ABSTRACT

The concepts of power and identity are vital to many areas of social research. In this edited collection, a prominent set of contributors explore the double relationship between power and group identity, focusing on two complementary lines of enquiry:

  • In what ways can the powerful dictate the identities of the powerless?
  • How can the powerless redefine their identity to challenge the powerful?

Each chapter is written by leading authorities in the field, and investigates a particular aspect of the interplay of identity and power via a range of empirical contexts such as colonialism, nationalism, collective action, and electoral politics.

The case studies include early modern Goa under Portuguese rule, the tribes of modern-day Jordan, the use of sexual stereotyping and objectification by female activists seeking to transform social systems, and a revisiting of the classic Stanford Prison Experiment. The chapters include contributions from a variety of social disciplines and research methodologies, and together provide a comprehensive overview of a subject at the cutting-edge of social and political psychology.

Power and Identity will be of great interest to researchers, graduates and upper-level undergraduate students from across the social sciences.

chapter |12 pages

Power and Identity

The multiple facets of a complex relationship

chapter |18 pages

Empire, Religion and Identity

The making of Goan people in the early modern period 1

chapter |21 pages

They're here to Stay

Tribes and power in contemporary Jordan

chapter |23 pages

Angry Naked Ladies

Can stereotyping and sexual objectification be used to transform social systems?

chapter |23 pages

Empowerment

The intersection of identity and power in collective action

chapter |23 pages

May the Force Be with You

Social identity, power and the perils of powerlessness

chapter |22 pages

Power by the People and for the People

Political power and identity in the separation and integration of national states