Social Identity Theory and WWII

The Lure of Identity

• In 1939, Germany invaded Poland, initiating World War II
• Over 100 million people from 30 countries fought in the war
• Approximately 60 million people died, including 6 million Jews
• Henri Tajfel, a 20-year-old Jew, was studying chemistry in France when the war began
• Tajfel enlisted in the French army but was captured by Nazi soldiers
• He survived as a prisoner of war and worked with children displaced by the war
• He later studied to understand participation in and tolerance of extraordinary violence
• He analyzed the origin and meaning of identities as well as the basis for conflict
• Focuses on active affirmation of specific identity categories and their social placement

Social Identity Theory

• People need only a simple reason to form groups
• In an experiment, teenage boys were randomly assigned into groups based on their estimates of dots on slides
• Given minimal significance, Tajfel studied people's behavior in these groups
• People in the groups penalized "other" groups and favored "their" group
• This behavior was consistent with the hypothesis that people form in-group/out-group distinctions
• Positive distinction/in-group bias is the claim that members of one's in-group are superior to members of other groups
• Preferential treatment of members of one's in-group and the mistreatment of others

How to Socially Construct an Identity

• Establishing a human feature as a basis for identity
• Deciding what will differentiate people within identity subcategories
• Giving identity subcategories different symbolic meanings
• Doing social identities in accordance with stereotypes
• Elevating some identity subcategories over others

The Origin of Sexual Identity

• In nature, same-sex sexual behavior is common
• Sexual desire and the way it is expressed are often determined by cultural context and upbringing
• The 1920s and 1930s saw the emergence of gay and lesbian nightlife, especially in cities
• This period was marked by major changes such as urbanization

Race, Ethnicity, and the Emergence of Subcategories

• Racial groups are not biological facts
• Genetic variation exists mostly within groups and is not substantial between groups
• Race is a "social fact," an artificial classification based on imagined distinctions
• Subcategories of race were invented in the U.S

Filling Gender Subcategories with Contents

• Gender refers to the masculinity, femininity, characteristics, beliefs, and interests associated with being biologically male or female
• The concept of gender is socially constructed
• The idea of a gender binary where people come in two types, male and female is socially constructed rather than a biological reality
• People are assigned male or female at birth based on their sex, or people may be intersex

Act Your Age

• Age is a social construction
• People act according to expected norms in their communities
• Gendered expectations vary by age
• Stereotypes about who people should be vary by age

The Building of Body Hierarchies

• A preference for plumpness was once a valued characteristic in women
• In the 1800s, thinness became a desirable characteristic for women in the U.S

Computation Sociology

• A research method that involves counting and describing patterns in a great variety of media
• Computational sociology uses computers to extract data (print, visual, audio, video) and patterns from a variety of forms.
• Analysis of this data can reveal social patterns not visible to the naked eye.