This process of favoring one’s in-group happens in three stages:
social categorization, social identification, and social comparison
. (1) People first categorize themselves and others into social groups based on external or internal criteria.
It is
through interaction and community that individuals can perceive the shared task and goal between group members
, which can characterize the shared identity (Wegge & Haslam, 2003). … (2012) argued that individual contributions of group members may contribute to the formation of a social identity.
Social identity theory is built on three key cognitive components:
social categorization, social identification, and social comparison
. Generally, individuals wish to maintain a positive social identity by maintaining their group’s favorable social standing over that of relevant out-groups.
Social identity theory is described as a theory that
predicts certain intergroup behaviours on
the basis of perceived group status differences, the perceived legitimacy and stability of those status differences, and the perceived ability to move from one group to another.
Social identity theory can be used in the contexts of multicultural counseling, research, and practice to understand the processes by which individuals develop and maintain social identities and groups. The theory includes three core elements:
social categorization, social identification, and social comparison.
Social identity theory (SIT) provides
a framework for explaining intergroup behavior and intergroup communication based on the inherent value humans place on social group memberships, and their desire to view their specific social groups in a positive light
. This desire can lead to intergroup prejudice and conflict.
An individual’s social identity indicates who they are in terms of the groups to which they belong. … Examples of social identities are
race/ethnicity, gender, social class/socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, (dis)abilities, and religion/religious beliefs
.
What are the 4 identity statuses?
The four identity statuses are achieved,
moratorium, foreclosed, and diffused
.
Why Social Identity Matters
Social identity
allows people to be part of groups and gain a sense of belonging in their social world
. These identities play an important role in shaping self-image. … Social identification is important because it influences how people see themselves and how they interact with others.
Social loafing describes
the tendency of individuals to put forth less effort when they are part of a group
. Because all members of the group are pooling their effort to achieve a common goal, each member of the group contributes less than they would if they were individually responsible.
For example, when you
compare yourself to your friends you might feel that you are pretty physically fit
. So, you might sign up for a marathon believing that you have the ability to finish with no problem.
Identity has two important features:
continuity and contrast
. Continuity means that people can count on you to be the same person tomorrow as you are today. Obviously, people change but many important aspects of social identity remain relatively stable such as gender, surname, language and ethnicity.
Personal identity refers to self-categories which define the individual as a unique person in terms of their individual differences from other
(ingroup) persons. … Social identity refers to the social categorical self (e.g., “us” versus “them”, ingroup versus outgroup, us women, men, whites, blacks, etc.).
A weaknesses of the Social identity theory is that its
application is restricted in the sense that it has very low ecological validity
. Another weakness is that SIT favors situational factors rather than dispositional is not supported by evidence.
Social identity theory aims
to specify and predict the circumstances under which individuals think of themselves as individuals or as group members
. The theory also considers the consequences of personal and social identities for individual perceptions and group behaviour.
In 1979
British psychologists Henri Tajfel and John Turner
introduced the Social Identity Theory, where our ‘social identity’ within a group shapes our norms, attitudes and behaviour.
