Social Identity Processes Research Articles

Social identity modifies face perception: an ERP study of social categorization.

Two studies examined whether social identity processes, i.e. group identification and social identity threat, amplify the degree to which people attend to social category information in early perception [assessed with event-related brain potentials (ERPs)]. Participants were presented with faces of Muslims and non-Muslims in an evaluative priming task while ERPs were measured and implicit evaluative bias was assessed. Study 1 revealed that non-Muslims showed stronger differentiation between ingroup and outgroup faces in both early (N200) and later processing stages (implicit evaluations) when they identified more strongly with their ethnic group. Moreover, identification effects on implicit bias were mediated by intergroup differentiation in the N200. In Study 2, social identity threat (vs control) was manipulated among Muslims. Results revealed that high social identity threat resulted in stronger differentiation of Muslims from non-Muslims in early (N200) and late (implicit evaluations) processing stages, with N200 effects again predicting implicit bias. Combined, these studies reveal how seemingly bottom-up early social categorization processes are affected by individual and contextual variables that affect the meaning of social identity. Implications of these results for the social identity perspective as well as social cognitive theories of person perception are discussed.

Mortality salience, self‐esteem, and defense of the group: mediating role of in‐group identification

AbstractNumerous studies have shown that mortality salience strengthens defense of cultural institutions and that this effect is buffered by self‐esteem. The present study examines a novel prediction, based on social identity processes, that group identification mediates the impact of the interaction of mortality salience and self‐esteem on worldview defense. Self‐esteem and mortality salience were manipulated using Greenberg and colleagues' standard methods, the dependent measure was defense of America, and the mediating variable was identification with America. As predicted, mortality salience only increased identification with America and defense of America when self‐esteem was not enhanced, enhancing self‐esteem attenuated the effects of mortality salience. Also following predictions, the interactive effect of mortality salience and self‐esteem on defense of America was mediated by identification with America.

Social Identity Processes in the Development of Maximally Counterintuitive Theological Concepts: Consubstantiality and No-Self

Social Identity Processes in the Development of Maximally Counterintuitive Theological Concepts: Consubstantiality and No-Self

Sense of Place and Place Identity

The paper describes the relationship between identity and the physical environment: social identity theory, place- identity theory and identity process theory. The place identity is focused on the relationship between people and the environmental psychology. Then, the paper tends to explain that social identity theory and identity process theory can also be used explaining the relationship between place and identity. Questions to visualize about: How well do identity process theory and social identity theory describe the influences place has on identity? What is the meaning of place in environmental psychology? Does it have any effect on identity and politics of identity? It also argues that place is not a category of identity. Places have symbols of many different social categories and concepts, places speak and preserve identity on various dimensions and levels.

Bullying and Belonging: Teachers’ Reports of School Aggression

Research on bullying has confirmed that social identity processes and group-based emotions are pertinent to children’s responses to bullying. However, such research has been done largely with child participants, has been quantitative in nature, and has often relied on scenarios to portray bullying. The present paper departs from this methodology by examining group processes in qualitative reports of bullying provided by teachers. Fifty-one teachers completed an internet-based survey about a bullying incident at a school where they worked. Thematic analysis of survey responses concerned two core themes in the reports: (a) children ganging up on another child and (b) children sticking together to protect each other. There was evidence that children act in specific ways, in line with social identity processes, in order to support or resist bullying. There was also evidence that teachers understand bullying to be a group phenomenon. The implications of these findings for anti-bullying interventions are discussed.

How normative and social identification processes predict self‐determination to engage in derogatory behaviours against outgroup hockey fans

AbstractBringing together self‐determination theory, intergroup theories based on the social identity approach, and normative approaches, three studies conducted among hockey fans tested if social norms and social identity predict greater self‐determined motivation to engage in derogatory behaviours against an outgroup team and higher frequency of these behaviours. Higher self‐determination was conceptualised as an indicator of internalisation. In Study 1, hockey fans who identified more strongly as fans of the Montreal Canadiens (N = 181) displayed a stronger positive association between the perceived norm in favour of outgroup derogation and self‐determined motivation to engage in derogatory behaviours against fans of an outgroup team. This interaction also emerged on the frequency with which the derogatory behaviours were enacted. In Studies 2 and 3 (Ns = 105 and 116), this norm by social identity interaction was replicated on both the self‐determination and the frequency outcomes for fans of a diversity of teams in the National Hockey League. In Study 3, these findings were observed over and above a manipulation that framed derogatory behaviours as being either harmful or beneficial. Results are discussed in light of motivational theories, normative approaches, and intergroup theories based on the social identity approach. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Going to extremes: Social identity and communication processes associated with gang membership

Gang violence, endemic to many communities in the United States and around the world is a very significant social problem. Given that the messages conveyed by, and the rivalries associated with, gang identities readily invoke constructs and processes familiar to the social psychological study of social identity, intergroup relations, and communication (Lauger, 2012), it is surprising that social psychologists have not advanced such an analysis of gangs. In attempt to fill this void and set a research agenda, this theoretical article examines the role social identity and identity-related communication play in promoting affiliation with gangs, particularly among youth who confront uncertainties and strive for family-like protection. The article discusses messaging communicated by gang members and reasons why youth adopt antisocial (e.g., violent) rather than prosocial behaviors. It also explores ways to diminish the allure of gang membership and raises questions for future research.

Effective Responder Communication Improves Efficiency and Psychological Outcomes in a Mass Decontamination Field Experiment: Implications for Public Behaviour in the Event of a Chemical Incident

The risk of incidents involving mass decontamination in response to a chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear release has increased in recent years, due to technological advances, and the willingness of terrorists to use unconventional weapons. Planning for such incidents has focused on the technical issues involved, rather than on psychosocial concerns. This paper presents a novel experimental study, examining the effect of three different responder communication strategies on public experiences and behaviour during a mass decontamination field experiment. Specifically, the research examined the impact of social identity processes on the relationship between effective responder communication, and relevant outcome variables (e.g. public compliance, public anxiety, and co-operative public behaviour). All participants (n = 111) were asked to visualise that they had been involved in an incident involving mass decontamination, before undergoing the decontamination process, and receiving one of three different communication strategies: 1) ‘Theory-based communication’: Health-focused explanations about decontamination, and sufficient practical information; 2) ‘Standard practice communication’: No health-focused explanations about decontamination, sufficient practical information; 3) ‘Brief communication’: No health-focused explanations about decontamination, insufficient practical information. Four types of data were collected: timings of the decontamination process; observational data; and quantitative and qualitative self-report data. The communication strategy which resulted in the most efficient progression of participants through the decontamination process, as well as the fewest observations of non-compliance and confusion, was that which included both health-focused explanations about decontamination and sufficient practical information. Further, this strategy resulted in increased perceptions of responder legitimacy and increased identification with responders, which in turn resulted in higher levels of expected compliance during a real incident, and increased willingness to help other members of the public. This study shows that an understanding of the social identity approach facilitates the development of effective responder communication strategies for incidents involving mass decontamination.

Titles Matter: Addressing the Normalization of Othering

Academy of Management ReviewVol. 39, No. 3 DialogueTitles Matter: Addressing the Normalization of OtheringClaartje J. VinkenburgClaartje J. VinkenburgVU University AmsterdamPublished Online:6 Sep 2014https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2013.0527AboutSectionsView articleView Full TextPDF/EPUB ToolsDownload CitationsAdd to favoritesTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail View articleREFERENCESAmoroso L. M., Loyd D. L., Hoobler J. M. 2010. The diversity education dilemma: Exposing status hierarchies without reinforcing them. Journal of Management Education, 34: 795–822. Google ScholarAshforth B. E., Mael F. 1989. Social identity theory and the organization. Academy of Management Review, 14: 20–39.Link , Google ScholarBerger J., Cohen B. P., Zelditch M. 1972. Status characteristics and social interaction. American Sociological Review, 37: 241–255. Google ScholarDevine P. G., Plant E. A., Harrison K. 1999. The problem of “us” versus “them” and AIDS stigma. American Behavioral Scientist, 42: 1212–1228. Google ScholarDovidio J. F., Gaertner S. L., Saguy T. 2009. Commonality and the complexity of “we”: Social attitudes and social change. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 13: 3–20. Google ScholarFitzsimmons S. R. 2013. Multicultural employees: A framework for understanding how they contribute to organizations. Academy of Management Review, 38: 525–549.Link , Google ScholarGunew S. 1997. Postcolonialism and multiculturalism: Between race and ethnicity. Yearbook of English Edition Studies, 27: 22–39. Google ScholarHaggan M. 2004. Research paper titles in literature, linguistics and science: Dimensions of attraction. Journal of Pragmatics, 36: 293–317. Google ScholarHays J. C. 2010. Eight recommendations for writing titles of scientific manuscripts. Public Health Nursing, 27: 101–103. Google ScholarHogg M. A., Terry D. J. 2000. Social identity and self-categorization processes in organizational contexts. Academy of Management Review, 25: 121–140.Link , Google ScholarJensen S. Q. 2011. Othering, identity formation and agency. Qualitative Studies, 2: 63–78. Google ScholarKiesling S. 2006. Identity in sociocultural anthropology and language. In Brown K. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of language and linguistics (2nd ed.): 495–502. Oxford: Elsevier. Google ScholarLink B. G., Phelan J. C. 2001. Conceptualizing stigma. Annual Review of Sociology, 27: 363–385. Google ScholarPlaut V. C. 2010. Diversity science: Why and how difference makes a difference. Psychological Inquiry, 21: 77–99. Google ScholarRobles J. S. 2013. Culture in conversation. In Kurylo A. (Ed.), Inter/cultural communication: Representation and construction of culture: 89–114. London: Sage. Google ScholarStrawson P. F. 1964. Identifying reference and truth-values. Theoria, 30: 96–118. Google ScholarTraustadóttir R. 2001. Research with others: Reflections on representation, difference and othering. Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research, 3(2): 9–28. Google Scholarvan Oudenhoven J. P., Ward C. 2013. Fading majority cultures: The implications of transnationalism and demographic changes for immigrant acculturation. Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, 23: 81–97. Google ScholarVerkuyten M., Thijs J. 2010. Ethnic minority labeling, multiculturalism, and the attitude of majority group members. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 29: 467–477. Google ScholarVertovec S. 2007. Super-diversity and its implications. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 30: 1024–1054. Google ScholarWeston K. 1997. The virtual anthropologist. In Gupta A.Ferguson J. (Eds.), Anthropological locations: Boundaries and grounds of a field science: 163–184. Los Angeles: University of California Press. Google ScholarFiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsCited ByUs, Them, and Others in Management ResearchStacey R. Fitzsimmons6 September 2014 | Academy of Management Review, Vol. 39, No. 3 Vol. 39, No. 3 Permissions Metrics in the past 12 months History Published online 6 September 2014 Published in print 1 July 2014 Information© Academy of Management ReviewI thank Brian Doornenbal, Channah Herschberg, Carolin Ossenkop, and Caroline Straub (2013 Paper Development Circle) for their feedback and help in structuring and clarifying my line of argumentation.PDF download

Supplemental Material for Well-Being, School Climate, and the Social Identity Process: A Latent Growth Model Study of Bullying Perpetration and Peer Victimization

Supplemental Material for Well-Being, School Climate, and the Social Identity Process: A Latent Growth Model Study of Bullying Perpetration and Peer Victimization

Identification Processes in Online Groups

Online video games are a popular leisure activity around the world; such virtual environments enable new ways for social identity to develop. This study investigated the motives affecting social identification processes in the massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) World of Warcraft (WoW). In this video game, players interact with other players in a tridimensional virtual world through their avatar. A sample of 92 WoW players took part in a data collection Web survey. Building on the theory of social identity, we tested the predictive power of three identification motives: self-esteem enhancement, optimal distinctiveness, and uncertainty reduction. Additionally, considering previous research on MMORPGs, we added identification with the game character and membership duration as further predictors of virtual group identification. The construct of virtual group identification was analyzed at two levels: identification with the faction and guild of the character. Furthermore, the current study was a first attempt to understand whether online identification may lead to group behavior such as evaluative ingroup bias. Our results indicated that traditional motivational theories of social identity were mostly confirmed. Moreover, identification with the avatar emerged as a strong predictor of group identity. Additionally, at both levels of analysis, group attachment led to an evaluative differentiation between the ingroup and outgroup. The findings are discussed in light of modern theories of social identity and media research.

Gamers against science: The case of the violent video games debate

AbstractThis article explores the notion that scientific research programs and empirical findings are fundamentally devalued when they threaten a perceiver's social identity. Findings from three studies show the following: (1) identification with the group of “gamers” (i.e., people who play video games on a regular basis) influences the extent to which perceivers devalue research suggesting that playing violent video games has negative consequences; (2) this effect is mediated by the feeling that the group of gamers is being stigmatized by such research (Studies 1 and 2) as well as by anger about this research (Study 2); (3) the effect of in‐group identification on negative research evaluations cannot be explained by attitude or behavioral preference inconsistency (Studies 1 and 3); and (4) strongly identified gamers not only devalue a specific scientific study but also generalize their negative evaluations to the entire field of violent video games research (Study 3). The findings suggest that the influence of social identity processes on the evaluation of research is larger than it has previously been recognized. Implications of these findings for science communication are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Druze linguistic landscape in Israel: indexicality of new ethnolinguistic identity boundaries

The Druze community in Israel is a distinct religious community currently undergoing important ethnolinguistic shifts. The government's implementation of an official policy has led to the deconstruction and reshaping of the Druze political and national identity to one that differs substantially from that of the Palestinian minority in Israel. In this study, I argue that the visibility, vitality and appreciation of Hebrew in the Druze linguistic landscape are indicative of new ethnolinguistic boundaries of the Druze identity in Israel. The fact that the Druze in Israel are dispersed throughout the Galilee and Mount Carmel area and experience varying levels of language contact as well as divergent economic relations with their Palestinian–Israeli and Jewish–Israeli neighbours, suggests that one cannot expect uniformity in the Druze linguistic markets or the processes of social, cultural and linguistic identification. This study will show that Hebrew has become a dominant component of the linguistic repertoire and social identity of the Druze in the Mount Carmel area since it has become the first choice of communication as the linguistic landscape indicates.

Towards a 'Science of Movement': Identity, Authority and Influence in the Production of Social Stability and Social Change

In this paper, we argue for social psychology as 'a science of movement'. We argue that such a science must problematise the status quo and focus on the way in which social stability as well as social change is actively produced. Key to this project is a recognition that human action arises in a context where multiple voices seek to mobilise people in different directions. The question of which voice prevails depends upon processes of social identification that provide a basis for authority and influence. We illustrate this approach, first, by examining the dynamics of crowd behaviour. We use the Elaborated Social Identity Model (ESIM) to examine when people pay heed to those who advocate a challenge to authority and when, by contrast, participation increases their acceptance of existing authority. We then go on examine Milgram's famous 'obedience' studies, looking again at when participants shun the voice of authority and when they heed it. In contrast to conventional explanations which take conformity to authority as a given, we propose an 'engaged follower' perspective in which conformity depends upon identification with the cause which authority represents. We finish by showing how Milgram actively managed participants' identification in order to mobilise their compliance.

Morality and behavioural regulation in groups: A social identity approach

In recent years social psychologists have displayed a growing interest in examining morality—what people consider right and wrong. The majority of work in this area has addressed this either in terms of individual-level processes (relating to moral decision making or interpersonal impression formation) or as a way to explain intergroup relations (perceived fairness of status differences, responses to group-level moral transgressions). We complement this work by examining how moral standards and moral judgements play a role in the regulation of individual behaviour within groups and social systems. In doing this we take into account processes of social identification and self-categorisation, as these help us to understand how adherence to moral standards may be functional as a way to improve group-level conceptions of self. We review a recent research programme in which we have investigated the importance of morality for group-based identities and intra-group behavioural regulation. This reveals convergent evidence of the centrality of moral judgements for people’s conceptions of the groups they belong to, and demonstrates the importance of group-specific moral norms in identifying behaviours that contribute to their identity as group members.

Social identity, group processes, and helping in emergencies

Using insights from a review of recent research on social identity approaches to helping, the Chapter sets out four key elements of a social identity approach to helping in emergencies: the salience of social identity, the boundaries of social identity, the contents of social identity, and the strategic interests of social identity. Evidence that illustrates the impact of social identity processes on group size and helping, which has traditionally focused on the inhibition of helping in the presence of others, is then reviewed. Finally, recent developments in the literature on intergroup emotions are considered, and their impact on a social identity approach to helping in emergencies is explored, highlighting the relatively neglected social identity relationship between bystanders and perpetrators. The review concludes by considering the current state of knowledge of a social identity approach to helping in emergencies, and identifies important questions that remain to be addressed.

Group membership and social identity in addiction recovery.

Despite a growing interest in how group membership can positively impact health, little research has addressed directly the role social identity processes can have on recovery from addiction. Drawing on social identity theory and self-categorization theory, the present study investigated how recovery group membership can introduce a new social identity associated with recovery, compared to the social identity associated with addiction. We hypothesized that two processes--evaluative differentiation and identity preference--would be linked with higher self-efficacy and positive health outcomes (i.e., reduced relapse, lower levels of appetitive behavior, and elevated feelings of social connectedness [Study 2]). Study 1 recruited members (N = 61) from United Kingdom based mutual aid groups of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous. Study 2 recruited ex-smokers (N = 81) from online sources. In Study 1, evaluative differentiation was significantly related to lowered relapse and reduced appetitive behavior. Identity preference was related to higher levels of self-efficacy, which was related to months drug-free and reduced levels of appetitive behaviors. In Study 2, evaluative differentiation was related to identity preference. Identity preference was also related to higher self-efficacy, which in turn was related to lower relapse. Although exploratory, these results suggest that developing a social identity as a "recovering addict" or an "ex-smoker" and subsequently highlighting the difference between such identities may be a useful strategy for reducing relapse among people with problems associated with addictive behaviors.

Cold comfort at the Magh Mela: Social identity processes and physical hardship

Humans inhabit environments that are both social and physical, and in this article we investigate if and how social identity processes shape the experience and negotiation of physically demanding environmental conditions. Specifically, we consider how severe cold can be interpreted and experienced in relation to group members' social identity. Our data comprise ethnographic observation and semi-structured interviews with pilgrims attending a month-long winter Hindu religious festival that is characterized by near-freezing conditions. The analysis explores (1) how pilgrims appraised the cold and how these appraisals were shaped by their identity as pilgrims; (2) how shared identity with other pilgrims led to forms of mutual support that made it easier to cope with the cold. Our findings therefore extend theorizing on social identity processes to highlight their relevance to physical as well as social conditions.

Model Comparison in Group Decision Making

In some studies based on social identity perspectives, identification with others and conformity to a majority opinion have been indisputable outcomes when individuals involved all look alike. In contrast, another group of studies suggests individuals in a visually deindividuated condition are reluctant to agree with a majority opinion. To investigate such inconsistency, we set up and tested a hypothesized model that compares two processes that provide competing predictions about the effect of uniform visual cue on conformity: the social identification process derived from the social identity model of deindividuation effects (SIDE) and the compensatory nonconformity process derived from optimal distinctiveness theory (ODT). We also investigate how changes in the visual cue conditions affect those two processes. Implications are discussed regarding the comparison of two models and the investigation of conditions under which either process is more or less operant during group interaction.

The Impact of Corporate Social Responsibility on Organizational Commitment: Exploring Multiple Mediation Mechanisms

Unlike previous studies that examine the direct effect of employees’ perceived corporate social responsibility (CSR) on affective organizational commitment (AOC), this article examines a mediated link through organizational trust and organizational identification. Social exchange and social identity theory provide the foundation for predictions that the primary outcomes of CSR initiatives are organizational trust and organizational identification, which in turn affect AOC. The test of the research model relies on data collected from 378 employees of local and multinational companies in South Asia, as well as structural equation modeling to test the postulated relationships. Both organizational trust and organizational identification fully mediate the CSR–AOC link. However, the identification mechanism is significantly stronger than the trust mechanism in terms of building AOC from CSR. Out of four CSR components, CSR toward employees is the strongest predictor of employees’ trust, identification, and AOC, followed by CSR toward community, whereas CSR toward the environment has no effect. Finally, CSR toward community and employees are more associated with social exchange, whereas CSR toward consumers relates more to the social identity process.