Reducing Group Alignment in Factual Disputes? The Limited Effects of Social Identity Interventions. Issue 6 (December 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lyons, Benjamin
• Is Part Of: Science communication. Volume 40:Issue 6(2018)
• Page Start: 789
• Page End: 807
• Publication Date: 2018-12
• Subjects: polarization -- social identity -- motivated reasoning -- risk perception -- self-affirmation -- social identity complexity; Social sciences -- Periodicals; Knowledge, Sociology of -- Periodicals; Communication in science -- Periodicals; Communication of technical information -- Periodicals; Communication in medicine -- Periodicals; Information scientifique -- Périodiques; Information technique -- Périodiques; Communication en sciences sociales -- Périodiques; Communication en médecine -- Périodiques; 300.14
• DOI: 10.1177/1075547018804826
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1075-5470

Abstract

Public divisions over contested science often arise due to individuals' motivation to hold beliefs in line with others with whom they share a common social identity. To reduce the influence of threatened group identities, this research tests two potential interventions at the point of exposure to new information: self-affirmation and multiple identity salience manipulation. Experiments across dispute contexts—a toxic mining spill, a biofuels mandate, and gene editing technology—show limited support for either intervention reducing group alignment. Together, these results contribute to a growing body of work illuminating the limits of social identity interventions.