Estimating group size: effects of category membership, differential construal and selective exposure

Examined the role of category membership, differential construal, and selective exposure in consensus estimation concerning the social categorization of religion. 54 involved and less involved Christians and 40 non-believers were asked to estimate the percentage of Christians in the Netherlands general population. Results show a negative relationship between religious involvement and estimated percentage of Christians in the Netherlands, thus indicating a false uniqueness effect. Ss' estimates were mediated by their construal of the general category, and involved Christians construed this category in more narrow terms than did the other groups. Also, construal was related to lower consensus estimates. Selective exposure (i.e., to religious behaviors of friends and relatives) was positively related to consensus estimates. Thus, construal processes and selective exposure had opposing effects on Ss' consensus estimates."