INCLUSION and IDENTITY

Chapter 3
Groups transform the me into the we. Even though each
group member is capable of surviving independently of
the group, the need to belong is usually stronger than
the desire to remain independent of others’ influences.
But if group members act only to maximize their own
interests and not those of the group, then their
Chapter Overview
membership—and the group itself—would be short-
lived. Once the members join in a group, they can seek
their own goals (individualism), and they must
also contribute to the collective (collectivism).

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 From Isolation to Inclusion
THE NEED TO BELONG
Do people tend to keep to themselves, guarding
Healthy adult human beings can survive apart from other
members of the species, yet across individuals, societies,
their privacy from the incursions of others, or are
and eras, humans consistently seek inclusion over humans group-oriented animals who prefer the
exclusion, membership over isolation, and acceptance company of other people to a life alone?
over rejection. Social psychologists Roy Baumeister and
Mark Leary (1995, p. 497) argued that humans have a
need to belong: “a pervasive drive to form and maintain
at least a minimum quantity of lasting, positive, and Prolonged social isolation has been identified as a risk factor for the onset of a
impactful interpersonal relationships.” They likened the number of psychological disorders, including depression, paranoia, and the
disordered thought characteristic of schizophrenia.
need to belong to other basic needs, such as hunger or
thirst. A person who has not eaten will feel hungry, but a
person who has little contact with other people will feel
unhappy and lonely.
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Social and Emotional Loneliness
Loneliness is an aversive psychological reaction to a perceived
lack of personal or social relations.
In consequence, groups that create connections
It is a cognitive and affective malaise, which can include sadness, among their members, such as amateur athletic
dejection, self-deprecation, and boredom, experienced when teams, social clubs, or work groups, will reduce
one’s personal relationships are perceived to be too few or too members’ feelings of social loneliness, but only more
unsatisfying. intimate, involving types of groups— families,
romantic couples, or very close friendship cliques—
• EMOTIONAL LONELINESS occurs when the problem is a lack of a will meet members’ social and emotional needs
long-term, meaningful, intimate relationship with another person; this (Stroebe et al., 1996).
type of loneliness might be triggered by divorce, a breakup with a
lover, or repeated romantic failures.
• SOCIAL LONELINESS, in contrast, occurs when people feel cut off
from their network of friends, acquaintances, and group members.

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INCLUSION and EXCLUSION
OSTRACISM - Excluding one or more individuals from a group by reducing or eliminating contact with the person,
usually by ignoring, shunning, or explicitly banishing them.

TEMPORAL NEED-THREAT MODEL OF OSTRACISM

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 REACTIONS TO OSTRACISM
FIGHT-OR-FLIGHT RESPONSE - A physiological and psychological response to stressful events characterized by the
activation of the sympathetic nervous system (increased heart rate, pupil dilation) that readies the individual to
counter the threat (fight) or to escape the threat (flight).
confront group members directly, withdraw physically
attempt to force their way into the or psychologically
group, insist that the group from the situation,
exclude someone else, or keep to themselves, or
derogate those who have seek acceptance
excluded them by some other group

TEND-AND-BEFRIEND RESPONSE - A physiological, psychological, and interpersonal response to stressful events

characterized by increased nurturing, protective and supportive behaviors (tending), and initiating and strengthening
relationships with other people (befriending).
backing up others, making sure members’ needs
were met, reducing risk (tending), and doing what
he could to strengthen his connection to others in
the group (befriending).

CYBEROSTRACISM - Excluding one or more individuals from a technologically mediated group interaction, such as a
computer-based discussion group, by reducing or eliminating communication with the person.

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 INCLUSION and HUMAN NATURE
The HERD INSTINCT
This is explained by Evolutionary Psychology (Biological &
Anatomical Adaptations)
• Survival from predators
• Gathering of Food
• Infant’s need for others
•Evolutionary theory assumes that these advantages of group
life, over multiple generations, eventually sewed sociality into
the DNA of the human race.

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 From Individualism toCollectivism
Across individuals, societies, and eras, humans consistently
CREATING COOPERATION prefer to be on the inside of groups rather than the outside. But
a social life makes demands that a life of solitude does not.
Individualism is based on the independence
and uniqueness of each individual. This
perspective assumes that people are
autonomous; they must be free to act and think
in ways that they prefer rather than submit to
the demands of the group.
Collectivism, in contrast, recognizes that
human groups are not mere aggregations of
independent individuals, but complex sets of
interdependent members who must constantly
adjust to the actions and reactions of others
around them.
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Core Features of Individualism and Collectivism (Triandis & Gelfand, 2012)

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THE SOCIAL SELF (“Who areYou?”)
Large image

The self, then, is based both on personal

qualities and interpersonal qualities.
PERSONAL IDENTITY encompasses all
those unique qualities, traits, beliefs,
skills, and so on that differentiate one
person from another.
SOCIAL IDENTITY includes all those
qualities that derive from connections with
and similarity to other people and groups.

The personal identity is the me of the self,

and the social identity is the we (Rhee et al.,
1995).

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THE SOCIAL SELF (“Who areYou?”)
Large image
INDIVIDUALISTS & COLLECTIVISTS
Selves tend to be dualistic with both a
personal and social side, but some people
stress their personal, individualistic qualities,
and others their social, collectivistic qualities
Those who lean toward Individualism—
variously called individualists, speak
of their independence, their personal goals,
and their UNIQUENESS.
collectivists—also called interdependents
or allocentrics—stress their connections to
others (Triandis, 2009).
These differences in individualism and
collectivism influence the way
individuals think, feel, and act in
groups. When explaining why people
act as they do, individualists attribute
behaviors to the internal, personal
characteristics of the person, whereas
collectivists recognize that people’s
actions are often determined by
the social circumstance in which they
find themselves.
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 SOCIAL IDENTITY THEORY
A theoretical analysis of group processes and intergroup
FromPersonalIdentitytoSocialIdentity
relations that assumes groups influence their members’ self-
concepts and self-esteem, particularly when individuals • Social Identification refers to accepting the group as an
categorize themselves as group members and identify with extension of the self and therefore basing one’s self-
the group. definition on the group’s qualities and characteristics.
• Social Categorization – This is the beginning of
generating a person’s social identity. It is the perceptual
classification of people, including the self, into
categories.
Once classified, individuals’ perceptions of
people are influenced by any beliefs they may have
about the qualities of people in such groups.
STEREOTYPING
SELF-STEREOTYPING – Accepting socially shared
generalizations about the prototypical characteristics
attributed to members of one’s group as accurate
descriptions of oneself.

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ThankYou
Kim Zenneia L. Ulboc
0925-825-1263
kimzenneiaulboc@gmail.com
MSU-MSAT

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