Identity in Descriptions of Others Across Ethnic Groups in South Africa

Abstract

We examined the structure of identity implied in descriptions of others in four South African ethnic groups (Black, Coloured, Indian, and White). We tested the validity of an identity model with attributes, relational orientation, situational aspects, ideology, and valence as constituent dimensions of other-identity, and social distance as a moderator of constituent dimensions. Data were collected from 1,160 participants who provided descriptions of individuals they knew (parents, friends, grandparents, neighbors, and teachers) in semistructured interviews. Results confirmed that relational orientation provides a better conceptual framework of other-identity than individualism–collectivism: Personal orientation (individualism) and collective membership orientation (collectivism) are situated at the endpoints of the relational orientation dimension, with implicit and explicit relational orientation placed in between. We found that ethnic differences are most salient in implicit and explicit relational orientation categories in White and Black South Africans, respectively. We found that the identity of distal individuals was described in less abstract and more norm-regulated terms than the identity of proximal individuals. We concluded that all dimensions of the model are relevant for other-identity.