Bernardo, A. B., Salanga, M. G. C., Tjipto, S., Hutapea, B., Yeung, S. S., & Khan, A. (2016). Contrasting lay theories of polyculturalism and multiculturalism: Associations with essentialist beliefs of race in six Asian cultural groups. Cross-Cultural Research, 50(3), 231-250.

Multiculturalism and polyculturalism are two popular lay ideologies that have been linked to intergroup attitudes and actions. Before the research reported in this article, not many studies directly distinguished between these two lay theories. Rosenthal and Levy’s investigation in the United States was the only exception.

The authors applied confirmatory factor analysis to their data obtained from 1,730 participants in six Asian cultural groups (China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Macau, Malaysia, and the Philippines). According to the results of the survey, multiculturalism and polyculturalism are two unique latent concepts. Furthermore, the authors show that in these five cultural groups, essentializing race is linked to support for multiculturalism (but not polyculturalism). The findings provide substantial cross-cultural empirical support for the distinction between the two lay theories of multiculturalism and polyculturalism. This distinction explains why the lay theory of multiculturalism is associated with increased stereotyping and prejudice toward minority cultural groups.

Bernardo, A. B., Salanga, M. G. C., Tjipto, S., Hutapea, B., Yeung, S. S., & Khan, A. (2016). Contrasting lay theories of polyculturalism and multiculturalism: Associations with essentialist beliefs of race in six Asian cultural groups. Cross-Cultural Research, 50(3), 231-250. https://doi.org/10.1177/1069397116641895