Mark A. Ferguson, Rachel M. Kaminski, Leah K. Hollander, Allison M. Waite, & Zachary N. Mikkelson
Emergent Ingroup Members in the U.S. Mainstream: A Descriptive Analysis of 245 Social Groups
Contact at: mark.ferguson@uwsp.edu
A growing number of researchers have become interested in the emergence of novel social identities in society, as well as their potential for promoting social change (Jans, 2021; Ntontis et al., 2021; Thomas et al., 2019). The emergent ingroup model (Ferguson et al., 2019) provides a social identity perspective on the formation and maintenance of social stability and change in society. It places recategorization (novel social categories) and remobilization (novel intergroup behavior) at the heart of social change鈥攅mergent ingroup members working toward a better future together, in the face of emergent outgroup resistance. The present research examines whether 245 social groups are seen as emergent or established ingroups, as well as emergent or established outgroups, in American society Five-hundred and fifty participants completed a digital card sorting task about how these groups have been viewed in society over an extended period of time (Study 1 = 50 years; Study 2 = 100 years). The groups were sorted into one-of-five categories: 1) always negative (established outgroup), 2) more negative (emergent outgroup), 3) more positive (emergent ingroup), 4) always positive (established ingroup), or 5) not sure. As expected, emergent ingroup members included the prejudice targets studied in social psychology (based on ethnicity, gender, sexuality, etc.), as well as eco-friendly groups studied in environmental psychology (environmentalists, animal rights activists, vegans, etc.). Emergent outgroup members included these groups鈥� opponents in society (homophobic people, racists, climate change skeptics, etc.). These studies offer initial support for the emergent ingroup model.
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