability of Self Scale capture within-person self-esteem variability? Meta-analytic validity and test–retest reliability. Journal of Research in Personality, 691, 156–169. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Yeung, Ka-ching Frederick. (1998). The dynamics of interparental conflict and adolescent’s behavior problems. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong (Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis). Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cited by (1)

Cited by one other publication

Nicoladis, Elena, Fangfang Li & Junzhou Ma
2022. Chinese children show sensitivity to transparency in number gestures earlier than Canadian children. Cognitive Development 62 ► pp. 101191 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 9 december 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue