ABSTRACT
Social psychologists have put forward several theories to explain ingroup favouritism including the realistic group conflict theory and the social identity theory. High status groups have an interest to expound ideologies that help legitimise social inequalities. This chapter considers the relationship between inequality and governance based on evidence from the fields of social psychology and behavioural economics and reviews work that has explained the phenomenon of ingroup favouritism. It explains that ingroup favouritism is a response to societal uncertainty. The chapter also reviews experimental work that has confirmed the generalised human tendency to identify with ingroups. It shows that ingroup favouritism can lead people to accept unethical behaviour by ingroup members and endorse leaders that discriminate outgroups. The chapter focuses on evidence that has revealed a crucial factor driving peoples’ actions, namely, perceptions of legitimacy. It describes the inequality-governance relationship.
