Warmth, Competence, Morality and ideal nationalism as self-stereotypical dimensions of the national self-concept in Six Latin American Countries

The aim of this study is to describe and analyze self-stereotypical contents related to collective self-esteem and degree of national identification in six countries of Latin-America. To accomplish this aim, a survey study was developed in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela (n=1573). Results have shown four self-stereotypical dimensions: warmth, competence, morality and ideal nationalism. Positive expressions of these dimensions were significantly related to collective self-esteem and degree of national identification. Nevertheless, size effects of these relationships are different by country. In general, stereotypical dimensions perceived as more representative of the evaluated national in-groups were those related to warmth and competence; meanwhile, agreement with morality and ideal nationalism were considered less representative of them. Finally, a general model analyzing influences of self-stereotypical contents in collective self-esteem and degree of national identification showed that, even though warmth was considered the most representative dimension in the definition of the national in-group, it has a weak influence in collective self-esteem and it has no influence on the degree of national identification.