Contempt Speech and Hate Speech: Characteristics, Determinants and Consequences

Monika Obrębska

Abstract


Hate speech is defined as verbal abuse against minority groups. Its emotional basis is contempt which activates anger and revulsion. Therefore, it seems to be justified to speak of “contempt speech and hate speech” as a spreading social phenomenon, in effect resulting in a generalised deterioration in attitudes toward minorities. Exposure to hate speech also leads to the phenomenon of desensitisation: the more frequent contact with hate speech in the environment is, the more accustomed to it people become, ceasing to perceive hate speech as a serious social problem. It plays an enormous role in the current social life. It is a tool used in political strife and public debate, excluding dialogue and consensus. All these reasons justify a necessity to academically address the issues of speech of contempt and speech of hate. The aim of this article is to attempt to understand and integrate motivational, cognitive and social determinants of speech of hate referring to classic social psychology studies on prejudices and stereotypes, show its psychosocial consequences and distinguish characteristic features which enable precise qualifying of a given message as this category of lingusitic usus.

 


Keywords


hate speech; minority groups; social prejudices; desensitisation

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17951/j.2020.33.3.9-20
Date of publication: 2020-10-31 02:03:44
Date of submission: 2020-04-20 11:44:41


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