Khan_2016.pdf (677.28 kB)
How Collective Participation Impacts Social Identity: A Longitudinal Study from India
journal contribution
posted on 2023-08-30, 14:20 authored by Sammyh S. Khan, Nick Hopkins, Stephen Reicher, Shruti Tewari, Narayanan Srinivasan, Clifford StevensonA key issue for political psychology concerns the processes whereby people come to psychologically invest in socially and politically significant group identities. Since Durkheim, it has been assumed that participation in group-relevant collective events increases one’s investment in such group identities. However, little empirical research explicitly addresses this or the processes involved. We investigated these issues in a longitudinal questionnaire study conducted at one of the world’s largest collective events – a month-long Hindu festival in north India (the Magh Mela). Data gathered from pilgrims and comparable others who did not attend the event show that one month after the event, those who had participated (but not the controls) exhibited heightened social identification as Hindu and increased frequency of prayer rituals. Data gathered from pilgrims during the festival predicted these outcomes. Specifically, perceptions of sharing a common identity with other pilgrims, and of being able to enact their social identity in this event, helped predict changes in participants’ identification and behavior. The wider significance of these data for political psychology is discussed.
History
Refereed
- Yes
Volume
37Issue number
3Page range
309-325Publication title
Political PsychologyISSN
1467-9221External DOI
Publisher
WileyFile version
- Accepted version
Language
- eng
Official URL
Legacy posted date
2016-12-08Legacy creation date
2016-11-17Legacy Faculty/School/Department
ARCHIVED Faculty of Science & Technology (until September 2018)Note
This is the peer reviewed version, which has been published in final form at: http://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12260. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley's terms and conditions for self-archiving.Usage metrics
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