Jokes and Humor in Intergroup Relations

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas E. Ford ◽  
Christopher J. Breeden ◽  
Emma C. O'Connor ◽  
Noely C. Banos
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Social Group ◽  
Intergroup Relations ◽  
Social Dominance ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Social Acceptability ◽  
Negative Stereotypes ◽  
Disparagement Humor ◽  
The Social ◽  
Offensive Speech

Humor fundamentally trivializes its topic and invites people to think about it playfully and non-seriously. Intergroup humor, humor that disparages a social group or its representatives thus disguises expressions of prejudice in a cloak of fun and frivolity, affording it the appearance of social acceptability. As a result, disparagement humor represents a pervasive mechanism for communicating prejudice particularly since society has become increasingly sensitive to expressions of prejudice and other forms of offensive speech. Indeed, disparagement humor is perhaps more readily available to us now in the digital age than ever before. Because of its disguise of social acceptability, disparagement humor serves unique paradoxical functions in intergroup settings. It can function as a social “lubricant” and as a social “abrasive.” Disparagement humor directed at social out-groups functions as a social abrasive by threatening the social identity of members of the targeted group, by transmitting negative stereotypes and prejudice, by intensifying prejudice in the service of social dominance motives, and by fostering the release of prejudice against targeted out-groups. It simultaneously serves as a social lubricant for members of the in-group (the non-disparaged group) by enhancing personal and social identities. Finally, it can be co-opted by members of oppressed groups to serve social lubricant functions, including the subversion of prejudice, provided audiences understand and appreciate the subversive intent.

Naive, connected, and counselor tween girl identity groups: Consumption practices and social identity constructions within consumer culture

2021 ◽  
pp. 146954052110160
Author(s):  
Tiziana Brenner Beauchamp Weber ◽  
Eliane C. Francisco Maffezzolli
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Social Identity Theory ◽  
Consumer Culture ◽  
Social Group ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Consumer Identity ◽  
Identity Constructions ◽  
The Social ◽  
Consumption Practices ◽  
Identity Groups

This research identifies the relationship between consumption practices and the construction of social identity among tweens in a Brazilian context. Using consumer culture theory and social identity theory, we employed 80 h of observation, 9 interviews, and projective techniques with fifteen girls. Three social identity groups were acknowledged: naive, connected, and counselors. These groups revealed different identity projects, such as the integration and maintenance within the social group of current belonging, the access to the social group with the greater distinctions, the generation of differentiable and positive distinctions (both intra- and intergroups), and the expression and consolidation of identity and its respective consumption practices. This research contributes to the consumption literature that relates to consumer identity projects. The findings reveal a current resignification of girlhood and exposes tweens’ consumption practices as a direct mechanism of the expression and construction of their social identities. These are mechanisms of social identity construction as mediated by group relations through the processes of access, maintenance, integration, differentiation, and distinction.

Social identities, societal change and mental borders

Human Affairs ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Magda Petrjánošová ◽  
Barbara Lášticová
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Intergroup Relations ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Time Of Arrival ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Similarity And Difference ◽  
The City

AbstractIn this paper we investigate the relations between cross-border mobility, national categorization and intergroup relations in a changing Europe. It focuses on young adults (N=34) commuting on a regular basis between the city of Bratislava (the capital of Slovakia) and the city of Vienna (the capital of Austria). Our study draws on the social identity perspective, however, we consider social identity as a discourse of (not) belonging, similarity and difference, which is continually (re)negotiated within a given social context. Semi-structured qualitative interviews, focus groups and drawings of the border area were used as research instruments. We have identified different types of experience in various subgroups of participants framed by (1) age at the time of arrival in Austria; (2) different mobility motivations and goals; (3) interaction setting; (4) the political and economic situation in Slovakia at the time of arrival to Austria linked to perceived status differences. On the individual level, the motivation to integrate or its lack seems to be a crucial element in the ingroup construction and perception of intergroup relations.

L'identité Wallonne saisie par l'enquête : Une approche constructiviste de l'identité collective

Res Publica ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 36 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 343-359
Author(s):  
Marc Jacquemain ◽  
René Doutrelepont ◽  
Michel Vandekeere
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Survey Research ◽  
Social Identity Theory ◽  
Social Behaviour ◽  
Identity Theory ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Social Level

At first view, the methodology of survey research may seem rather unsuitable to the study of such "holistic" phenomena as collective and social identities.  That difficulty vanishes - at least partly - as soon as we consider social identity as the link between the individual and his belongings, as does the "social identity theory", developed from the work of Taffel and Turner.  From there on, survey research may prove to be a useful device to cope with some main characteristics of social identity: mainly its variability among groups and classes within a same society and its particular sensitivity to socio-political contexts.  Survey research, combined with the social identity theory may help to test historical assumptions at a macro-social level. It may also give some ''flesh" and some additional realism to the micro-theories of social behaviour, which are too often limited by their conception of a strictly rational and interested agent.

Social Identity, Stigma, and Health

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jolanda Jetten ◽  
S. Alexander Haslam ◽  
Tegan Cruwys ◽  
Nyla R. Branscombe
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Psychological Resources ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Identity Processes ◽  
Positive Identity ◽  
The Social ◽  
And Coping ◽  
Group Memberships ◽  
The Relationship

This chapter argues that an understanding of social identity processes is critical to understand when and how stigma affects health. This chapter presents a social identity analysis of the relationship between stigma and health and starts from the premise that it is particularly difficult for individuals who belong to stigmatized groups to derive a positive identity from their social group memberships. However, when individuals turn to the stigmatized group, identify with it, and draw social support from others within it, their health will be buffered against some of the negative consequences of discrimination because group memberships—and the social identities that are derived from them—act as psychological resources. Perceptions of the broader sociostructural context that affect appraisals of discrimination and coping with stigma play an important role in determining whether the curing properties of group memberships are unlocked, turning the curse of belonging to a stigmatized group into a cure.

Football Manager as a Persuasive Game for Social Identity Formation

2014 ◽  
pp. 1-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda K. Kaye
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Identity Formation ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Simulation Game ◽  
Group Affiliation ◽  
Interesting Insight ◽  
The Social ◽  
Persuasive Game ◽  
The Way

This case illustrates the way in which the football management simulation game, Football Manager (Sports Interactive), enhances the processes through which players formulate their social identities, which extend beyond the boundaries of gameplay itself. The case discusses the findings of my interviews with Football Manager players, which provides an in-depth examination of experiences associated with the game, both during gameplay and the way in which it functions within the wider social contexts of their lives. I discuss these findings in relation to social identity theory (Tajfel, 1978, 1979; Tajfel & Turner, 1979), through the way in which the game promotes players' sense of in-group affiliation, as well as promoting positive shared experiences between players. In this way, the current case presents an interesting insight into the social functions of the game and its role within the social narratives and identities of its players. From this, I conclude the utility of Football Manager as a persuasive game for formulating players' social identities, which may lead to further positive social impacts.

Intersectional Understandings of Inequality

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aída Hurtado
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Social Identity Theory ◽  
Identity Theory ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
The Social ◽  
Race Ethnicity ◽  
Research And Policy ◽  
Economic Inequalities ◽  
Borderlands Theory

To address the increase in social and economic inequalities requires complex paradigms that take into account multiple sources of oppression. This chapter proposes the concept of intersectionality elaborated through social identity theory and borderlands theory as a potential avenue for research and policy to speak to and solve multiple sources of disadvantage. The multiple sources of inequality produce intersectional identities as embodied in the social identities constituted by the master statuses of sexuality, gender, class, race, ethnicity, and physical ableness. By applying intersectionality to inequality one can examine both intersections of disadvantage (e.g., being poor and of Color) or intersections of both of disadvantage and privilege (e.g., being male and of Color). Intersectionality also permits the study of privilege when advantaged social identities are problematized. I conclude with reviewing the possible ways of empirically studying intersectionality and the advantages in applying it to the understanding of social and economic inequalities.

Situating Cultural Politics: Fringe Festivals and the Production of Spaces of Intersubjectivity

1994 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce Willems-Braun
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Cultural Politics ◽  
Spatial Organization ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Urban Spaces ◽  
Canadian Theatre ◽  
The Social ◽  
The City ◽  
Intersubjective Field

Canada's fringe festivals are important interventions in the discourses and institutions framing Canadian theatre, leading some to recognize them as sites of a radical cultural politics. Most commentators have placed their attention on performance at these events, but in this paper, the focus is on the manner in which these events reorganize urban spaces into festival spaces, constructing informal discursive arenas within which the interaction of patrons, artists, and organizers is encouraged, and which situates performance, display, and the negotiation of social identities within an intersubjective field less influenced by certain constraints in traditional theatre. What is often overlooked, however, is that these discursive arenas are constructed within, at the same time as they engage, the social and spatial organization of the city, and are therefore marked by certain exclusions and inclusions. By refusing to abstract these festivals, as ‘artistic events’, attention can be paid to their ‘topography’, to explore the relations between cultural practice, social identity, and the organization of the city.

Happy, stable and contented: accomplished ageing in the imagined futures of young New Zealanders

2009 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 431-454 ◽  
Author(s):  
LESLEY G. PATTERSON ◽  
KATHERINE E. FORBES ◽  
ROBIN M. PEACE
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Young People ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Financial Success ◽  
Negative Stereotypes ◽  
Bodily Appearance ◽  
The Social ◽  
Bodily Function ◽  
New Zealanders

ABSTRACTIn imagining how their lives might turn out, 100 young New Zealanders aged between 16 and 18 years wrote descriptions of their future lifecourse. Their descriptions of themselves at the nominal age of 80 years form the basis of the research reported in this paper. For these young people, ageing and old age are understood as accomplishments in the context of an imagined lifecourse. They see personal ageing as shaped by a common temporal ordering of life events that ensures material security, financial success, and an enduring intimate relationship. In imagining themselves aged 80 years, three key themes that constitute a discourse of ‘accomplished ageing’ were identified: the experience of old age would be contingent on achievements throughout the lifecourse; old age would be a time for harvest; and while people may look old they can continue to ‘be’ young. Although their images of bodily appearance included some negative stereotypes of old age, appearance and bodily function were understood as amenable to life-long self-management. The young people imagined themselves as life-long active agents, and framed a positive image and homogeneous social identity for older people. The ‘accomplished ageing’ discourse has implications for how ageing is understood by young people. In particular, the social identity that accomplished ageing implies may shape how they relate to those who do not accomplish ageing in the imagined optimistic and homogeneous way.

Going to extremes: Social identity and communication processes associated with gang membership

2014 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 813-832 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liran Goldman ◽  
Howard Giles ◽  
Michael A. Hogg
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Intergroup Relations ◽  
The United States ◽  
Gang Membership ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Psychological Study ◽  
Communication Processes ◽  
The Social ◽  
The World

Gang violence, endemic to many communities in the United States and around the world is a very significant social problem. Given that the messages conveyed by, and the rivalries associated with, gang identities readily invoke constructs and processes familiar to the social psychological study of social identity, intergroup relations, and communication (Lauger, 2012), it is surprising that social psychologists have not advanced such an analysis of gangs. In attempt to fill this void and set a research agenda, this theoretical article examines the role social identity and identity-related communication play in promoting affiliation with gangs, particularly among youth who confront uncertainties and strive for family-like protection. The article discusses messaging communicated by gang members and reasons why youth adopt antisocial (e.g., violent) rather than prosocial behaviors. It also explores ways to diminish the allure of gang membership and raises questions for future research.

Linguistic Representations of Postproverbial Expressions among Selected Yoruba Speakers

Matatu ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-326
Author(s):  
Ojo Akinleye Ayinuola
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Social Identity Theory ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Identity Theory ◽  
Systemic Functional Linguistics ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Insufficient Attention ◽  
Western Influence ◽  
The Social ◽  
Linguistic Representations

Abstract Extant studies have investigated postproverbial expressions from sociological, feminist, and philosophical perspectives with insufficient attention paid to the linguistic representations of social identity in such expressions. This study, therefore, examines how social identities are constructed through postproverbials among Yoruba youths with a view to exploring the social realities that conditioned the representations of new identities in such expressions. The study adopts Halliday’s Systemic Functional Linguistics and Tajfel and Tuner’s Social Identity Theory as framework. Ten (10) postproverbial expressions, which are from anonymous and the written collections of Yoruba proverbs by Yoruba scholars form the data. Linguistic substitutions and code-mixings characterise such expressions. Postproverbials are a conveyor of rationalist, religious, hedonistic, and economic identities, which are conditioned by western influence and are transported by the generation of conscious Yoruba youths. The paper inferred that, though proverbs and postproverbials are context-dependent, postproverbials explicate a paradigm shift in the postmodernist discourse and refract Nigerian socio-cultural realities.

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