From indifference to advocacy: Investigating the effects of interconnectedness and critical reflection on promoting collective action intention within LGBT+ and heterosexual cisgender individuals

Abstract

Two studies investigated the roles of interconnectedness and critical reflection in reducing indifference and mobilizing collective action intentions for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT+) and other social minoritized groups. Study 1 used a cross-sectional design with 378 heterosexual cisgender participants recruited from Hong Kong. Findings indicated that critical reflection accounted for significant variance in indifference toward LGBT+ and minoritized groups (ΔR² = .07-.18, p < .001) and collective action intentions (ΔR² = .04-.20, p < .001). Interconnectedness also contributed to variance in these outcomes, but to a lesser extent (ΔR² = .02-.05, p < .01). Study 2 employed a 3 (interconnectedness, critical reflection, and control) by 2 (sample types: 111 heterosexual cisgender and 112 LGBT+) experimental design with participants recruited in Hong Kong. In other words, participants were randomly assigned to six experimental conditions to evaluate how different inductions worked on indifference and collective action intentions in sexual and gender diverse samples. Results showed that, among heterosexual cisgender participants, both inductions effectively lowered indifference toward LGBT+ and minoritized groups (p < .001) and enhanced LGBT+ collective action intentions (p = .001-.01). Among LGBT+ participants, while interconnectedness decreased indifferences, it did not significantly increase collective action intentions, suggesting different mechanisms of attitude change and behavioral intention across social groups. These findings highlight the potential of interconnectedness and critical reflection as strategies to mobilize heterosexual cisgender individuals and the LGBT+ community in addressing social injustices. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).