Self-Categorization Theory explains how accessibility and comparative and normative fit make a group category salient. Context shapes prototypes and whose message represents the relevant “us.” Depersonalization means self-perception through a group prototype, not loss of agency, anonymity, or a category automatically determined by demographics.
- FamilyModel
- CategoryTheories & Explanatory Models
- DomainGroups & Decisions
What these mean
Editorial orientation · Family
Model
In this series, Model names the editorial family primarily used to understand and explain communication: theories, frameworks, effects, traditions, principles and other conceptual resources. It is an umbrella for a route into the field, not a claim that every included object is a predictive model.
Editorial orientation · Category
Theories & Explanatory Models
Explains how or why a communication process works by relating mechanisms, conditions or variables. Its value is an account that can guide inquiry into what produces an outcome, rather than a name for the outcome alone.