Social Identities

The concept of social identity occupies a central position in contemporary social psychology. Social Identities: Motivational, Emotional, Cultural Influences reports recent developments in the analysis of motivational and affective aspects of social identity processes. The book also examines the cross-cultural generality of Social Identity Theory explanations of intergroup competitiveness, which have strongly influenced international research in this area. People’s social identities and self-evaluation are thought to be largely derived from group memberships; it is presumed that people are motivated to attain positivity in these identities by favouring the ingroup in intergroup comparisons. An increasing stream of research is being devoted to extending the applicability of social identity concepts to intergroup relations and related fields.

The editors present here a collection of contributions from leading figures in social psychology which explore the state of the art in social identity theory. The most prominent motivational theories of identification are reported. Central themes concern:

• motivations which lead individuals to join a group and identify with it
• the role emotions have in favouring (or hindering) intergroup relations
• the effect of emotions on intergroup behaviour
• how people react to social identity threats

Shedding new light on important social problems like prejudice, bigotry, and intense conflicts around the world, this unique volume will be indispensable to students and researchers of social psychology, sociology and cultural studies.