Abstract
The paper describes the concept of Stereotype Content Model and its application in defining the fundamental dimensions of social perception, warmth and competence, across cultures. Based on the discussions and analysis, the warmth and competence play critical roles in generating particular emotions among individuals such as admiration and envy. The study predicted intergroup behaviours and stereotypes by comparing the warmth and competence between Spanish people and UK people. Using Chi-Square analysis, the results revealed that warmth and competence judgments follow a pattern of emotional and behavioral reactions and ambivalent prejudices. From the analysis, it was noted that Spanish people have higher levels of warmth with fewer competence, while UK people have higher competence but low warmth.

Introduction
In modern life, various factors such as immigration, globalization and multiculturalism have contributed to the changing perceptions and personal experiences. Continuously, human strive to make sense of life and theory that explains different social groups. For a long time, theories and social models have been developed to help explain the relationship between individuals and social groups. The project focuses on social psychology that concerns with the study of stereotyping and prejudice that usually affects social coexistence between and across cultures. Using the theory of Stereotype Content Model, it evaluates the ambivalent nature of the majority of societal stereotypes that encompasses different beliefs towards cultural social groups. In this project, the dimensions of SCM help in illustrating how societal stereotypes between nations relate to their social structure.
Research Question
i. How are the stereotypical dimensions of warmth and competence reflected in the perception of different nationalities as Spanish people versus UK people?
Hypothesis
H1: People from Spain will receive more descriptions for warmth and fewer descriptions for competence compared to people from the UK
Literature Review
Stereotype Content Model
Humans are considered to be complicated stimuli owing to their sense of intent and autonomy which distinguish them from other objects. In most cases, people have the undying desire to know other persons’ intentions towards them and their particular groups. Unlike objects, people have natural intention to predict what other people will do next. The intentions are often inferred from mutual relationships. Fiske (2012) observes that if a relationship is structured in a manner that enhances cooperation, characterized by shared goals and common values, then the people are classified as warm and trustworthy. Otherwise, people would be considered cold and untrustworthy and even dangerous. According to Sevillano and Fiske (2019), just like intentions of people are essential to assess a person’s friendliness, the ability to act on the perceived intention is equally important. People with high competence to act on the intention are of greater interest than those that are not. In this case, competence is inferred from a person’s social status measured by job prestige and economic success. The demographic indicators play a significant role in predicting a person train inferences, namely competence and capability to act on the perceived intentions.
Social psychologist Susan Fiske and her colleagues explained this natural reaction of people towards strangers in their stereotype content model (SCM). First proposed in 2002, the SCM postulates that all group stereotypes and interpersonal impressions form along two main dimensions, namely warm and competence (Fiske, 2018). The model is founded on the assumption that people are often predisposed to evaluate two dimensions of other people’s intention. First, they assess their intent to either help or harm them (warmth dimension) and second their capacity to act on the perceived intention (competence dimension) (Fiske, 2012). According to the model, the social groups who pose competition for the available resources such as fresh well water with the in-group are considered as hostile and unfriendly. They are classified as belonging to the low ends of the warmth spectrum. However, social groups or persons who have demonstrated high social status either educationally or economically, are said to be competent and classified on the high end of the competence spectrum. Thus, people who manifest no threats are predicted to warmth evaluation whereas those with salient symbols manifest high competence.
The perception that people develop towards other redefines the traditional prejudice that people have towards other people. According to Stanciu et al., (2017), empirical evidence suggests that the original conceptualization of prejudice which was characterized by uniform antipathy or the feeling of contempt directed towards outgroup has taken a different approach. This modern form of prejudice is clearly defined by the stereotype content model (SCM) as postulated by Susan Fiske and her colleagues. For the founders of the model, stereotype content is an outcome of certain shared public views of the target group that are characterized by a sense of ambivalence. Sevillano and Fiske (2019) observe that the model maintains that positive and negative beliefs that people have towards outsiders often co-exist and contributes towards redefining the stereotype content. The positive belief system can always be used to mask certain negative beliefs about a specific group of people on a different dimension and even legitimizes its status quo. Thus, the stereotype content responds to the existing principles that are shaped by social pressures. The resulting content of cultural stereotypes is captured in two dimensions that Fiske and colleagues called warmth and competence. The authors observe that these dimensions define how people interact with other groups of persons, either as friends or foes which predict whether they are warm or cold. They also help predict whether these people are competent enough to carry out the perceived intentions or not.

Methods
The researcher conducted a comprehensive literature search from reputable online sources. The study primarily used secondary data that was obtained from secondary sources that were critically evaluated to establish their validity in providing viable information regarding the purpose of the study. On the search strategy, various databases and reputable websites were adopted to collect information related to the study objective. The search terms that were adopted in Google search engine included “warmth,” “competence,” “United Kingdom” and “Spain.” Data was also collected from forums and comments on social media if they were relevant to the attributes that described warmth or competent or both. Websites that did not contain information relating to the dimensions of the Stereotype Content Model and its attributes were omitted and those that did not accurately describe the warmth and competence of the UK and Spanish people. A total of six websites were consulted for the study was those found in the public domain.
Before data collection, the researcher sought ethical approval from the Social Psychological module team to ensure that the process complied by the required standards of accessing public information. Information obtained from these sites were recorded and coded on the coding schedule. The coded data were entered into SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) for analysis. The data were analyzed using the Chi-square test of independence to determine the association that existed between the categorical variables (Mayring, 2014). The categorical variables were the social groups which included UK people and Spanish people while the other variable was the stereotype dimension that included warmth and competence. Content analysis was used to analyze and discuss the findings of the study to provide a deeper illustration of the results based on the underlying objectives being investigated.
Results
Table 1: Crosstabulation
Stereotype dimension / theme * Social Group Crosstabulation
Count
Social Group Total
Spain UK
Stereotype dimension / theme warmth 29 20 49
Competence 11 30 41
Total 40 50 90

Table 2: Symmetric Direction Measures
Symmetric Measures
Value Approx. Sig.
Nominal by Nominal Phi .324 .002
Cramer’s V .324 .002
N of Valid Cases 90

Table 3: Chi-Square Tests
Chi-Square Tests
Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-sided) Exact Sig.
(2-sided) Exact Sig. (1-sided)
Pearson Chi-Square 9.464a 1 .002
Continuity Correctionb 8.199 1 .004
Likelihood Ratio 9.700 1 .002
Fisher’s Exact Test .003 .002
Linear-by-Linear Association 9.359 1 .002
N of Valid Cases 90
a. 0 cells (0.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 18.22.
b. Computed only for a 2×2 table

The Chi-Square test was based on the following hypotheses;
H0: “Social group is not associated with Stereotype dimension”
H1: “Social group is associated with Stereotype dimension”
Based on our results above from the analysis, it is noted that the P-value is less than the chosen level of significance of α = 0.05, hence, we reject the null hypothesis that states that social group is not associated with stereotype dimension. Following the findings, it can thus be concluded that there is a statistically significant association between the social group and stereotype dimension. The results of the analysis can be stated as; there was a significant association between a social group and stereotype dimension (Χ2 (1) =9.464, p = 0.002; p < 0.05). The association between the variables is fairly moderate based on the symmetric measures, indicating that Spanish people are more described by warmth while the UK individuals are highly described by their competence. The findings of this study, therefore, support the research hypothesis that stated that the people from Spain will receive more descriptions for warmth and fewer descriptions for competence compared to people from the UK.
Discussion
The concept of prejudice has been affecting various population and social group for a long time and it is fueled by two fundamental dimensions that usually define modern societies. The dimensions are warmth and competence and as noted by Fiske (2012 in the Stereotype Content Model (SCM), these dimensions play a vital role in defining societal prejudices against social groups and populations. The four categories of SCM provoke various feelings of admiration, contempt, envy and pity; which are emotions that often result in the discrimination of particular social groups of people. The same stereotype applies in the manner in which the classifications of warmth and competence contribute to how different nationalities are perceived by others. For instance, a particular social group or nationality can be viewed as warm, yet highly incompetent while on the other hand, a social group can be friendly and more willing to provide help to others (Kervyn et al., 2015). The present study focused on investigating how stereotypical dimensions of warmth and competence reflect the perception of different nationalities between the Spanish and UK people. It can be argued that the results of this study correspond to the concept of ambient stereotypes that entails a positive evaluation of one dimension and a negative evaluation of the other dimension.
In other words, the results show that the Spanish people are considered to be warm but less competent as compared to the UK people are viewed to be highly competent but less warm. The findings are thus supported by Fiske (2018) in her Warmth × Competence space map that illustrates how different ethnic groups based on their social context, national history and immigration circumstances defines their perceptions by other nationalities. In Fiske’s map, the Rich, Professional, Technical Experts, Asians, Jews, British and Germans are generally perceived as competent but less warm, evoking emotions of envy and jealousy among individuals towards them (Fiske, 2018). Moreover, groups stereotyped as cold but competent further elicit ambivalent emotion where people often admire them but also at the same time resent them due to their untrustworthiness and unfriendliness. These findings have been supported in other correlational studies and cross-cultural comparisons (Cuddy et al., 2007).
The judgments that people have on warmth and competence also contribute to both active and passive behaviours. Studies record that perceived warmth indicates active behaviours hence warm social groups often elicit active facilitation such as offering help. Since the Spanish people in the present study are noted to have more warmth than competence, the social group is considered to have active behaviours illustrated by their willingness to offer help and they are friendlier. On the other hand, competence dimension predicts passive behaviours and the competent social groups usually elicit passive facilitation that is characterized by convenient cooperation or obligatory association (Cuddy et al., 2009). The study described the UK people as having higher competence, illustrating passive facilitation in which associations if usually of convenience to achieve the intended objective. This social group has higher ability and intelligence, but low levels of societal ethics that instils a sense of sincerity and trustworthiness. Following from the basis of appraisal theories, mapping the behaviour from intergroup affected by stereotypes predicts that individual emotions are usually the proximal cause of various forms of social behaviours to either be warm or competent (Fiske, 2018). Such findings reflect analysis of emotional prejudices and cognitive stereotypes as the primary predictors of social discrimination since intergroup behaviours are linked from warmth and competence judgments to behaviours. The findings of this study corresponded to the study by Cuddy et al. (2008) on Cross-cultural SCM that noted that EU countries like Spain, Italy and Portugal have a low competent and high warmth (LC-HW) cluster while comprised Germany and the United Kingdom fell in the HHC-LLW cluster indicating the highest competence and lowest warmth. The findings, therefore, reveal that comparing warmth and competence within social groups supports the view that the two nations portrayed ambivalent stereotypes where they are viewed as either warm and incompetent or competent and cold.
Result Limitations
The study primarily dependent on secondary data obtained from online databases and websites. These data are often subject to biases since they are based on the perceptions of the authors. The accuracy of the findings is therefore limited to the extent of the information provided on the websites and may not be actual representation of the UK and Spanish people.

References
Cuddy, A. J., Fiske, S. T., & Glick, P. (2007). The BIAS map: behaviors from intergroup affect and stereotypes. Journal of personality and social psychology, 92(4), 631.
Cuddy, A. J., Fiske, S. T., & Glick, P. (2008). Warmth and competence as universal dimensions of social perception: The stereotype content model and the BIAS map. Advances in experimental social psychology, 40, 61-149.
Cuddy, A. J., Fiske, S. T., Kwan, V. S., Glick, P., Demoulin, S., Leyens, J. P., … & Htun, T. T. (2009). Stereotype content model across cultures: Towards universal similarities and some differences. British Journal of Social Psychology, 48(1), 1-33.
Fiske, S. T. (2012). Warmth and competence: Stereotype content issues for clinicians and researchers. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie Canadienne, 53(1), 14.
Fiske, S. T. (2018). Stereotype content: Warmth and competence endure. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 27(2), 67-73.
Kervyn, N., Fiske, S., & Yzerbyt, V. (2015). Forecasting the primary dimension of social perception. Social Psychology, 46 (1), 36-45.
Mayring, P. (2014). Qualitative content analysis: theoretical foundation, basic procedures and software solution. Klagenfurt. https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-395173
Sevillano, V., & Fiske, S. T. (2019). Stereotypes, emotions, and behaviors associated with animals: A causal test of the Stereotype Content Model and BIAS Map. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 22(6), 879-900.
Stanciu, A., Cohrs, J. C., Hanke, K., & Gavreliuc, A. (2017). Within-culture variation in the content of stereotypes: application and development of the stereotype content model in an Eastern European culture. The Journal of Social Psychology, 157(5), 611-628.
Appendices
Completed Coding Schedule
Phrase Nr. Social group
1= Spain
2 = UK Stereotype dimension / theme
1 = warmth
2 = competence
1 2 1
2 1 1
3 2 2
4 2 2
5 1 1
6 1 2
7 1 2
8 1 1
9 1 1
10 1 1
11 1 1
12 2 1
13 2 1
14 2 2
15 2 2
16 2 2
17 1 1
18 1 1
19 2 1
20 2 1
21 1 1
22 1 2
23 1 1
24 2 2
25 2 1
26 1 1
27 1 1
28 1 1
29 1 2
30 2 2
31 2 2
32 2 2
33 2 2
34 1 1
35 1 2
36 1 2
37 1 2
38 1 1
39 1 1
40 1 1
41 2 1
42 2 1
43 2 2
44 2 1
45 2 1
46 2 1
47 2 2
48 1 1
49 1 1
50 1 1
51 1 1
52 2 2
53 1 2
54 2 2
55 2 2
56 2 2
57 2 2
58 2 2
59 2 2
60 2 2
61 2 1
62 2 1
63 2 1
64 1 1
65 1 2
66 1 1
67 1 1
68 1 1
69 1 1
70 1 1
71 2 1
72 2 1
73 2 1
74 2 1
75 2 1
76 2 1
77 2 2
78 2 2
79 2 2
80 2 2
81 2 2
82 2 2
83 2 2
84 2 2
85 1 1
86 1 1
87 2 2
88 1 2
89 1 2
90 2 2

The Analysed Data
1. Website 1
2. https://www.theolivepress.es/spain-news/2016/04/04/spanish-stereotypes-of-the-british-and-british-stereotypes-of-the-spanish/
3. Everything in Spain is done shoddily, proclaims an elderly British expat whilst sipping
4. his café con leche. They never finish a job.
5. The Spanish perceives the English as hardworkers, powered almost entirely by tea,
6. whilst the British complain audibly about the flawed Spanish education system.
7. As an Englishman myself politeness offered an infuriating barrier to
8. honesty when I asked Spaniards what the British stereotype is. However, I have
9. managed to gleam a few snippets.
10. Brits are usually madly dashing between meetings and activities. Time is of essence.
11. On the other hand, Spanish mantra appears to be “tenemos tiempo” (we have time).
12. The British have some unpleasant comments about Spanish culture, some say they are
13. lazy. Brits may well always e in a rush, but at least we get stuff done. The banks lazy
14. attitude cuts Spain’s productivity.
15. Spaniards of all ages, in the main, have a “romantic” conception of love. They see it as
16. an irresistible passion, which involves great intimacy and a strong physical attraction
17. Website 2
18. http://www.ediplomat.com/np/cultural_etiquette/ce_es.htm
19. Personal pride and individualism are highly valued, as are character and breeding.
20. Modesty is valued over assertiveness. Flaunting superiority, intelligence and ability is
21. not appreciated. People strive to project affluence and social position. Personal
22. appearance, image and human relationships are very important.
23. Spaniards’ lack of trust in institutions produces a constant atmosphere of crisis and
24. emergency.
25. Spaniards like making decisions on their own. Do not impose a decision in direct
26. language. It could be humiliating to your associates.
27. The organizational chart is social, not functional. The third or fourth level down may
28. be more powerful than those at the top.
29. Spaniards do not take punctuality for business meetings seriously, but expect that you
30. will be on time; call with an explanation if you are delayed.
31. Website 3
32. https://english.elpais.com/elpais/2019/02/05/inenglish/1549386703_651332.html
33. They are great hosts. I’ve always felt very welcome in Spain. At a party with Spaniards
34. where you hardly know a soul, it is easy to meet someone, exchange phone numbers
35. and decide to meet again for beers.
36. Spaniards are very informal, and I like that quite a lot. Another major difference I’ve
37. found between Spanish and British people is that the former speak very freely about
38. race.
39. In Spain, people don’t live just to work and make money. Ever since I moved to Spain
40. I’ve learned to value what’s really important: enjoying the company of family and
41. friends.
42. In Spain I’ve discovered very strong family ties. The concept of family is deeply rooted
43. here, and I find that great.
44. Spaniards make an effort to be happy. And that is very important. People always find
45. a way to be happy. The British, however, are always pissed off.
46. The Spanish are also afraid of change. “It is frustrating to see how long it takes the
47. Spanish to make a decision. They are really afraid of change.
48. Asked what makes Spaniards unique, “It is, without a doubt, the art of living. The
49. welcoming culture and people.
50. Website 4
51. https://english.elpais.com/elpais/2014/12/17/inenglish/1418816737_691083.html
52. Spaniards tend to be less productive and more stressed than their European
53. neighbors
54. Spaniards sleep fewer hours and work longer days than their European neighbors, but
55. are less productive.
56. Spain fails to attract overseas talent.
57. the professional and personal spheres are not separated in the workplace, which gives
58. rise to false loyalties and conflicts.
59. Bosses are mediocre, yet behave like gods, unable, or unwilling to explain Themselves
60. Website 5
61. https://english.elpais.com/elpais/2019/11/08/inenglish/1573204575_231066.html
62. Spain close to the bottom of the ladder compared to the rest of Europe when it comes
63. to English proficiency.
64. Socio-economic status influences language skills, and Spain is still a relatively poor
65. country in Europe.
66. The poor result is explained in part by the size of Spain, its relatively low GDP per
67. capita and the number of people who speak Spanish worldwide.
68. The United Kingdom and Ireland have worse foreign language skills than Spain.
69. Website 6
70. https://www.newcollegegroup.com/blog/what-are-british-people-really-like/
71. One of the most common stereotypes of British people is that they are unfriendly and
72. unwelcoming to foreigners.
73. Britain is a multicultural society and British people are welcoming of every culture and
74. creed.
75. The idea that British people are unfriendly comes from our reserved manner. Unlike
76. some European countries, it’s highly unlikely that you’ll find British people kissing and
77. hugging each other in public.
78. British people have also been known to enjoy ‘close to the knuckle’ humour that could
79. be interpreted as very offensive elsewhere in the world.
80. British people are taught the importance of saying please, thank you and sorry. As a
81. result, manners are extremely important to British people and failing to observe them
82. is seen as incredibly rude.
83. Website 7
84. https://businessculture.org/southern-europe/business-culture-in-spain/business-communication-in-spain/
85. Business Communication in Spain is usually formal, and one must adhere to strict rules
86. of protocol at all times.
87. Spaniards are very much concerned about how others perceive them and try to avoid
88. looking foolish, at all times.
89. Even during a first encounter, the Spanish tend to be extremely outgoing and very
90. friendly.
91. Spaniards can also be very proud and individualistic and, as a Mediterranean culture,
92. they use their extrovert nature to get to know others and learn about other cultures.
93. There is no emphasis on professional experience or business success in Spain, as in
94. other Western European countries.
95. It is essential to be patient, to listen and pay attention and certainly to display some
96. personal pride and honour among Spaniards, to prove yourself and gain the respect of
97. your associates.
98. You should avoid making disrespectful remarks about Spanish traditions or practices
99. and, under no circumstances.
100. Trust and personal relationships are the keys to the success of doing business in
101. Spain. Spanish people rarely conduct business with someone they feel that they
102. cannot trust or someone with whom they do not have any personal relationship.
103. Website 8
104. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CPAV0c8kgM
105. I just came back from vacations in Spain, and yes they seem to be rude and not
106. passion with people who don’t know how to speak Spanish.
107. Spanish are super rude not little rude. Came back from Benidorm Spain most rude
108. people on the planet I will never return.
109. I was walking to the beach a few minutes ago and a car of 25 year old Spanish men
110. pulled up. They started saying a bunch of stuff I didn’t understand and stopped their
111. car. It was pitch black and I was terrified. But Spain is a beautiful country and there
112. are many really lovely people.