Who Feels Hostile? National Identity and Attitudes Toward Japan in China

Hostility and exclusionary attitudes toward foreigners and immigrants have emerged as a global phenomenon. Amid enduring historical grievances and strategic rivalry, tentative signs of improvement in China–Japan bilateral relations have been observed since 2024. Based on social identity theory, this study investigates how five types of national ingroup positivity, namely, national ingroup identification, blind and constructive patriotism, nationalism, and collective narcissism, are related to hostile attitudes toward Japanese citizens among Chinese individuals. The results show that blind patriotism and nationalism are positively associated with hostility, whereas collective narcissism is negatively associated with hostility. In addition, constructive patriotism and national ingroup identification do not show a significant relationship with hostility. This study further examines the moderating effects of the psychological constructs of national ingroup positivity and perceived threat on hostility. Based on these findings, the research underscores the importance of promoting healthy forms of national ingroup positivity to mitigate intergroup hostility.