Abstract

The present work aims to investigate the stereotype that the dominant elite of the Fascist regime proposed to the Italians. Study's goals are: a) enlightening the construction and reinforcing processes of the Italian social identity; b) describing the ingroup and the more salient outgroup stereotype contents using the Glick and Fiske prejudice taxonomy (2001); c) investigating ingroup "iper-legitimization" strategies reversing the Bar-Tal's delegitimization model (1989). Content analysis of articles published in the journal "La Difesa della Razza", and following correspondence factor analysis have shed light on the construction process of the ingroup social identity, which can be interpreted as an admiration prejudice. Iper-legitimization modalities concerning the Italian national group are also traced in the material examined.