ABSTRACT
What motivates people to be fundamentalists? One answer is that fundamentalism provides a social identity, the belief that one belongs to a category of people. We generally have several social identities, which help constitute our self-concept. Social identities require the internalisation of the beliefs and values of the category in question and guide our responses in social situations. When a category triumphs or fails, we take it personally. As for fundamentalists, their social identity as believer dominates their self-concept, resulting in the depersonalisation of self and others. This is exemplified in the instructions sent to the 9/11 hijackers.
