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Tajfel and Turner 1979 Social identity theory: strengths and weaknesses
Group behavior and process
Tajfel and Turner 1979 Social identity theory
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Steve Bantu Biko asserted that the oppressed mind set was a key factor that gave the oppressors their power. In order for change, the oppressed would have to consciously re-evaluate their black identity. In order to make sense of the assertion made by Biko, the social identity theory within social psychology can be used. Within social psychology these types of group behaviours are analysed with regards to the ways in which the group members’ self-conception corresponds to the respective behaviours of the individuals within the group (2011). Additionally, the social identity theory of Henri Tajfel asserts that self-esteem and pride come from the groups that individuals belong to. This is due to the fact that, within the social world, we gain a sense of belonging as our social identity stems forth from the groups we find ourselves in. furthermore, the objective of this essay is to understand the assertions made by Biko , using Tjfel’s social identity theory.
According to Tajfel, holding prejudice views and discriminating against the ‘other’, a group that we do not belong to, stems fo...
The question is whether or not this is helpful or detrimental to the black population. In “Promoting Black (Social) Identity” Laura Papish criticizes Tommie Shelby’s We Who Are Dark. Shelby argues that the black population’s sense of group identity is vital to furthering their collective political agenda. Shelby believes that the best way to make sure that their political ideologies are cohesive is for black individuals to have a “thick conception of black identity” (Papish 2).
Kwame Appiah, author of Racial Identities, explores the complexity between individual and collective identity. Throughout the text, Appiah attempts to define these complicated notions, noting their similarities and differences. He calls upon the ideas of other philosophers and authors to help formulate his own. Essentially, individual and collective identity are very much intertwined. Appiah argues that collective identities are very much related to behavior. There is not one particular way a certain ethnic group acts, but instead “modes of behavior (Appiah 127).” These behavioral acts provide loose norms or models. However, Appiah also notes that it is how individuals essentially make or allow these collective identities to become central
Identity is one of the main questions throughout all of our readings, because it is hard for people to accept who they are in society. Accepting their identity as a minority with little if any freedoms sparks many of the social problems which I will show happening in all communities and cultures. The main issue we will discuss is how social environments effect the search for identity. The Mexicans in the U.S. module gives us examples how Mexicans try to keep their customs while living in a discriminated environment by the Whites. This module also gives us examples how people are searching for personal identity while struggling with cultural traditions. Finally, the African-American module gives us more examples to compare with the Mexicans in the U.S. module, because these readings deal with Blacks finding personal identity also through discrimination from the Whites. To properly understand the theme of identity, we must first look the factors influencing it.
The author argues that in order for oppression to be vitally explored, the factors that create oppression must be realized. Oppression gives material advantage to the oppressor. "All social relations have material consequences". The author argues that all identities must be considered interconnected.
Prejudices shape our perceptions of various people and influence our attitudes and actions toward particular groups and prejudicial attitudes that are negative often lead to hostile relations between domi...
People go through many obstacles when they face their social identity. Some can overcome their differences, but others may not have they change to even face them due to the treatment that they get from society. Social identity is the one of many controversial and complex problems that many individuals deal with. Because, sometimes it used to be misunderstood making reference to racism and/or others complex matters. “On Being a Cripple” and “How It Feels to Be Colored” are two essays in which both characters suffer from some kind of discrimination. Indeed, in “How It Feels to Be Colored Me” by Zora Neale Hurston and “On Being a Cripple” by Nancy Mairs, each author shows different attitude, endures challenges, and change toward social identity.
Social identities and factors and/or experiences that have shaped your worldview. My Ethnic and cultural traditions and values have molded my social identities, in which both my Ethnic and cultural traditions and values and social identities have formed my worldview. According to my social identity wheel: My race is Asian/Pacific Islander and Filipino American. My ethnicity is Filipino. My sexual orientation is heterosexual. My religion is Roman Catholic. My age is of a young adult. I am a female. My national origin is the United States of America. My sense of who I am is based on my ethnic group that I have identified myself to belong in.
This essay will be looking to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the social identity theory with studies to support.
Think about your daily life. What does your schedule look like? Where do you go? What do you do? Most importantly, who are you with? No matter what you are doing or where you are going, I am sure you aren’t doing it alone; if you are alone, you are more than likely on your way to meet up with others. This is simply because we are social creatures; The human species as a whole was made to interact with each other; we weren’t meant to do life alone. We tend to seek out a group of other individuals who share similar beliefs, ideas, and interests; we look for the “me too” from others. This is what Tajfel and Turner (1979) defined as the Social Identity Theory.
In all aspects of their lives we associate with various groups, for example demographic, cultural or peer groups. Social Identity theory developed by Henri Tajfel in 1979 explains how people develop a sense of belonging and membership in particular groups. This theory explains behaviors in terms of social groups, we form social groups and create perceptions of others and ourselves that are influenced by the various groups to which we belong. A social group is a set of individuals who hold a common social identification or view themselves as members of the same social category (Chen & Li, 2009). Individuals can have multiple, co-occurring identities which could vary. This paper aims to explain how the Social Identity theory is used to explain violence and prejudice behavior and it also looks at the advantages and disadvantages of this theory compared to other theories in explaining the same behavior.
Social institutions, like educational and religious groups, enhance rule obedience and contribute to the formation of identity and sense of belonging to certain groups. People possess a set of beliefs that condition their everyday behavior, like one can think that education is the most important four our future, while other people might believe that staying at home and raising their children is their reality. However, our beliefs are influenced by the groups that we interact. For instance, if we join a feminist movement, we might start reflecting a positive attitude towards gender equality. This illustrates how our social interaction can influence or beliefs related to race, and gender. Similarly, religious institutions and
The question ‘who am I?’ raises speculations about who we are as human beings and why we behave the way we do. This is of great interest to social psychologists. One particular theory about this social identity is that it is not fixed or innate but that it is something that changes over time and is constructed through our social interactions with other people. This essay will explicate the idea of socially constructed identities and consider the evidence for and against this view with examples of research studies from both social constructionism (Phoenix, 2007) and Social Identity Theory (SIT) (Turner and Brown, 1978).
Social identity theory proposed by Henri Tajfel and later developed by Tajfel and Turner in 1971. The theory is to understand intergroup relations and group processes. Social identity theory suggests that the self-concept is based on knowledge of our membership to one or more social groups; people enhance their self-esteem, which can also be boosted by personal achievement and affiliation with successful groups, in attempt to improve their self-image, which is based on personal identity or various social identities.
Sociologist Robert van Krieken (2005) says that our identity is the constellation of characteristics that we may regard as part of our “self”, including the way we present ourselves to others. Respond to this statement by exploring this idea from the viewpoint of socialisation. To support your argument, your response must include the analysis of at least two specific examples related to either or both culture and identity.
In the socio-cognitive model suggested by van Dijk (1998) an attempt is made to explain the connection between ideologies, which sometimes manifest in ‘language of hate’, such as racist language, stereotypes and prejudices. van Dijk, in his explanation of racism draws on the theory of mental models of (Johnson-Laird 1980) and this allows him to link cognition, language (discourse) and social behavior (social practices). His work focuses on mental schemas, which convey ideologies through stereotypes, opinions and attitudes. Although his theory is grounded in the neo-Marxist conception of domination, van Dijk does not agree with the idea that social classes are the dominating or oppressed political actors; he instead concentrates on the ideologies as “the basis of the social representations shared by members of a group” (van Dijk 1998:8). He opines in his framework, that ideologies organise attitudes, i.e. complex structures of opinions. Eventually, these opinions and attitudes form a basis of knowledge: “Knowledge according to van Dijk[…] is a specific sociocultural form of beliefs, viz. those that are held to be true by a speaker or a community, because they can be justified by sociocultural criteria of truth”. van Dijk tries to distinguishing between positive and negative ideologies, and