Leaders’ Animosity and Leaders’ Enviousness: An Analysis on Factor Associated with the Growing Tense Ethnic Relations in Sabah, Malaysia

Abstract

Animosity and enviousness are two different psychosocial variables which connotes one state of mind towards others. Despite the difference, at its core, both variables plays crucial role in the emergence of tense ethnic relations in a society characterised by ethnic diversity. This paper analyses the local peoples’ perceptions about the role played by both variables in the growing uneasy ethnic relations in Sabah, Malaysia by focusing on the question of whether it is the leaders’ animosity or leaders’ enviousness that plays significant role in this context. The information was gathered through mixed-method design, particularly through the use of self-administered questionnaires and interviews with the key informants. While information gathered through self-administered survey questionnaire were analysed using SPSS 20, information gathered through interview with the key informants were not been analysed using any analytical technique rather used to support the findings generated through self-administered survey questionnaire. Based on the analysis, it appeared that both leaders’ animosity and leaders’ enviousness were perceived by the respondents as to have played significant role in the growing of ethnic tense relations in Sabah. Nevertheless, of the two factors it is the leaders’ animosity that most significantly impacted the phenomenon of growing ethnic tension in Sabah. The findings thus suggests that in order to prevent the existing ethnic relations from becoming more tenuous necessary efforts to reduce animosity and enviousness among the leaders must be implemented with the concentration on leaders animosity influence reduction.