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Social identity and the attitude–behaviour relationship: effects of anonymity and accountability
Author(s) -
Smith Joanne R.,
Terry Deborah J.,
Hogg Michael A.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
european journal of social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.609
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1099-0992
pISSN - 0046-2772
DOI - 10.1002/ejsp.356
Subject(s) - anonymity , psychology , social psychology , salience (neuroscience) , normative , accountability , social identity theory , salient , norm (philosophy) , consistency (knowledge bases) , expression (computer science) , group (periodic table) , social group , cognitive psychology , epistemology , political science , geometry , mathematics , organic chemistry , computer science , law , programming language , philosophy , chemistry
Two experiments examined the impact of anonymity and accountability on the expression of group‐mediated attitude‐behaviour consistency. In Study 1, low and high identifiers ( N = 106) were exposed to an attitude‐congruent norm and provided information about their intentions under anonymous and in‐group accountable conditions. In Study 2, salience of identity was manipulated, and participants (N = 185) were exposed to either an attitude‐congruent or an attitude‐incongruent norm, and provided information on their intentions and behaviour under anonymous and in‐group accountable conditions. In both studies, accountability elicited group‐normative attitudes and behaviour among individuals for whom the group was not a salient basis for self‐definition. When the group was a salient basis for self‐definition, the expression of attitude‐consistent intentions and behaviour was greater in anonymous conditions. It is suggested that strategic effects, such as those that occur in the presence of an in‐group audience, influence displays of group‐normative attitude–behaviour consistency. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.