Group identification and political protest: farmers' protest in the Netherlands

Abstract

Social identity theory is employed to conceptualise the role of group identification in the conversion of discontent into participation in political protest. It is assumed that higher levels of group identification stimulate participation in protest on behalf of the group. Perceived characteristics of the intergroup situation such as the permeability of group boundaries, and the stability and legitimacy of intergroup relations are supposed to modify the role of group identification. Group identification is decomposed into an affective and a behavioural component. Furthermore, ingroup identification is distinguished from outgroup differentiation; and groups are defined at different levels of inclusiveness. In a longitudinal study among Dutch farmers (n=168) the relationship between group identification and protest participation is investigated. Group identification, be it affective or behavioural, appears to influence action preparedness. People seem to enter the protest arena with some level of group identification. This level of group identification sets the level of action preparedness. Once set, the level of action preparedness remains fairly stable over time and appears to be a strong predictor of future action preparedness and participation. Action preparedness in its turn together with the behavioural component of group identification influences actual participation in collective action. Outgroup differentiation did not have any impact on protest participation. Identification with farmers in the European Union did not matter, but identification with farmers at the national or regional level did stimulate protest participation. Perceived characteristics of the intergroup situation did not have an impact on group identification, but permeability and stability did affect protest participation. Theoretical implications of the findings are discussed. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Dual pathways to engage in ‘Silent Marches’ against violence: moral outrage, moral cleansing and modes of identification

“…However, it is comforting to know that research has also shown that intentions to protest do predict actual protest behaviour (e.g. De Weerd & Klandermans, 1999). Despite this shortcoming, our findings further showed an intriguing pattern of relationships which may substantiate the processes put forward in the SVPM and moral mandate theory.…”

Political participation and dual identification among migrants

“…While important, this does not account for how migrants construe their identities in relation to their in-group and the recipient society, so that they can formulate their perceived inclusion in or exclusion from the nation. This is important because, as demonstrated in research in political psychology, identification with a group motivates people's participation in political action (De Weerd and Klandermans 1999;Huddy 2001). I now turn to political psychology to better understand the role of collective identification as a motive for political participation.…”

“…This criticism is in line with social identity theory and selfcategorization theory (Tajfel and Turner 1979;Turner et al 1987), which argue for the fundamental role of collective identification processes in-group behaviour. Today, there is significant research demonstrating that identification with a group predicts willingness to participate in collective action on behalf of that movement (Simon, Loewy, and Stürmer 1998;De Weerd and Klandermans 1999;Simon and Grabow 2010). Scholars working in this field argue that, in order to understand collective mobilisation, researchers need to understand instrumental factors, such as the costs and benefits of participation, as well as factors related to identification with the movement.…”

Group Identification and Outgroup Attitudes in Four South African Ethnic Groups: A Multidimensional Approach

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