Shared identity with a crowd increases helping and decreases pushing others aside.

Evidence

In one study (N = 72), we randomly assigned student participants to low vs. high shared identification conditions. In the low-identification condition, we asked participants to think of themselves in terms of their personal identity and we described the crowd in the simulation as “tourists, shoppers, and commuters”, in the high-identification condition, we asked participants to think of themselves in terms of their identity as students and we described the crowd as “fellow students”. However, our manipulation checks found that levels of identification with the crowd were close to the scale mid-point across conditions – possibly because the manipulation was not engaging enough – which meant that we could not test for group differences. Nevertheless, regression analyses showed that identification with the crowd predicted the number of helping behaviours and (negatively) the number of times other characters were pushed aside, in line with the social identity explanation. In addition, concern for others mediated the relationship between social identification and helping behaviour. — John Drury, The role of social identity processes…, 56

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to classic emergency bystander literature (Latané & Darley) and its reworking by Drury’s social identity model of crowd behaviour. — connects to: Shared fate in danger makes strangers act as one group offering help. — John Drury, The role of social identity processes…, 47; People act together because shared identity lets each expect others will join — John Drury and Rupert Brown and Roberto González and Daniel Miranda, Emergent social identity and observing…, 130; Shared identity generates expectations of support and trust among group members — John Drury, The role of social identity processes…, 16 (+12 more)
• corroborated: 5 independent passages support this claim — John Drury, The role of social identity processes…, 56

Related

• Shared identity in crowds produces solidarity and expected mutual support. (similarity 0.90)
• Crowd density lowers felt safety only for those weakly identifying with the crowd. (similarity 0.90)
• Shared identity that enables crowd helping often emerges during an emergency rather than pre-existing. (similarity 0.89)
• Shared social identity is the causal variable predicting solidarity among disaster strangers. (similarity 0.89)
• Shared identity turns crowds from irrational mobs into solidarity-based adaptive resources (similarity 0.89)
• Crowd identification predicts helping and reduces pushing in evacuation simulations. (similarity 0.88)
• Shared identity with a crowd converts density from threat into safety (similarity 0.88)
• Shared identity can be an outcome of mutual aid, not only its cause (similarity 0.88)
• People act together because shared identity lets each expect others will join (similarity 0.88)
• Observing others act together drives disaster solidarity more than identification (similarity 0.88)
• A shared identity can emerge within a crowd only after an emergency begins. (similarity 0.87)
• Shared identity can emerge rapidly during, not before, an emergency. (similarity 0.87)
• Shared fate in danger makes strangers act as one group offering help. (similarity 0.87)
• Shared identity creates orderliness that makes routine dangerous crowding survivable (similarity 0.86)
• Shared danger makes people feel close to strangers and motivates mutual help. (similarity 0.86)

Broader Connections

• People act together because shared identity lets each expect others will join #expands (0.85) — John Drury and Rupert Brown and Roberto González and Daniel Miranda, Emergent social identity and observing…, 130
• Shared identity generates expectations of support and trust among group members #expands (0.85) — John Drury, The role of social identity processes…, 16
• Shared social identity is the causal variable predicting solidarity among disaster strangers. #corroborates (0.85) — John Drury and Evangelos Ntontis, A SOCIAL IDENTITY MODEL OF COLLECTIVE…, 26
• Collective identity shifts personal goals toward the group’s welfare #corroborates (0.80) — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 548