Self-Determination Theory and Social Identity Theory

SDT

Meta Theory in psychology of human motivation

meta theory

humans are not merely shaped by social learning or stimulus response pairing, humans are striving towards growth and optimal development

organismic paradigm

people are active organisms that are motivated to assimilate and integrate knowledge and capacities in physical and social environments - we are striving for growth and development and our social environment shapes this process by how it meets our psychological needs

autonomous motivation

3 basic psychological needs are met → motivation driven by one’s values, interests, or enjoyment and occurs when our basic psychological needs are being met in our social environments

autonomous motivation is key for…

satisfaction and sustained success in achieving goals

controlled motivation

basic psychological needs are not met in social environments → motivation driven by reward, punishment, or internalized pressures from others → less likely to achieve goals

3 basic psychological needs

need for competence, need for autonomy, need for relatedness

need for competence

human’s desire to master their environment → social environment supports by providing challenges and opportunities

need for autonomy

human’s desire for choice and volition in their acton → social environment supports by allowing one to be in control of one’s own thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

need for relatedness

human’s desire for social belonging → social environment supports by being empathetic, showing interest in, and conveying that one is important to them - caring for and being cared for by others

social environments that thwart satisfaction of 3 needs lead to…

greater passivity, greater alienation, greater ill-being (opposite of autonomy)

3 needs being supported leads to…

more autonomous in behaviors, more likely to persist at behavior, more likely to feel better overall

amotivation

complete absence of motivation or intention

external regulation

behavior is strictly driven by external rewards, punishments, or compliance with demands

introjected regulation

partially internalize external values or behaviors, but do not fully accept them as their own

identified regulation

consciously values a behavior and accepts it as personally important, even if not inherently enjoyable

integrated regulation

fully assimilate external regulations into their sense of self, aligning actions with their personal values, needs, and identity

intrinsic motivation

the natural, innate drive to engage in activities for their own sake out of genuine interest, joy, or satisfaction, rather than external rewards

How does SDT help explain identity formation?

satisfying 3 needs leads to healthy identity formation

Less internalization and less assimilation…

less ability for the Identity to meet psychological needs

partially assimilated into the Self

can be oppressive or destructive

well integrated into the Self

personally meaningful guides to life

social identity theory (SIT)

the study of the interplay between personal and social identities - aims to specify and predict the circumstances under which individuals think of themselves as individuals or as group members.

personal identities

individual traits, achievements, and qualities

social identities

group affiliations that are recognized as being part of the self

social identity (definition)

the part of a person’s self-concept that derives from membership in groups that are important to them - how people transform their group affiliations to secure a more favorable self-concept

minimal-group studies

Henri Tajfel - in-group preferences even with arbitrary groups

social categorization

people categorize themselves and others into ungroups and outgroups

social identification

people identify with groups that they are a part of

social comparison

comparing own in-group favorably against outgroup (in-group favoritism)

artificial social order can lead to…

intergroup conflict, prejudice, discrimination, and oppression

What if Social Comparison shows my group is somehow marginalized?

My self concept is negatively affected

Tajfel and Turner strategies to enhance one’s self-concept

•“exit” leave a devalued group

•“pass” conceal a group membership

•“voice” take collective action to improve group image

ethnocentrism

when people see their own group as superior to others