The Social Identity Approach

Question 1

Define the term personal identity.

Answer 1

‘I’
The sense of ourselves as unique individuals in terms of personal attributes.

Question 2

Define the term social identity.

Answer 2

‘We’
The sense of ourselves as group members - shared attributes.

Question 3

What is The Social Identity Approach?

Answer 3

Combination of Social Identity Theory (Tajfel and Turner) and Self-categorisation Theory (Turner et al)

Question 4

Tajfel and Turner Social Identity Theory.

Answer 4

Aims to understand the psychological basis of intergroup discrimination.

Question 5

Tajfel and Turner Self-categories.

Answer 5

Aims to understand the psychological basis of intergroup discrimination.
Conducted a series of studies to identify minimal conditions leading members of one group to favour the ingroup which they belong to.

Question 6

Describe Tajfel and Turner’s experiment.

Answer 6

Participants - British schoolboys aged 14-15 year.
Divided into 2 groups: Klee or Kandinsky - based on preference.
Asked to allocate points to anonymous members than outgroup ones.
Conclusion - Displayed ingroup favourism.

Question 7

Describe the research on personality differences.

Answer 7

Performance on simple tasks demonstrate personality difference.
Students shown slide with dots and were asked to guess the number of dots.
Based on estimate they were to click ‘I am overestimater or underestimater’ using minimal group paradigm.
Were then asked to rate their ingroup or outgroup with positive or negative traits.

Question 8

What were the results for the personality difference research?

Answer 8

Indicated their ingroup having more positive traits.
Mean: 6.99, Standard Deviation: 1.18 than the outgroup M= 5.61, SD = 1.32
Ingroup having fewer negative than outgroup

Question 9

Describe the principal of social identity theory.

Answer 9

Individuals strive to maintain and achieve positive social identity.

Question 10

Define the term positive social identity.

Answer 10

Favourable comparison between ingroup and outgroup.

Question 11

What happens when social identity is negative?

Answer 11

Identity managaement strategy employed depending on socio-structural factors.

Question 12

List the socio-structural factors.

Answer 12

Perceived permeability of group boundaries.
Perceived legitimacy of ingroup status.
Perceived stability of status.`

Question 13

List the strategies involved.

Answer 13

Individual mobility
Social creativity
Social comparison

Question 14

Define the term individual mobility.

Answer 14

When group boundaries are perceived as permeable.
Group members more likely to leave from their low-status group to a higher one or psychologically dissociate from their one.

Question 15

Define the term social creativity.

Answer 15

Group boundaries seen as impermeable.
Ingroup status perceived legitimate and sturdy.
Members begin to compare on a new dimension.

Question 16

When is ingroup favouritsm more likely to occur?

Answer 16

Identifies with their ingroup and believe to be part of their self-concept.

Question 17

State the levels of self-categorisation.

Answer 17

Superordinate level as a human being.
Intermediate level as a group member (social identity).
Superordinate level as an individual (personal identity).

Question 18

Define the term salient.

Answer 18

A social category that becomes cognitively activated so that we think of and define ourselves in terms of that social category.

Question 19

Define the term functional antagonism.

Answer 19

As one level of self-categorisation becomes more salient in a given situation, the other levels become less salient.

Question 20

What is the process of depersonalisation?

Answer 20

A process of self-stereotyping where the self is seen as expansible with ingroup members.
As a group, the self is defined in terms of attributes shared with ingroup.

Question 21

What are the two determinants of social identity in a given situation?

Answer 21

• Fit
• Accessibility

Question 22

State the subcategories for fit.

Answer 22

• Comparitive fit
• Normative fit

Question 23

Define the term comparitive fit.

Answer 23

Distinctions between the ingroup and the outgroup are maximised while differences within the ingroup are minimised.

Question 24

Define the term normative fit.

Answer 24

Nature of difference is consistent with perceiver’s expectations.

Question 25

What are the types of accessibility?

Answer 25

• Situationally accessible
• Chronically accessible

Question 26

Define the term situational accessible.

Answer 26

If identity is triggered in a certain situation.

Question 27

Define the term chronically.

Answer 27

Are frequently activated.

Question 28

What is the purpose identification.

Answer 28

Affects a person’s readiness to define oneself in terms of a given social category.