Category definitions determine who mobilizes, for what, and who leads

Evidence

If one bears in mind that self-categorization theory applies to the behavior of people as members of large social categories such as nations, religions, political parties, corporations or trade unions, and not just to small groups of friends and acquaintances, then it is possible to reformulate its tenets concerning social influence in the following terms: 1. Social identities provide the parameters of mass mobilization. 2. Who is included within a social category determines who will be mobilized. 3. The content ascribed to the social category will determine what they will be mobilized for. 4. The prototypes of the category will determine who will be in a position to direct the mobilization. — Stephen Reicher, S. Alexander Haslam, and Nick Hopkins, Social identity and the dynamics of…, 75

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s interest in leaders personifying shared identity — the four tenets frame identity definition as the lever of mobilization, and the reading goal is whether positively- vs negatively-defined cohesion parallels matter. — connects to: Leaders strategically define social categories to advance their mobilization projects — Stephen Reicher, S. Alexander Haslam, and Nick Hopkins, Social identity and the dynamics of…, 80; Whoever controls category definitions holds the basis of social power. — Stephen Reicher, S. Alexander Haslam, and Nick Hopkins, Social identity and the dynamics of…, 77; State recognition channels subordinate-group organization into state-defined categories — Charles Tilly, Regimes and Repertoires, 572 (+6 more)
• DEFINE: Distills self-categorization theory’s influence tenets for large-scale categories like nations and parties.

Broader Connections

• Leaders strategically define social categories to advance their mobilization projects #expands (0.95) — Stephen Reicher, S. Alexander Haslam, and Nick Hopkins, Social identity and the dynamics of…, 80
• Whoever controls category definitions holds the basis of social power. #corroborates (0.88) — Stephen Reicher, S. Alexander Haslam, and Nick Hopkins, Social identity and the dynamics of…, 77
• Leaders embody shared identity by styling themselves as category prototypes #exemplifies (0.86) — Stephen Reicher, S. Alexander Haslam, and Nick Hopkins, Social identity and the dynamics of…, 83
• Social category definitions both reflect context and actively remake social relations #expands (0.85) — Stephen Reicher, S. Alexander Haslam, and Nick Hopkins, Social identity and the dynamics of…, 79
• State power operates through a grid of countable, serialized categories #exemplifies (0.83) — Benedict Anderson, Imagined Communities, 679
• State recognition channels subordinate-group organization into state-defined categories #qualifies (0.82) — Charles Tilly, Regimes and Repertoires, 572
• Identifying with a specific movement organization, not just its broad category, predicts participation #qualifies (0.78) — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 4450
• Categories require an implicit theory of why members belong together #expands (0.75)
• Being the only member of one’s category makes behavior read as category-driven #exemplifies (0.74) — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 115