The same identity need can drive either reconciliation or conflict depending on expression.

Evidence

The human motivational system “can take on a dysfunctional life of its own” (Pratto et al. 2011, p. 195), such that otherwise functional needs (e.g., for food or sex) are expressed in ways that harm individuals or their environment. This is also true for group members’ need for a positive social identity, which can manifest in ways that either constructively or destructively impact intergroup relations (for a review, see Golec de Zavala & Schatz 2013). Consistent with this reasoning, engagement in the apology–forgiveness cycle versus competitive victimhood can be understood as group members’ efforts to satisfy their identity needs in ways that either foster or undermine reconciliation. — Nurit Shnabel and Johannes Ullrich, Identity Needs in Intergroup Relations, 127

Categorization

• XREF: Reinforces the reader’s existing symmetry-asymmetry synthesis: the underlying need is functional, its destructive manifestation is competitive victimhood. — connects to: Guaranteeing autonomous expression of diverse identities can unify rather than fragment a movement. — Michelle I. Gawerc, Coalition-building and the forging of…, 234; Both reconciliation and competitive victimhood flow from the same underlying identity needs. — Nurit Shnabel and Johannes Ullrich, Identity Needs in Intergroup Relations:…, 29; Identity is constructed through opposition to a continuously reinterpreted other (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Satisfying identity needs of victims and perpetrators facilitates reconciliation across groups. #corroborates (0.85) — Nurit Shnabel and Johannes Ullrich, Identity Needs in Intergroup Relations, 94
• Identity is constructed through opposition to a continuously reinterpreted other #expands (0.78)
• Conflicting groups can define their own identities negatively through the other’s failure #exemplifies (0.75) — Roderick M. Kramer, Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, Robert W. Livingston, Social Cognition, Social Identity, and…, 1123
• The same expressed belief carries different meanings in different groups and moments. #expands (0.74) — Nina Eliasoph, “Close to home”, 136
• Multiple sometimes conflicting identities can coexist in one subject’s politics #exemplifies (0.72) — Stuart Hall, Essential Essays, Volume 2, 262