Lise Jans

The Induction of Shared Identity: The Positive Role of Individual Distinctiveness for Groups

This article examines inductive processes of social identity formation, the bottom-up processes by which individual group members influence a social identity, integrating it with work on entitativity. Three studies tested the prediction that feelings of individual distinctiveness mediate the relation between inductive social identity formation and entitativity and that entitativity in turn predicts identification. The studies provided consistent support for this theoretical model over alternative models, using a range of different social groups and methods. Study 1 found support for the model in self-selected small groups. Study 2 supported it with a much broader set of groups that were not self-selected. Finally, Study 3 varied levels of inductive social identity formation systematically by varying group size and provided direct support for the hypothesized causal relations.

The Collective Origins of Valued Originality: A Social Identity Approach to Creativity

Prevailing approaches to individual and group creativity have focused on personal factors that contribute to creative behavior (e.g., personality, intelligence, motivation), and the processes of behaving creatively and appreciating creativity are understood to be largely unrelated. This article uses social identity and self-categorization theories as the basis for a model of creativity that addresses these lacunae by emphasizing the role that groups play in stimulating and shaping creative acts and in determining the reception they are given. We argue that shared social identity (or lack of it) motivates individuals to rise to particular creative challenges and provides a basis for certain forms of creativity to be recognized (or disregarded). Empirical work informed by this approach supports eight novel hypotheses relating to individual, group, and systemic dimensions of the creativity process. These also provide an agenda for future creativity research.

The development of group influence on in-group identification: A multilevel approach

Research on in-group identification typically focuses on differences in individuals’ identification at the individual level of analysis. We take a multilevel approach, examining the emergence of group influence on identification in newly formed groups. In three studies, multilevel confirmatory factor analysis confirmed two dimensions of identification—self-definition and self-investment (Leach et al., 2008)—at both the individual and the group level. As expected, the group had greater influence on individuals’ identification the more group members interacted with each other. This was shown in experiments with varying amounts of real interaction (Study 1), in a longitudinal study of student project groups (Study 2), and in a longitudinal study that experimentally mimicked the development of online communities (Study 3). Together, these studies support a developmental model of identification at the group level that has implications for the understanding of social identity and small-group dynamics.