Exam 4: Perception and Categorization

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Ingroups are called membership groups; in contrast, outgroups are often referred to as non-membership groups. Membership groups can be involuntary (like age, race, sex), or they can be voluntary (like political affiliation, religion, or occupation). Ingroups represent a special class of membership group characterized by internal cohesiveness amongst members. An ingroup's norms, aspirations, and values shape the behaviour of its members. Like membership groups, non-membership groups can be voluntary or involuntary. An outgroup is a non-membership that is salient to the ingroup. An outgroup is seen as distinct from the ingroup or sometimes standing in the way of the accomplishment of the ingroup's goals (Jandt, 2016). Outgroups comprise people whose welfare we are not concerned about, and groups with whom we require at least an equitable return in order to cooperate. Attributions made about ingroup and outgroup members are typically biased in favour of the ingroup.

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Social identity theory posits that a product of social categorization is social identity formation (Hogg and Abrams, 1988). The basic assumptions are that individuals form identities based on membership of social groups, based on gender, political affiliation, profession and so forth. Through this process, society is internalized by individuals on the basis of social categories. Social identities connect individuals to society through group memberships which influence their beliefs, attitudes and behaviour in their relationships with members of other social groups. As our memberships or the social context changes, we need to reconstruct or renegotiate our social identities.