What are the trigger conditions for defensive dehumanization (attributing less suffering or pain to the victim)?
- Dehumanization-as-a-function Emotional regulation hyp knowing that you cannot help/do so much
- Denying the pain of the person


Dehumanization may serve not only to justify harmful actions, but also to protect and cherished belief of those who observe harm.


Research question: Does dehumanization have a defensive function in dealing with the emotional costs in the context of rape?

Does dehumanization serve a positive function for the individual, while reducing punishment for the rape perpetrators, or reduce their support for the rape victims?

--- A bystander observing the rape.

Which is more interesting?
--- dehumanization of the Victim?
--- dehumanization of the Perpetrator?

Defensive dehumanization in the context of emotionally charged event
--- just world hypothesis predicts
--- emotion-regulation hypothesis


Feedback:
-- Cameron




Rape  context: focus on dehumanization of the rapist, and ingroup vs. outgroup related

Objectification (sexualized vs. non-sexualized woman), victim and perpetrator blaming (acquintace vs. stranger rape). 

-- What leads to dehumanization of the victim and perpetrator in a rape context? What could be the function of dehumanization in this context? 

* can be a defensive strategy? for emotional costs

* gaining control? 

* reduce fear towards ingroup (Germany) men? but to increase fear towards the outgroup (Arab) men?

* emotional distancing/less involved or justifying the rape?

 2 (objectification of victim: sexualized vs. non-sexualized) x 2 (ethnic background of the perpetrator: ingroup vs. outgroup), using a newspaper article to manipulate the rape

-- German girl raped by a German man (the sexualized/objectified woman would be blamed more and the perpetrator less) --> sexualization would matter.

-- German girl raped by a Turkish/Arab man, it would be blamed on the outgroup, and sexualization would make a less difference. 

-- Do you use dehumanization in the context of rape in order to reduce emotional costs?

-- If bystander participants are given opportunity to dehumanize, do they feel less distressing?

-- we should also look at a socially important DV = support for rape victims, or policies that reduce rape, etc. to see if while dehumanization may serve a function for the bystander, does it also lead to reduced support for policies that tackle rape or support for rape victims and punishment for perpetrators?

-- In the 2nd study, could we show that the dehumanization effect could get reduced by a news article that evokes less emotional distress

-- Dehumanization of perpetrator may have a paradox of self-serving function for the individual, but it may lead to a more negative societal consequence in the sense that you turn on a blind eye to it, and tolerate it.

--- it should be about dehumanization, but not just not perspective-taking.

Look at the two paths 

Is there a fucntion of dehumanization to deal with the emotional costs in the context of rape?

1) dehumanization of the perpetrator, and it leads to more empathy for the victim and help the victim more

2) dehumanization of the perpetrator, and it leads to less empathy for the victim and help the victim less

Empathy, contempt, disgust

Animalistically dehumanize the perpetrator, he cannot manage his sexual lust and 

if people dehumanize the perpetrator animalistically, they are also blaming the sexualized victim animalistically