Conformity to group norms: How group-affirmation shapes collective action

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Abstract

Why do people collectively support action for (or against) marginalized groups in society? Three studies (N = 1161) conducted in France and Romania tested the hypotheses that collective action is partly driven by conformity, as people follow what they perceive as normative in the social context. Further, we hypothesized that a contemporaneous affirmation of group identity would amplify such conformity. Consistent with expectations, participants randomly assigned to affirm a value central to their groups tended to conform to salient group norms in their support for collective action, regardless of whether salient norms were discriminatory or non-discriminatory. Participants assigned to self-affirmation condition (Study 1) or to a control condition (Studies 1–3) were less influenced by group norms. The results suggest that group-affirmation increases conformity and, as such, may foster pro-minority collective action when the normative context is non-discriminatory. However, group-affirmation could also foster anti-minority collective action when the normative context is discriminatory. Results are discussed in the context of how to understand motivations for and against collective action on behalf of marginalized groups in society.

Section snippets

Self-affirmation, group-affirmation and conformity to social norms

Recent studies based on self-affirmation theory have examined the consequences of threats to social identity in terms of intergroup relations (Badea & Sherman, 2019). The basic tenet of self-affirmation theory (Steele, 1988; see also Cohen & Sherman, 2014) is that people strive to maintain self-integrity, a global image of the self as being capable, morally adequate, and adaptive. Threats to a social identity—to the extent that the social identity is connected to the individual's self—can

Collective action in connection with the Roma minority

In this research we focus on the example of individuals' intention to engage in collective action in connection with Roma minority and on the role of descriptive norms (Cialdini, Reno, & Kallgren, 1990) in shaping support for pro-Roma and anti-Roma collective action. Roma people are a traditionally itinerant ethnic group of people, who originated in northern India, but in contemporary times live throughout the European continent. They mostly live in East-Central Europe, where they make up 5 to

Study 1

In Study 1, we conducted an experiment to examine how self-affirmation, group-affirmation, and no-affirmation (control condition) would affect the association between perceived discriminatory norms and pro-Roma versus anti-Roma collective action. As noted above, Binning et al. (2015) found that self-affirmation freed people from the influence of descriptive group norms and allowed them to base their judgments on evidentiary data. Extending this logic to the present research, self-affirmation

Study 2

Study 2 sought to examine further questions as to whether group-affirmation results in conformity to salient group norms and the impact this may have for collective action on behalf of a group experiencing societal discrimination. In this study, rather than measuring perceived norms, we experimentally manipulated the salience of discriminatory norms whereby participants read information that described that most Romanians had negative attitudes (vs. control) towards the Roma. In addition, Study

Study 3

In Study 3, we examine how group-affirmation moderates the impact of non-discriminatory norms on individuals' intentions to engage in collective action in connection with the Roma minority. Specifically, we manipulate non-discriminatory norms to be cognitively salient, before the induction of the affirmation procedure. We also test a psychological mechanism of conformity to groups' norms: increased group identification.

We hypothesize that non-discriminatory norms increase individuals'

General discussion

The aim of this research was to examine the link between social norms and collective action in relation to a minority group by analyzing the conformity to group norms after different aspects of self-concept have been experimentally affirmed. We took the example of pro-Roma and anti-Roma collective action among citizens from two European countries (France and Romania). Results of affirming participants' personal identity (self-affirmation) were inconclusive, as self-affirmation did not reduce

Conclusion

The act of conforming to a social norm is considered a rational choice that people make if they want to avoid rejection by other members of their group (Deutsch & Gerard, 1955). Some empirical studies showed that in-group members who display in-group favoritism elicit more spontaneous positive reactions than those who behave in an egalitarian way (Carraro & Castelli, 2010). Promoting in-group positive identity by discriminating against others (Tajfel & Turner, 1986) can be perceived as a norm

Funding

This research was founded by the Justice Programme of the European Union (2014–2020) (Grant number: 808062).

Declaration of Competing Interest

The authors declare they have no competing interests.

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    This paper has been recommended for acceptance by Dr Ernestine Gordijn.

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