The social psychology of a selective national inferiority complex: Reconciling positive distinctiveness and system justification

The national inferiority complex was described in 1958 by the Brazilian journalist Nelson Rodrigues as “how Brazilians voluntarily place themselves in a position of inferiority in comparison to the rest of the world.” In three experimental studies, we tested the hypothesis of a “national inferiority effect” on the behavior of Brazilian participants awarding compensation to a victim of police violence. Study 1 varied the skin color (Black vs....