Cargando…

Museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity

The present research draws upon a cultural psychological perspective to consider how psychological phenomena are grounded in socio-cultural contexts. Specifically, we examine the association between representations of history at Ellis Island Immigration Museum and identity-relevant concerns. Pilot s...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Mukherjee, Sahana, Salter, Phia S., Molina, Ludwin E.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Frontiers Media S.A. 2015
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4445245/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26074846
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00692
_version_ 1782373257346809856
author Mukherjee, Sahana
Salter, Phia S.
Molina, Ludwin E.
author_facet Mukherjee, Sahana
Salter, Phia S.
Molina, Ludwin E.
author_sort Mukherjee, Sahana
collection PubMed
description The present research draws upon a cultural psychological perspective to consider how psychological phenomena are grounded in socio-cultural contexts. Specifically, we examine the association between representations of history at Ellis Island Immigration Museum and identity-relevant concerns. Pilot study participants (N = 13) took a total of 114 photographs of exhibits that they considered as most important in the museum. Results indicate that a majority of the photographs reflected neutral themes (n = 81), followed by nation-glorifying images (n = 24), and then critical themes that highlight injustices and barriers faced by immigrants (n = 9). Study 1 examines whether there is a preference for glorifying images, and if that preference is related to cultural-assimilationist conceptions of national identity (i.e., defining American identity in dominant group standards). We exposed a new sample of participants (N = 119) to photographs reflecting all three themes. Results indicate that participants expressed greater liking for glorifying images, followed by neutral images, and critical images. National identity moderated within-subject variation in liking scores. Study 2 included 35 visitors who completed a survey before engaging with the museum or after their visit. Results indicate that participants who had completed their visit, compared to participants who had not entered the museum, reported (i) higher endorsement of cultural-assimilationist identity, and (ii) increased support for exclusive immigration policies. Study 3 exposed participants (N = 257) to glorifying, critical, or neutral images. Results indicate that participants who were exposed to glorifying images, especially those endorsing cultural-assimilationist identity, demonstrate decreased perception of current-day racial injustice, and increased ethnocentric enforcement bias. We discuss how engagement with privileged narratives may serve dominant group ends and reproduce systems of privilege.
format Online
Article
Text
id pubmed-4445245
institution National Center for Biotechnology Information
language English
publishDate 2015
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format MEDLINE/PubMed
spelling pubmed-44452452015-06-12 Museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity Mukherjee, Sahana Salter, Phia S. Molina, Ludwin E. Front Psychol Psychology The present research draws upon a cultural psychological perspective to consider how psychological phenomena are grounded in socio-cultural contexts. Specifically, we examine the association between representations of history at Ellis Island Immigration Museum and identity-relevant concerns. Pilot study participants (N = 13) took a total of 114 photographs of exhibits that they considered as most important in the museum. Results indicate that a majority of the photographs reflected neutral themes (n = 81), followed by nation-glorifying images (n = 24), and then critical themes that highlight injustices and barriers faced by immigrants (n = 9). Study 1 examines whether there is a preference for glorifying images, and if that preference is related to cultural-assimilationist conceptions of national identity (i.e., defining American identity in dominant group standards). We exposed a new sample of participants (N = 119) to photographs reflecting all three themes. Results indicate that participants expressed greater liking for glorifying images, followed by neutral images, and critical images. National identity moderated within-subject variation in liking scores. Study 2 included 35 visitors who completed a survey before engaging with the museum or after their visit. Results indicate that participants who had completed their visit, compared to participants who had not entered the museum, reported (i) higher endorsement of cultural-assimilationist identity, and (ii) increased support for exclusive immigration policies. Study 3 exposed participants (N = 257) to glorifying, critical, or neutral images. Results indicate that participants who were exposed to glorifying images, especially those endorsing cultural-assimilationist identity, demonstrate decreased perception of current-day racial injustice, and increased ethnocentric enforcement bias. We discuss how engagement with privileged narratives may serve dominant group ends and reproduce systems of privilege. Frontiers Media S.A. 2015-05-27 /pmc/articles/PMC4445245/ /pubmed/26074846 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00692 Text en Copyright © 2015 Mukherjee, Salter and Molina. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
spellingShingle Psychology
Mukherjee, Sahana
Salter, Phia S.
Molina, Ludwin E.
Museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity
title Museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity
title_full Museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity
title_fullStr Museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity
title_full_unstemmed Museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity
title_short Museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity
title_sort museum spaces as psychological affordances: representations of immigration history and national identity
topic Psychology
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4445245/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26074846
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00692
work_keys_str_mv AT mukherjeesahana museumspacesaspsychologicalaffordancesrepresentationsofimmigrationhistoryandnationalidentity
AT salterphias museumspacesaspsychologicalaffordancesrepresentationsofimmigrationhistoryandnationalidentity
AT molinaludwine museumspacesaspsychologicalaffordancesrepresentationsofimmigrationhistoryandnationalidentity