Inclusion, Identity, and Belonging

Inclusion and Identity

• Humans naturally seek either solitude or inclusion.

Interrelated Processes Determining Relationship Between Individuals and Groups:

• Inclusion and exclusion.
• Individualism and collectivism.
• Personal identity and social identity.

The Need to Belong

• Unsatisfied desire to join with others causes tension.
• Impactful interpersonal relationships are important.
• Aristotle and Henry David Thoreau had opposing views on whether people should prioritize longing for privacy versus longing for company, as well as doing things alone versus doing things in groups.

Baumeister and Leary (1995)

• Much of human behavior is motived by belonging.
• Solitude can be rewarding, prolonged isolation is stressful.
• Groups help members avoid social and emotional loneliness.
• Ironically, one to three degrees of separation from a lonely individual means the other individuals are more likely to be lonely themselves.

Inclusion and Exclusion

• Ostracism is when one or more individuals are excluded from a group by eliminating contact.
• Ostracism is very stressful.
• Ostracism dates back to the Greeks, who voted to punish members with banishment.
• The names of the banished were inscribed on ostraca.

Williams' (2007) Temporal Need-Threat Model of Ostracism:

• The model identifies a three-stage response to exclusion.
  • Reflexive.
  • Reflective.
  • Resignation.

Exclusion Can Trigger:

• Fight or Flight Response
  • Activation of the sympathetic nervous system.
  • Increased heart rate and pupil dilation.
  • Individual readies to fight or flight.
  • The person either confronts or withdraws.
• Tend-and-Befriend Response
  • Physiological, psychological, and interpersonal response.
  • Characterized by nurturing and strengthening relationships.
• Violence
  • Targets the source of exclusion.

Inclusion and Human Nature

• The Herd Instinct is the age-old concept that humans gather with other humans.
• Evolutionary psychology suggests that the need to belong is innate.
• Individuals affiliated with groups were statistically more likely to survive.
• Sociometer theory (Leary, 2017a) posits that self-esteem provides individuals with inclusion feedback in groups.

The Biology of Ostracism and Inclusion

• Intensely negative reactions associated with feeling excluded are associated with specific hormonal and neurological processes.
• fMRI technology (Eisenberger, 2003) and analgesic effect studies suggest that the pain of exclusion is maintained by systems responsible for physiological pain.

From Individualism to Collectivism

• Individualism is a personal outlook that emphasizes the primacy of the individual, their rights, independence, and relationships with individuals
• Individualists (or independents or idiocentrics) put their own interests above group goals.
• Collectivism is a personal orientation that emphasizes the primacy of the group or community rather than the individual.
• Collectivists (or interdependents or allocentrics) prioritize group interests and goals above personal ones.

Social Relations

• Exchange Relationships involve give-and-take dynamics based on reciprocity.
  • People keep track of contributions.
  • Norm of Reciprocity occurs when favors or kindness are returned.
    • Can be positive (kindness with kindness) or negative (retaliation).
• Communal Relationships are when mutual care and support are given without expecting immediate repayment.
  • People give help out of concern for the other person's well-being.

Social Obligations

• Collectivistic group cultures stress loyalty, hierarchy, and conformity more than individualistic groups.
  • Group Culture refers to the shared values, beliefs, norms, and behaviors that shape how members of a group interact and work together; it influences communication, decision-making, and the overall atmosphere within the group.

Social Goals

• Social Goals focus on building relationships, improving interactions, and contributing to society.
• Norm of Equity focuses on fairness based on proportional contributions.
• Norm of Equality guarantees everyone receives the same resources/opportunities regardless of individual contributions.

Social Self

• Personal identity includes distinct qualities.
• Social identity includes shared qualities.
• Individualists emphasize personal qualities; collectivists emphasize connections.

Optimal Distinctiveness Theory

• Three fundamental needs:
  • Assimilation: Acceptance within a social group.
  • Connection: Meaningful personal relationships.
  • Autonomy: Maintaining uniqueness and personal identity.

Social Identity Theory (Tajfel & Turner, 1986)

• Explains how people define themselves via group memberships, influencing behavior and attitudes.
• Collective identity stems from categorization and identification in intergroup situations.
• Minimal intergroup situations study intergroup conflict by forming temporary groups of anonymous people.
• Social Categorization occurs when people categorize themselves and others into groups.
  • Stereotypes (or Prototypes)
    • Socially shared cognitive generalizations about typical members of a group.
    • Self-stereotyping (autostereotyping) is when individuals apply stereotypes based on group categories to themselves.
• Social Identification occurs when individuals adopt norms and behaviors of their group.
• Social Comparison occurs when people compare their group with others to enhance self-esteem.
  • Can lead to ingroup bias and outgroup discrimination.

Motivation and Self Esteem

• Evaluating the Self and the collective, social group.
• Collective Self-Esteem is the self-worth derived from group membership.
  • Seeking direct or indirect associations with prestigious groups is "Basking in reflected glory" (BIRGing).
  • "Cutting off reflected failure" (CORFing) refers to distancing from a group that performs poorly.

Protecting the Collective Self

• Ingroup-Outgroup Bias:
  • Viewing the ingroup and members more positively than the outgroup
  • Ingroup Favoritism is more common than outgroup rejection.
• Social Creativity:
  • Maintaining a positive social identity when the group is seen as lower in status
  • Individuals redefine comparison to highlight their strengths.

Protecting the Personal Self

• Stereotype Threat refers to the internal phenomena individuals at risk of confirming negative stereotypes.
  • Fear impairs/anxiety impairs performance.
• Individual Mobility is the reduction of one's connection to a group to minimize individual self-esteem.

Explore the human need for inclusion and identity, as well as the tension between solitude and belonging. Discover interrelated processes like individualism and collectivism and personal vs. social identity. Learn about the impact of relationships and the effects of loneliness and ostracism.