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Communication as Social Identity #10
By: Regina Crawford & Tamara LinaresEDS 877
Conformity=Bad
Don’t be a lemming.
Celebrate our differences
» Individuals are studied by how they walk and why they talk.
»Relationships are also examined – personal or intimate»“Our selves tend to be
understood as very “personal” selves, operating as autonomous units, either unconnected to others, or connected as a function of the rewards provided to the individual (Harwood, p. 84).”
Less than human level?
» Lashing out at authority, property, people» Rioters throwing objects» Football hooligans on a rampage» Disorganized groups» Vandalism» Destruction of private property
THOUGHTS?
According to Harwood…
» When people act upon collective interests, they are usually considered in deviant or pathological terms.
» Pathological=being such to a degree that is extreme, excessive, or markedly abnormal <a pathological liar> <pathological fear> -Merriam Webster Online Dictionary
» “The social identity/self categorization approach offers a different take on our social experiences (Tajfel & Turner, 1986; Oakes, Haslam, & Turner, 1994) p. 84.”
˃ Individuals can be understood at different levels of abstraction
˃ At the personal identity level-people are concerned with our differences from other individuals and what makes us unique.
ON THE BRIGHTER SIDE
˃ At the social identity level-people are concerned with their group’s differences from other groups and what makes their group unique.
ON THE BRIGHTER SIDE
Personal
identity
Social
identity
Intergroup approach
» Draws attention to the contribution of both sides in a crowd situation
» Intergroup approach and social identity theory are useful ways to approach human communication
Intergroup Perspective
»Mass Communication
Mass Communication
» Social identification with a particular demographic group
» Portrayals of that group influence viewing» Young people like to watch shows with young
people and vice versa» More individualistic approach
Intergroup Perspective
»Group Communication
Group Communication
» Group leaders evaluated on how similar they are to their typical members
» The more similar they are with their members, the more they can “get away with” certain behaviors
» Small-group leaders tend to focus on interpersonal dynamics and need to focus on how and when people identify with their group
» Big-groups are large-scale collective groups such as ethnic groups
» Small-groups and large-groups can be similar
Intergroup Perspective
»Family Communication
Family Communication
» Identification with the family as a social group is key element in family harmony & positive communication
» Examples: step families, grandparents, interracial families, interfaith families, etc.
» Communication is key
Intergroup Perspective
»Instructional Communication
Instructional Communication
» Students who relate to their instructors (perceive themselves as having social group similarities) tend to positively evaluate their instructors
» Identification with the class as a whole might be the key in high in-class participation rates
Intergroup Perspective
»Intercultural Communication
Intercultural Communication
» Fundamental dimension of ethnic and cultural identity» People use language to signify their identity, and people
respond to language in terms of their social identity» Conflicts: French in Quebec, Aboriginal language in
Australia, Welsh language, Catalán and Basque in Spain, Spanish in public schools, etc.
» Cannot be fully understood without considering the extent to which people in a particular culture are invested
Intergroup Perspective
»Communication & Technology
Communication & Technology
» People often think they are communicating anonymously and free of stereotypes
» However, grouping may become apparent via names or self-identification. May gain more power this way.
» May be especially characterized by group-level behaviors, collective identities, and group-based communications
Conclusion
» “The times when we communicate truly as individuals unencumbered by one group membership or another are actually fairly rare. To be a part of a group is to be truly human, and to ignore that is to sever ties that are very important to people (Harwood, p.89).”
Resources
» Harwood, J., Shepherd. G. J., Hohn, J. S., & Striphas, T. G. (2006). Communcation as a social Identity. Communication as….Perspectives on Theory, 84-90.
» www.google.com/images» http://
www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pathological
» http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riot
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