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Subgroup identities as a key to cooperation within large social groups
Author(s) -
Rabinovich Anna,
Morton Thomas A.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
british journal of social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.855
H-Index - 98
eISSN - 2044-8309
pISSN - 0144-6665
DOI - 10.1348/014466610x486356
Subject(s) - superordinate goals , psychology , salience (neuroscience) , categorization , social identity theory , social psychology , identity (music) , argument (complex analysis) , norm (philosophy) , meaning (existential) , cognitive psychology , social group , epistemology , philosophy , biochemistry , physics , chemistry , acoustics , psychotherapist
We experimentally investigated the effect of superordinate (i.e. British) versus subordinate (i.e. English) identity salience on willingness to contribute to a resource shared at the superordinate level (the British coast). Contrary to what would be expected from straightforward application of self‐categorization theory, two studies demonstrated that willingness to contribute to this shared resource was higher when subordinate (rather than superordinate) identity was activated. To explain this effect, we suggest that subordinate identities sometimes provide a more meaningful basis for self‐definition and, when this is the case, activating subordinate level of identity might lay the foundation for enhanced cooperation within higher‐order identities. Indeed, consistent with this argument, Study 2 showed that increased meaningfulness and coherence of the self‐concept mediated the effect of subordinate identity salience on contributions to the shared (superordinate) resource. The results are discussed with respect to the role of meaning in determining categorization effects.