AbstractDissatisfied with their relative standing in the world, China and Russia are challenging the US-dominated liberal order. Could US accommodation of their status concerns reduce conflict? The psychological rationale for status accommodation is rooted in the insights of social identity theory (SIT), which argues that persistent status denial leads lower-status groups to "lash out." Steven Ward (2017) objects that political scientists have misinterpreted SIT. In his view, impermeable group boundaries only affect individuals and do not lead to intergroup conflict. Ward's narrow critique overlooks the larger meaning and significance of SIT, which is about how frustration and anger over status barriers and unfair treatment motivate lower-status groups to challenge the status quo. Social competition is positional and zero-sum. Given the insights of SIT, Ward's recommendation that the United States demonstrate to China and Russia the futility of status competition is likely to provoke a backlash and increase the risk of military conflict. Instead, SIT implies a continuing process of status accommodation and efforts to maintain the legitimacy and stability of US leadership.
Much research in political science suggests that social identity can be an important factor in motivating behavior. If voters care about social identity, when will politicians find it in their interests to make group-based appeals? Do social identity concerns affect the policy platforms offered by candidates? In a model of political speech and electoral competition, in which voters care about both social identities and policy, we demonstrate that social identity concerns can lead to platform divergence even when the policy dimension is uncorrelated with identity. For example, policy-motivated politicians can employ identity rhetoric to obtain 'slack' in the policy dimension. Further, the need for candidates to resort to group-based appeals depends on such factors as the relative sizes of social groups; the policy preferences of group members; whether candidates care about policy and if so, their preferred policies; and the extent of individual identification with groups. The analysis demonstrates that social identity can have a striking impact on the strategic conduct of campaigns. References. [Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications Ltd., copyright 2006.]
PurposeDespite recent advances in research on antecedents of social entrepreneurial intentions, founder social identity has rarely been part of the research effort. This paper aims to investigate how different types of founder social identity affect social entrepreneurial intentions (SE intentions).Design/methodology/approachThis study investigates how different types of founder social identity, such as Darwinians, Communitarians and Missionaries, affect SE intentions. Specifically, this study predicts that entrepreneurs with Darwinian identity would be less likely to form SE intentions, while those with Missionary and Communitarian identities would be more prone to form SE intentions. The hypotheses are tested on a sample of 725 individuals recruited using Amazon Mechanical Turk. Most of the hypotheses, except for Communitarian identity, are supported by the data analysis. The results contribute to the literature on founder social identity and SE intentions and demonstrate that founder social identity is one of the important antecedents of social entrepreneurial intentions.FindingsTwo of the hypotheses were supported by the results. Specifically, this study found a positive relation between Missionary founder social identity (its locus of self-definition is "Impersonal-We") and social entrepreneurial intentions. This research also confirms that Darwinian founder social identity (its locus of self-definition is "I") has a negative impact on social entrepreneurial intentions.Originality/valueFirst, a person's social identity has been largely overlooked in social entrepreneurship intention literature (Bacq and Alt, 2018; Hockerts, 2017; Zaremohzzabiehet al, 2019). The findings provide the empirical evidence that individual-level antecedents, especially one's membership in a social group (i.e. social identity), exert a significant impact on the formation of SE intentions. Second, among the two types of founder social identity predicted to have a positive influence on SE intentions, only Missionary identity was found to have such a positive impact. The typical Communitarian locus of self-definition of "Personal We," is less influential than the self-definition of the typical Missionary locus of "Impersonal We." This might imply that not all types of feelings of belonging to a community have a positive impact on the formation and development of social entrepreneurial intentions. Finally, this study found that Darwinians are less likely to pursue social entrepreneurship although the definition of Darwinians is close to the definition of traditional entrepreneurs (e.g. profit/opportunity seekers). This may signify that the traditional concept of entrepreneurship may not be enough to explain different types of entrepreneurial motivations (e.g. social vs commercial entrepreneurship).
Data & concepts relative to the national integration & identity-building processes in Brazil are discussed. The present situation in Brazil is one of dualism between the modern & affluent sector & the large poor majority, rather than one moving in the direction of a homogenous & integrated society. Social & geographical mobility patterns are examined with reference to migration statistics. The introduction of market mechanisms to the countryside is studied as well as the social consequences of mobility at its point of origin & point of destination. General remarks on the kind of society which is evolving & emerging social identity patterns are presented. The chances of bringing the whole country up to the production, technology, & consumption levels of its rich centers are viewed as remote in the foreseeable future. Redistributive policies are discussed & problems encountered in the US War on Poverty relative to allocating resources to groups having no chances of joining the labor force are noted. 6 Tables. A. Rubins
Social identities based on class, religion and region underpin political cleavages. Examines the salience of divisions based on these identities and estimates changes in the conflict potential of the cleavages over time. (Abstract amended)
