Social identity performance: extending the strategic side of SIDE

Native Friends and Host Country Identification among Adolescent Immigrants in Germany: The Role of Ethnic Boundaries

Many studies find that high shares of native friends are positively related to immigrant youths’ identification with the host country. By examining various immigrant groups together, these studies imply that having native friends matters in the same way for the national identification in different immigrant groups. In contrast, we argue that the extent to which having native friends affects immigrants’ national identification depends on both immigrant group characteristics and the receiving context, especially on ethnic boundaries and related group differences in perceived discrimination and the compatibility of ethnic and national identities. Analyses based on data from the National Educational Panel Study in Germany that are representative of 15-year-old adolescents in secondary schools indeed reveal pronounced group differences: While national identification of ethnic German repatriates as well as of adolescents of former Yugoslavian and Southern European origin is related to the share of native friends, as hypothesized, we do not find this association for immigrants of Turkish and Polish origin. Our finding underlines the importance of theoretically as well as empirically accounting for group differences.

“I don't really want to be associated with the self-righteous left extreme”: Disincentives to participation in collective action

This paper considers collective action non-participation by people sympathetic but not committed to participating in actions for social change (‘sympathisers’). We conducted a thematic analysis of open-ended written accounts of the barriers to participating in sustained collective action (N = 112), finding that people can be reluctant to engage in some types of collective action. Participants wrote about the potential for detrimental consequences resulting from association with ‘protesters’, concern that they may be undermined by ‘extreme’ fringes of a movement, ambivalence about the visible performance of group normative behaviours (specifically, protesting), and trepidation about ‘loss of self’ within a group. We discuss the findings in relation to theory on social (dis)identification, social (dis)incentives, and identity performances, arguing that inaction does not necessarily stem from apathy. Rather, people may engage in motivated inaction – that is, active avoidance of some types of actions, or from affiliations with particular groups, as a response to negative inferences about the legitimacy or efficacy of some forms of collective action. Practical strategies are suggested for groups and individuals, including the potential for people to take actions for social change independently of a formally organised movement.

When nonactivists care: Group efficacy mediates the effect of social identification and perceived instability on the legitimacy of collective action

In recent years, multiple social movements have emerged around the world. In addition, public surveys indicate the highest recorded levels of support for protest. In this context of acceptance of collective action, we examine the role of nonactivists in the perceived legitimacy of social movements, as this “passive” support can contribute to social change. Given that antecedents of legitimacy have been neglected in the literature, we carried out a survey ( N = 605) among a general sample of the population in Chile to shed light on this issue. We found that social identification with movements and perceived instability predicted the perceived legitimacy of protests by social movements, and that both variables had only indirect effects through group efficacy. This suggests that perceiving social movements as able to achieve success can lead nonactivists to perceive their actions as legitimate, highlighting the importance to movements of being seen to be effective.

Young immigrants' host country identification and their friendships with natives: Does relative group size matter?

Recent network research indicates that native youth prefer to befriend immigrants with stronger rather than weaker host country identification. Surprisingly, however, no respective preference of high-identifying immigrants for native friends has been found, and there is little evidence that friends influence immigrants' identification. Seeking to make sense of these unexpected findings, my aims are twofold: First, I reproduce an earlier study using three waves of newly collected network panel data. Second, going beyond a robustness test with better data, I suggest that relative group size within school accounts for earlier findings. I hypothesize that immigrants' host country identification only affects their own friendship choices in schools with high shares of immigrants, because only in those schools they can be picky about befriending natives. Stochastic actor-oriented models support this notion, pointing to an interplay of preferences and opportunities in shaping the relation between host country identification and interethnic friendships.

Religion and National Identification in Europe: Comparing Muslim Youth in Belgium, England, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden

How inclusive are European national identities of Muslim minorities and how can we explain cross-cultural variation in inclusiveness? To address these questions, we draw on large-scale school-based surveys of Muslim minority and non-Muslim majority and other minority youth in five European countries (Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Survey [CILS]; Belgium, England, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden). Our double comparison of national identification across groups and countries reveals that national identities are less strongly endorsed by all minorities compared with majority youth, but national identification is lowest among Muslims. This descriptive evidence resonates with public concerns about the insufficient inclusion of immigrant minorities in general, and Muslims in particular, in European national identities. In addition, significant country variation in group differences in identification suggest that some national identities are more inclusive of Muslims than others. Taking an intergroup relations approach to the inclusiveness of national identities for Muslims, we establish that beyond religious commitment, positive intergroup contact (majority friendship) plays a major role in explaining differences in national identification in multigroup multilevel mediation models, whereas experiences of discrimination in school do not contribute to this explanation. Our comparative findings thus establish contextual variation in the inclusiveness of intergroup relations and European national identities for Muslim minorities.

Beyond Muslim identity: Opinion-based groups in the Gezi Park protest

Media depicted Turkish Gezi Park protests as a clash between secularists and Islamists within a majority-Muslim country. Extending a social identity approach to protests, this study aims (a) to distinguish the protest participants in terms of their opinion-based group memberships, (b) to investigate how their religious identification and their group membership were associated with democratic attitudes. Six hundred and fifty highly educated urban young adult participants were surveyed during the protest. Latent class analysis of participants’ political concerns and online and offline actions yielded four distinct opinion-based groups labeled “liberals,” “secularists,” “moderates,” and “conservatives.” Looking at the intersection of the participants’ group identities with their Muslim identification, we observed that the higher conservatives’ and moderates’ religious identification, the less they endorsed democratic attitudes, whereas religious identification made little or no difference in liberals’ and secularists’ democratic attitudes. Our findings of distinct groups among protest participants in a majority-Muslim country challenge an essentialist understanding of religion as a homogeneous social identity.

Social identity: The role of self in group processes and intergroup relations

Applications and conceptual developments made in social identity research since the mid-1990s are summarized under eight general headings: types of self and identity, prototype-based differentiation, influence through leadership, social identity motivations, intergroup emotions, intergroup conflict and social harmony, collective behavior and social protest, and resolving social dilemmas. Cautious prognoses for future directions are then suggested—health, e-behavior, population relocation and immigration, culture, language and intergroup communication, societal extremism and populism, social development, and inclusive and diverse social identities.

Using the SIRDE model of social change to examine the vote of Scottish teenagers in the 2014 independence referendum

Five hundred and seventy-three Scottish high school students were surveyed in the 2 months following the 2014 referendum on Scotland's independence. We used the Social Identity, Relative Deprivation, collective Efficacy (SIRDE) model of social change to examine the social psychological factors that should have influenced the voting choices of these teenagers. Structural equation modelling indicated that the SIRDE model fit the data and largely supported four sets of hypotheses derived from the model. Specifically, (1) those with a stronger Scottish identity, (2) those who felt frustrated and angry that Scottish people are discriminated against in British society, and (3) those who believed that Scottish people are not able to improve their relatively poor social conditions within the United Kingdom (a lack of collective efficacy) were more likely to hold separatist beliefs. Further, the relationships between identity, relative deprivation, and collective efficacy, on the one hand, and voting for Scotland's independence, on the other, were fully mediated by separatist social change beliefs. Consistent with the specificity of the model, neither political engagement nor personal relative deprivation were associated with voting choice, whereas the latter was associated with lower life satisfaction. The implications and limitations of these findings are discussed.

The Social Psychology of Intergroup Toleration

The global increase in cultural and religious diversity has led to calls for toleration of group differences to achieve intergroup harmony. Although much social-psychological research has examined the nature of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination, and its impact on targets of these biases, little research has examined the nature and impact of toleration for intergroup relations. Toleration does not require that people give up their objections to out-group norms and practices but rather mutual accommodation. Integrating research from various social sciences, we explore the nature of intergroup tolerance including its three components—objection, acceptance, and rejection—while drawing out its implications for future social-psychological research. We then explore some psychological consequences to social groups that are the object of toleration. By doing so, we consider the complex ways in which intergroup tolerance impacts both majority and minority groups and the dynamic interplay of both in pluralistic societies.

Explaining a rare null relationship between group identification and social protest through a relational form of coping with low group status

Primary and meta-analytic research strongly suggests that group identification motivates disadvantaged group members for social protest to achieve social change. However, most studies on social protest are conducted in contexts that are already conducive to this positive relationship (i.e., conditions of hope and scope for social change). Two studies of Indonesian ethnic minority group members’ coping with low group status add to this literature by testing (a) whether group identification motivated social protest in a cultural context in which group identity is valued while hope and scope for social change are lacking, and (b) alternatively, whether individuals engage in a relational form of coping that revolves around seeking shelter in social relationships to protect well-being. In both studies (N = 80 and N = 132), we predicted and found a rare null correlation between group identification and social protest, and rather strong support that coping with low group status revolved around seeking shelter in social relationships. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our findings for identity management and relationship regulation processes in contexts that lack hope and scope for social protest to achieve social change.

Socio-psychological aspects of grassroots participation in the Transition Movement: An Italian case study

In this article, we present a case study investigating the socio-psychological aspects of grassroots participation in a Transition Town Movement (TTM) community initiative. We analyzed the first Italian Transition initiative: Monteveglio (Bologna), the central hub of the Italian TTM and a key link with the global Transition Network. A qualitative methodology was used to collect and analyze the data consisting of interviews with key informants and ethnographic notes. The results provide further evidence supporting the role of social representations, shared social identities, and collective efficacy beliefs in promoting, sustaining, and shaping activists’ commitment. The movement seems to have great potential to inspire and engage citizens to tackle climate change at a community level. Grassroots engagement of local communities working together provides the vision and the material starting point for a viable pathway for the changes required. Attempting to ensure their future political relevance, the TTM adherents are striving to disseminate and materially consolidate inherently political and prefigurative movement frames – primarily community resilience and re-localization – within community socio-economic and political frameworks. However, cooperation with politics is perceived by most adherents as a frustrating and dissatisfying experience, and an attempted co-optation of the Transition initiative by institutions. It highlights a tension between the open and non-confrontational approach of the movement towards institutions and their practical experience. Corresponding to this tension, activists have to cope with conflicts, contradictions, and ambivalence of social representations about community action for sustainability, which threaten the sense of collective purpose, group cohesion and ultimately its survival.

Activism as a heroic quest for symbolic immortality: An existential perspective on collective action

Excellent research exists on the conditions that generate political and social activism. Yet a central issue has remained perplexing: how does the personal need to stand out as unique and heroic interact with the concern for the positive image of the group, and the desire to protect and bolster its status, goals and shared values, in propelling collective action? Inspired by existential theory and research, this paper proposes an existential perspective on activism that identifies the human desire for a sense of meaning and significance as an important motivation underlying individuals' choice to engage in collective action. This study outlines an integrative model of collective action, combining insights from existential psychology with insights from the social identity perspective, to bridge together needs and concerns associated with both personal identity and group identity into a single model of collective action through the concept of death-anxiety buffering mechanisms. This model suggests that collective action is an effective means to satisfy existential needs through bolstering and protecting group interests and values on the one hand, and realizing the activist's heroism project on the other. Suggestions for future research are discussed.

Perceptions and Reasons for Veiling

This qualitative study aimed to capture the views and reasons for veiling by young Muslim women in a social context where ethnic/religious identity is not contested or threatened. In-depth, open-ended interviews were conducted with young Muslim women who had started wearing the veil for the past four to five years. There was consensus amongst the respondents that wearing the veil was an obligation in Islam and it only reflects their commitment to their religion. However, the meaning of the veil was not limited to a piece of clothing. Modesty was considered to be an important dimension of the veil and was self-prescriptive, a reminder to conduct their life according to the Muslim belief system. Wearing the hijab consolidated their awareness of themselves as Muslims and in their practice. The findings are discussed within the multicultural context of Mauritius.

The origins of belonging: social motivation in infants and young children

Our reliance on our group members has exerted a profound influence over our motivation: successful group functioning requires that we are motivated to interact, and engage, with those around us. In other words, we need to belong. In this article, I explore the developmental origins of our need to belong. I discuss existing evidence that, from early in development, children seek to affiliate with others and to form long-lasting bonds with their group members. Furthermore, when children are deprived of a sense of belonging, it has negative consequences for their well-being. This focus on social motivation enables us to examine why and in what circumstances children engage in particular behaviours. It thus provides an important complement to research on social cognition. In doing so, it opens up important questions for future research and provides a much-needed bridge between developmental and social psychology.

Disputing deindividuation: Why negative group behaviours derive from group norms, not group immersion

Strong social identity does not lead to lack of accountability and "bad" behavior in groups and crowds but rather causes group behavior to be driven by group norms. The solution to problematic group behavior is therefore not to individualize the group but rather to change group norms, as underlined by the relational dynamics widely studied in the SIDE tradition.

Social Identities as Pathways into and out of Addiction

There exists a predominant identity loss and "redemption" narrative in the addiction literature describing how individuals move from a "substance user" identity to a "recovery" identity. However, other identity related pathways influencing onset, treatment seeking and recovery may exist, and the process through which social identities unrelated to substance use change over time is not well understood. This study was designed to provide a richer understanding of such social identities processes. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 adults residing in a drug and alcohol therapeutic community (TC) and thematic analysis revealed two distinct identity-related pathways leading into and out of addiction. Some individuals experienced a loss of valued identities during addiction onset that were later renewed during recovery (consistent with the existing redemption narrative). However, a distinct identity gain pathway emerged for socially isolated individuals, who described the onset of their addiction in terms of a new valued social identity. Almost all participants described their TC experience in terms of belonging to a recovery community. Participants on the identity loss pathway aimed to renew their pre-addiction identities after treatment while those on the identity gain pathway aimed to build aspirational new identities involving study, work, or family roles. These findings help to explain how social factors are implicated in the course of addiction, and may act as either motivations for or barriers to recovery. The qualitative analysis yielded a testable model for future research in other samples and settings.

Modeling Team Performance

Drawing on social identity theory and conflict theory, this study develops a research model that explains the development of team performance. In the model, team performance is indirectly related to authentic leadership and empathy via the full mediation of team identity and relationship conflict. Meanwhile, the positive relationship between team identity and team performance and the negative relationship between relationship conflict and team performance are hypothetically moderated by passion. Empirical testing of this model, by investigating team personnel from high-tech firms, confirms the integrative applicability of social identity theory and conflict theory for improving team performance. Last, the managerial implications and limitations of this study based on its empirical findings are provided.

The politics of patient-centred care

BACKGROUND

Despite widespread belief in the importance of patient-centred care, it remains difficult to create a system in which all groups work together for the good of the patient. Part of the problem may be that the issue of patient-centred care itself can be used to prosecute intergroup conflict.

OBJECTIVE

This qualitative study of texts examined the presence and nature of intergroup language within the discourse on patient-centred care.

METHODS

A systematic SCOPUS and Google search identified 85 peer-reviewed and grey literature reports that engaged with the concept of patient-centred care. Discourse analysis, informed by the social identity approach, examined how writers defined and portrayed various groups.

RESULTS

Managers, physicians and nurses all used the discourse of patient-centred care to imply that their own group was patient centred while other group(s) were not. Patient organizations tended to downplay or even deny the role of managers and providers in promoting patient centredness, and some used the concept to advocate for controversial health policies. Intergroup themes were even more obvious in the rhetoric of political groups across the ideological spectrum. In contrast to accounts that juxtaposed in-groups and out-groups, those from reportedly patient-centred organizations defined a 'mosaic' in-group that encompassed managers, providers and patients.

CONCLUSION

The seemingly benign concept of patient-centred care can easily become a weapon on an intergroup battlefield. Understanding this dimension may help organizations resolve the intergroup tensions that prevent collective achievement of a patient-centred system.

An integrative review of social and occupational factors influencing health and wellbeing

Therapeutic approaches to health and wellbeing have traditionally assumed that meaningful activity or occupation contributes to health and quality of life. Within social psychology, everyday activities and practices that fill our lives are believed to be shaped by structural and systemic factors and in turn these practices can form the basis of social identities. In occupational therapy these everyday activities are called occupations. Occupations can be understood as a contextually bound synthesis of meaningful doing, being, belonging and becoming that influence health and wellbeing. We contend that an integrative review of occupational therapy and social psychology literature will enhance our ability to understand the relationship between social structures, identity and dimensions of occupation by elucidating how they inform one another, and how taken together they augment our understanding of health and wellbeing This review incorporates theoretical and empirical works purposively sampled from databases within EBSCO including CINAHL, psychINFO, psychArticles, and Web of Science. Search terms included: occupation, therapy, social psychology, occupational science, health, wellbeing, identity, structures and combinations of these terms. In presenting this review, we argue that doing, being and belonging may act as an important link to widely acknowledged relationships between social factors and health and wellbeing, and that interventions targeting individual change may be problematic.

Steeling Ourselves: Intragroup Communication while Anticipating Intergroup Contact Evokes Defensive Intergroup Perceptions

Two experiments investigated the role of intragroup communication in intergroup conflict (de-)escalation. Experiment 1 examined the effects of intragroup communication (vs. individual thought) and anticipated face-to-face intergroup contact (vs. no anticipated face-to-face intergroup contact). The group discussions of stigmatized group members who anticipated face-to-face intergroup contact revolved more around intergroup hostility. This boosted ingroup identification and increased social creativity but also led to steeling (a hardening of perceived intergroup relations). In Experiment 2, new participants listened to the taped group discussions. The discussions of groups anticipating face-to-face intergroup contact evoked more intergroup anxiety-related discomfort than discussions of groups not anticipating face-to-face intergroup encounters. Together, these results support the idea that steeling is a defensive reaction to prepare for an anxiety-arousing intergroup confrontation. Although steeling is also associated with positive consequences such as increased ingroup solidarity and social creativity, this hardened stance may be an obstacle to conflict de-escalation.

When votes depend on who's listening: Voters' intragroup status and voting procedure predict representative endorsement in intergroup contexts

Three experiments investigated whether the selection of a representative in intergroup interdependence settings can reflect group members' strategic behaviour. We tested the impact of an individual's intragroup status (normative vs. pro-out-group deviant, Experiments 1-3) and of voting procedure (Experiments 2 and 3) on the choice of an in-group representative. Experiment 1 shows that normative members prefer normative representatives, whereas pro-out-group deviant members equally like normative and pro-out-group deviant representatives. Experiment 2 extends these results and shows that voting procedure (private vs. in-group audience) moderates this effect. Pro-out-group deviant members' preferences and behaviours appear more strategic and context-sensitive than normative ones. Specifically, pro-out-group deviants vote more for normative representatives than for pro-out-group deviants when facing an in-group audience, whereas the reverse pattern emerges in private. Experiment 3 shows that this moderation effect is specific to in-group audiences compared to out-group ones, reinforcing the idea that normative members 'stick to their guns'. Implications of these findings for leader endorsement and intergroup relations are discussed.

The “leaning song” – a weapon in organizational conflict

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to present an insider ethnographic account of a series of social confrontations between two mutually opposed groups of officers that took place in an officers’ mess in a remote military garrison in the 1980s. The identity of one of these groups was expressed in a particular song that was sung frequently and noisily in the mess. The analysis of these incidents and their precursors provides an understanding of the social processes in which they were embedded, and the conclusions drawn are generalized into the wider context.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper is based on insider ethnography, using rich description to present the incidents and their background. Analysis is conducted using other research by the author on the organizational culture of Service officers and wider scholarship not specifically related to the Military.

Findings

– The paper finds that in-groups and out-groups in joint Service populations do not necessarily run along traditional, Service, lines, and that cultural change in the groups concerned was associated with the rapid turnover of their members as they were replaced in the normal postings cycle. It demonstrates that a socially powerful shared cultural element can, if only temporarily, bring unity between rival groups. It also contributes to the scholarship on the power of song as a proclamation of group identity and the intensification of that identity.

Originality/value

– The main strength of this paper is that it provides an insider’s view of a British military social group, which is extremely rare in the literature, describing social processes that connect to the wider scholarship on song, in-group and out-group behaviour, and cultural change.

Social identity threat motivates science-discrediting online comments

Experiencing social identity threat from scientific findings can lead people to cognitively devalue the respective findings. Three studies examined whether potentially threatening scientific findings motivate group members to take action against the respective findings by publicly discrediting them on the Web. Results show that strongly (vs. weakly) identified group members (i.e., people who identified as "gamers") were particularly likely to discredit social identity threatening findings publicly (i.e., studies that found an effect of playing violent video games on aggression). A content analytical evaluation of online comments revealed that social identification specifically predicted critiques of the methodology employed in potentially threatening, but not in non-threatening research (Study 2). Furthermore, when participants were collectively (vs. self-) affirmed, identification did no longer predict discrediting posting behavior (Study 3). These findings contribute to the understanding of the formation of online collective action and add to the burgeoning literature on the question why certain scientific findings sometimes face a broad public opposition.

Social identity threat motivates science-discrediting online comments

Experiencing social identity threat from scientific findings can lead people to cognitively devalue the respective findings. Three studies examined whether potentially threatening scientific findings motivate group members to take action against the respective findings by publicly discrediting them on the Web. Results show that strongly (vs. weakly) identified group members (i.e., people who identified as "gamers") were particularly likely to discredit social identity threatening findings publicly (i.e., studies that found an effect of playing violent video games on aggression). A content analytical evaluation of online comments revealed that social identification specifically predicted critiques of the methodology employed in potentially threatening, but not in non-threatening research (Study 2). Furthermore, when participants were collectively (vs. self-) affirmed, identification did no longer predict discrediting posting behavior (Study 3). These findings contribute to the understanding of the formation of online collective action and add to the burgeoning literature on the question why certain scientific findings sometimes face a broad public opposition.

Meeting the support needs of patients with complex regional pain syndrome through innovative use of wiki technology: a mixed-methods study

Background

Using online discussion forums can have a positive impact on psychological well-being through development of shared group identity and validation of thoughts, feelings and experiences. This may be particularly beneficial to people with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), who often become socially isolated, lack mobility and face threats to their sense of identity. We set up a peer-support online forum to identify the nature of support provided and to explore its development over time. We then introduced a collaborative writing task to facilitate further the development of social processes implicated in psychological support.

Research questions

(1) What constitutes support in newly developed online interactions? (2) How does the process of giving and receiving support online evolve? (3) Can the combination of an online forum and a collaborative writing task increase support relative to an online forum alone?

Design

This is a three-phase mixed-methods research design. Phase 1: an online forum was launched. Phase 2: forum members were invited to cowrite a patient-centred CRPS information resource. Phase 3: the resource was shared and feedback was sought.

Participants

Posts from 26 members (seven males, 19 females) were analysed. The mean age of members was 35.6 years. The number of years since diagnosis was available for 14 members (ranging from 5 months to 10 years with a mean duration of 3.9 years).

Data analysis

In order to explore what constitutes support in newly developed online interactions, an inductive thematic analysis was conducted on all ‘introductory posts’ posted during phase 1. In order to explore how the process of giving and receiving support online evolved, a deductive content analysis using the Social Support Behavior Code was conducted on all forum posts posted during the first 12 months.

Results

Five themes were identified in members’ first posts. Three of these themes contributed to the development of a ‘common-identity’ community, while the remaining two established a positive tone, consistent with that of a ‘common-bond’ community. Content analysis revealed that support requests were present in 15.5% of posts: predominantly informational support (8.6%) with the remaining support categories ranging from 1.3% to 2.6%. Social support was present in 88.8% of posts; predominantly emotional support (72.8%) followed by informational (36.2%) and esteem (30.2%) support. For a variety of reasons, we were unable to address the third question fully; we gave all members the option of contributing to the collaborative writing task and anticipated comparing those who accepted the invitation with those who did not. However, either participants continued to take part in the forum and contributed to the writing task, or they ceased to interact with the forum altogether, thereby limiting our ability to compare across time and task.

Conclusions

Few members of the forum explicitly requested social support, but many offered it (emotional support was the most prevalent). There was evidence of both common-identity and common-bond community development from the outset. This continued to shape forum interactions throughout the 12 months of the study and set up a space that had an over-riding positive and supportive tone which enabled the members to reach out and offer support to similar others, in effect helping them to re-engage with the wider world. Future work that examines support across networked online communities is necessary.

Funding

The National Institute for Health Research Health Services and Delivery Research programme.

Communicating the right emotion makes violence seem less wrong: Power-congruent emotions lead outsiders to legitimize violence of powerless and powerful groups in intractable conflict

In intractable intergroup conflicts, groups often try to frame intergroup violence as legitimate through the use of emotional appeals. Two experiments demonstrate that outsiders’ perception of which emotion conflict parties communicate influences the extent to which they legitimize their violence. Results show that although outsiders typically give more leeway to powerless groups because of their “underdog” status, communicating power-congruent emotions qualifies this effect; observers legitimize intergroup violence most when powerless groups communicate fear and when powerful groups communicate anger. This is because fear communicates that the group is a victim that cannot be blamed for their violence, whereas anger communicates that the group is wronged and thus their violence seems righteous and moral. Results further show that sympathy for the powerless appears to be a more fragile basis for legitimization of violence than the moral high ground for the powerful. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.

The password is praise: content of feedback affects categorization of feedback sources

In three experimental studies, we investigated the effect of the content of group-directed feedback on categorization of the feedback source as an ingroup or an outgroup member. In all studies, feedback valence (criticism vs. praise) and the attributional content of feedback (attributing outcomes to internal properties of the group vs. external circumstances) were experimentally manipulated. The results demonstrated that anonymous (Study 1) and ambiguous (Studies 2 and 3) sources of feedback are more likely to be seen as (typical) ingroup members when they provide praise rather than criticism. In addition, in all studies there was a significant interaction between valence and the attributional content of feedback, such that sources of praise were more likely to be seen as ingroup members when they attributed the group's success to internal (rather than external) causes, while the opposite was observed for critics. These effects were mediated by perceived group image threat. Implications for research on group-based feedback and social categorization are discussed.