We all belong to many social groups and, therefore, we each have many social identities. Our race, gender, age, sexuality, religion, political orientation (and on, and on) are all social identities that intersect to make us us.
Social identity threats are worries about being socially devalued in particular settings due to one (or more) of these social identities (Steele, Spencer, & Aronson, 2002). Stereotype Threat–or the worry about being stereotyped or confirming negative stereotypes about one’s group–is the most commonly studied form of social identity threat (Steele & Aronson, 1995), but there are many other forms (Murphy & Taylor, 2012). People might be concerned that they will not belong in a setting; that they will be marginalized, excluded, or ghettoized; that they will not be respected nor their contributions valued; that they cannot be their true, authentic self in a setting; or that the very existence of their identity will be denied by others….just to name a few.
Situational cues—-like norms, values, beliefs, policies, and practices-—can lead people from stigmatized groups to experience social identity threat. Identifying these situational cues is important because, over time, worries about being devalued or dismissed due to social group memberships stoke anxiety, sap motivation, and undermine performance—-often perpetuating underrepresentation and wide gaps in academic and workplace achievement.
Detecting identity threatening cues, however, can be tricky. Even people and organizations with good intentions, using common sense strategies, can unintentionally create and maintain contexts that perpetuate cycles of inequity. In my research, I aim to identify forms of identity threat and contextual triggers to identity threat. Once identified, I explore ways of changing contexts to mitigate threat, ultimately so that identity is no longer a barrier to success in the setting.
REFERENCES
Murphy, M. C., & Taylor, V. J. (2012). The role of situational cues in signaling and maintaining stereotype threat. In M. Inzlicht & T. Schmader (Eds.), Stereotype Threat: Theory, Process, and Application (pp. 17–33). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Steele, C. M., & Aronson, J. (1995). Stereotype threat and the intellectual test performance of African Americans. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69(5), 797–811. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.69.5.797
Steele, C. M., Spencer, S. J., & Aronson, J. (2002). Contending with group image: The psychology of stereotype and social identity threat. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 34, 379–440. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2601(02)80009-0
