Making America great for whom?: How Trump’s Presidency affected fit and national identity among targets of bias

Abstract

Can a politician cue national identity and fit? Given that Trump’s rhetoric often signaled the devaluation of certain groups, we examined this across three pre-registered studies. In Study1 (2017), targets of Trump’s rhetoric reported less social fit, greater social identity threat, and expected increased discrimination. In Study2 (2017), marginalized targets reported less fit and American identification as well as greater threat and discrimination when anticipating Trump(vs. Obama). Study3, conducted during the 2020 election, revealed that racialized participants felt greater fit and American identification after (vs. before) Biden’s victory, but effects of Trump’s presidency on expected discrimination had not reversed. These findings suggest that a divisive leader can induce feelings of devaluation, threat, and national detachment.