Ideological self-placement is a declaration of group loyalty, not merely a self-categorization act

Evidence

In Reading 11, Conover and Feldman (1981) propose that ideological labels like liberal and conservative are important to people as social identities, even if the common usage of these terms lacks philosophical coherence. Insofar as people value their affiliations with certain political groups, they can be expected to hold positive and negative attitudes toward other political groups. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 1816 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Indexical tie creation is inherently ideological and builds bottom-up group norms. — Mary Bucholtz and Kira Hall, Identity and Interaction: A…, 59; Individualism and collectivism differ chiefly in in-group identity and loyalty — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 1598; Ideological self-identification predicts attitudes toward status quo versus reform groups — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 1817 (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• Ideological labels function as social identities that shape group attitudes #corroborates (0.92) — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 1816
• People label themselves ideologically via differing symbolic attachments, not a shared spectrum #complicates (0.74)