The Relation Between Social Identity

Integration and Psychological

Adjustment: A Focus on Mainstream
and Marginalized Cultural Identities
Michael W. Tragakis
Veterans Administration Salt Lake City Health Care System
Jessi L. Smith
Montana State University
The authors examined the association between social identity integration and psy-
chological adjustment in a mainstream sample of Latter-Day Saints (Study 1) and a
marginalized sample of gay men (Study 2). Results across both samples indicated
that psychological adjustment was significantly and positively associated with social
identity integration. Exploratory analyses revealed that for the Study 1 sample, the
relation between integration and adjustment was largely explained by individuals
feelings of authenticity. Results for the gay male sample showed the relation between
integration and adjustment was explained less by authenticity; instead, perceptions
of social identity negativity appeared to play a mediating role. The authors discuss
the implications for research on identity development and dealing with devalued
group memberships.
It is well established that group memberships influence how individuals define
themselves (e.g., Reid & Deaux, 1996). Social identities are those aspects of
self-definition that derive from groups and incorporate group-related behaviors
(e.g., cooperative), emotions (e.g., cheerful), or evaluations (e.g., weak; Tajfel,
1987). There is much variation in the content of the self, both within and across dif-
ferent social groupidentities (Ashmore, Deaux, &McLaughline-Volpe, 2004). This
Identity: An International Journal of Theory
and Research, 10:201221, 2010
Copyright Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
ISSN: 1528-3488 print/1532-706X online
DOI: 10.1080/15283488.2010.495909
The data from this project were collected as part of the first authors doctoral dissertation in psy-
chology at the University of Utah. The first author is nowat the Veterans Administration Salt Lake City
Health Care System.
Address correspondence to Jessi L. Smith, Department of Psychology, Montana State University,
304 Traphagen Hall, Bozeman, MT 59717. E-mail: jsismith@montana.edu
variation lends itself to variation in the degree of integration among multiple social
identities. Multiple social identity integration is the extent to which a person experi-
ences a coherent and unified (vs. compartmentalized) understanding of his or her
sense of self. Identity integration is important because extant literature indicates an
integrated self has a positive influence on adjustment (e.g., Campbell, Assanand, &
DiPaula, 2003; Donahue, Robins, Roberts, &John, 1993). Specifically, lower levels
of negative emotionality (e.g., Wells & Hansen, 2003), better physical health (e.g.,
Simonsen, Blazina, &Watkins, 2000), as well as improved self-esteem, well-being,
and objective performance (e.g., Phinney &Kohatsu, 1997) have all been linked to
greater social identity integration. In contrast, compartmentalizing ones social
identities has negative implications for ones psychological well-being(e.g., Bigler,
Neimeyer, & Brown, 2001; Sheldon, Ryan, Rawsthorne, & Ilardi, 1997).
Large, symbolic groups have traditionally been the focus of social identity theo-
ries and integration research (see Roccas & Brewer, 2002). Yet, the relative size
and status of groups is likely important to social identity content and resulting
identity integration (e.g., Simon & Hamilton, 1994). Our project thus examined
both mainstreamand marginalized group memberships. Past research has typically
examined, at most, three social identities (cf. Donahue et al., 1993). When more
social identities are taken into account, it is more difficult to predict psychological
adjustment (Downie, Koestner, El Geledi, & Cree, 2004). In the present research,
we compared five or more social identities so there is simply more potential vari-
ability in social identities in terms of content. Our overall aim was to expand un-
derstanding of the impact of groups on the self by offering a more holistic model of
social identity integration that applies to individuals regardless of specific group
memberships.
Primary distinctions between types of group memberships lend themselves to
differences in social identity content. Namely, some groups are dominant and/or
comprise a numerical majority, whereas others are in the minority. Moreover,
some groups are denigrated and devalued by society, whereas others are viewed in
a positive light. The place and view of a group within society plays an important
role in how groups are distinguished. As such, the content of social identities is of-
ten influenced by the views of society-at-large (e.g., Fiske, Cuddy, Glick, & Xu,
2002).
Mainstream group members benefit much from their dominant status in how
society views their group, and it is not surprising that they are stereotyped in posi-
tive ways, whereas those in the minority often endure more negative stereotypes
(Oyserman & Harrison, 1998). For example, stereotypes associated with lesbians
and gay men (e.g., that they are abnormal; see Madon, 1997) and religious groups
(e.g., that they are closed-minded; see Godfrey, Richman, &Withers, 2000) reflect
negative societal views. Societal views are important because they may translate
into self-views. Self-stereotyping signifies that stereotypes are applied to the self
as one enacts a given social identity. Mainstreamgroup members often incorporate
202 TRAGAKIS AND SMITH
stereotypically positive qualities into their social identity content, whereas
marginalized group members are more likely to incorporate negative stereotypical
attributes into the content of their social identities (e.g., Simon, 1993; Williamson,
2000).
Given that the views of society-at-large (i.e., stereotypes) can influence the con-
tent of social identities (e.g., Fiske et al., 2002), it is important to test the relation
between social identity integration and psychological adjustment in both main-
stream and marginalized samples. As such, the focus of our project is on two very
diverse and understudied samples: members of the Mormon religion and men who
identify as gay. This focus allowed us to discover whether the specific content of an
individuals social identity (as valued by society or not) factors into the relation be-
tween social identity integration and psychological adjustment.
UNDERSTUDIED SOCIAL IDENTITIES: A FOCUS
ON RELIGIOUS AND SEXUAL IDENTITIES
As previously noted, the bulk of social identity research focuses on large, symbolic
groups such as ethnicity and gender (e.g., Roccas & Brewer, 2002). In addition to
these traditional groups, we also opted to focus on two relatively understudied so-
cial identities: religion and sexual orientation. First, we examined men and women
who identified with the Church of Latter-Day Saints (LDS; i.e., Mormon). In Utah,
the LDS faithful make up the majority (approximately 62.4%) of the population
(Canham, 2005), making Mormon a mainstream social identity in this region.
Second, we examined men who identified as gay. In Utah, only 1,665 men were
identified as gay in the 2000 Census data (although certainly this number is an un-
derestimate), rendering gay a minority social identity in this region.
Examining adjustment and integration among the LDS faithful and men who
identify as gay allows for a focus on identities that are likely seen as positive and
congruent and those that are potentially a source of conflict. Although there is cer-
tainly individual variation, generally speaking, for LDS individuals gender, na-
tional and religious identities are assumed to be relatively congruent (May, 2001).
In contrast, research shows that negotiating sexual orientation and gender identity
is a source of conflict in some lesbian and gay individuals (Mohr & Fassinger,
2000). It has been asserted that there is a direct connection between sexual orien-
tation and a persons conformity or failure to conform to traditional gender stereo-
types of roles and physical appearance (Greene, 2000, p. 12; see also Jackson &
Lewandowski, 1997). In this way, many lesbian and gay individuals struggle with
differences between their gender-based and lesbian and gay identities (Miller, For-
est, &Jurik, 2003). Other social identities, such as religious or ethnic identity, may
also be a source of dissonance for lesbian and gay individuals. For instance, in
some religions, homosexuality is viewed as immoral, setting up a potential conflict
SOCIAL IDENTITY INTEGRATION AND ADJUSTMENT 203
between religious and sexual identities for at least some lesbian and gay individu-
als (Lease &Shulman, 2003). Dissonance such as this may be linked to anger, anx-
iety, and poorer physical symptomatology for lesbian and gay individuals (e.g.,
Simonsen et al., 2000). Despite this expected variation in content and congruency
among LDS and lesbian and gay social identities, greater integration should still be
associated with better psychological adjustment.
The primary goal of the current project was to determine whether the direction
and strength of the association between identity integration and psychological ad-
justment is similar (or not) among people who hold either mainstream or
marginalized identities. However, how this association comes about may differ;
namely differences in feelings of authenticity and perceptions of social identity
negativity. Asecondary goal of the present study was to explore two possible path-
ways through which this integrationadjustment relation comes about.
EXPLORING FEELINGS OF AUTHENTICITY
AND PERCEIVED SOCIAL IDENTITY
NEGATIVITY AS MEDIATORS
The content of social identities may be important to adjustment, insofar as varia-
tions in content result in feeling authentic as a fully functioning person (Shel-
don et al., 1997). Perceived authenticity is the sense that an identity is a reflection
of ones true self that is in concordance with other aspects of the self with which
one takes ownership (e.g., Sheldon & Houser-Marko, 2001; Sheldon & Kasser,
1995; see also English &Chen, 2007). The more authentic a person feels, the more
positive his or her well-being (Sheldon et al., 1997). As such, we hypothesized that
some of the variance in psychological adjustment that is predicted by multiple
identity integration is explained by its effect on feelings of authenticity for individ-
uals who belong solely to dominant, majority, mainstream groupings (e.g., White,
heterosexual Americans). This stems from the knowledge that these identities are
more likely to be relatively positive and congruent (e.g., Crocker, Luhtanen,
Blaine, & Broadnax, 1994), making it easier to feel authentic. The scenario for in-
dividuals who belong to minority or marginalized groups is necessarily less
straightforward. One or more social identities could reflect negative or highly dis-
similar content fromthe other social identities. This could make it difficult to draw
a conclusion about the self in relation to social groups (e.g., Amiot, de la
Sablonniere, Terry, & Smith, 2007). Indeed, as Deauxs (1996) two basket the-
ory of social identity suggests that identities can be compartmentalized in ones
cognitive representation of the self. As such, these compartmentalized identities
can affect functioning that is separate from, or even negatively related to, feelings
of authenticity. Nevertheless, authenticity may be positively related to adjustment
to the extent that individuals who identify with marginalized groups choose to em-
204 TRAGAKIS AND SMITH
brace the stigmatized identity (e.g., ranging from Im straight acting to a queer
and proud stance; Troiden, 1989). We expected that feelings of authenticity
would be positively related to adjustment for everyone, but that authenticity alone
might not be enough to fully understand the association between integration and
psychological adjustment in the presence of a marginalized (by society) identity.
We expected that in this case, it would also be necessary to take into account the
degree of perceived social identity negativity associated with an identity.
PROJECT OVERVIEW AND HYPOTHESES
The primary goal of this project was to further advance research on the association
between social identity integration and psychological adjustment. We hypothe-
sized that individuals who exhibit greater social identity integration would exhibit
greater psychological adjustment. Variation in integration was hypothesized to be
present for individuals identifying with mainstream (Study 1) and marginalized
(Study 2) groups. In Study 1, LDS college students in Utah were asked to describe
specific social identities (i.e., religious, gender, occupational, racial, and national
identities). In a second study, gay men in Utah were asked to define these same so-
cial identities and their gay identity. The degree of integration between multiple
social identities was hypothesized to predict psychological adjustment for both
samples, and we explored two possible mechanisms; authenticity and perceived
social identity negativity.
STUDY 1
METHOD
Participants
Participants were 269 undergraduate psychology students at the University of Utah
(139 men and 130 women, mean age = 21.3 years, SD = 3.4 years, range = 1842)
who participated in two survey sessions in exchange for class credit. The majority
of participants had been at the University for less than 3 years (72%). Individuals
were recruited for the study by telephone if they identified themselves in a
prescreening session as a Mormon, American, White, and heterosexual (i.e., rating
themselves as exclusively or predominantly heterosexual on a 5-point adaptation
of the scale by Kinsey, Pomeroy, Martin, & Gebhard, 1953). Students were told
that they were recruited on the basis of their responses to demographic questions
(not specifying which) and were told that the study was aimed at seeing howmem-
bers of different groups describe themselves.
SOCIAL IDENTITY INTEGRATION AND ADJUSTMENT 205
Instruments
Ratings of social identity content. Measurement of social identity content
closely mirrored past self-concept differentiation research (see Bigler et al., 2001;
Donahue et al., 1993; Sheldon et al., 1997). Identical trait listings were rated for
each of the five social identities: religious, gender, occupational, racial, and na-
tional (see Table 1). We included 32 adjectives on the basis of past research (Eagly
& Kite, 1987; Godfrey et al., 2000; Gosling et al., 2003; Jackson & Lewandowski,
1997; Spence & Helmreich, 1979). Participants rated the same attributes for each
identity on an 8-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (very uncharacteristic of
me) to 8 (very characteristic of me), as in Sheldon et al.s study. Each identity was
presented on a separate page, the order of traits was different for each group iden-
tity, and the order of social identities rated was counterbalanced using a Latin
square design.
Calculation of multiple social identity integration. Following Bigler et al.
(2001), the average standard deviation of trait ratings across social identities
served as the index of multiple social identity integration. For each participant, we
computed 32 standard deviations, one for each trait on the identity ratings across
the five identities. The mean standard deviation across the 32 traits indicated the
degree of integration of the five social identities, with lower mean standard devia-
tions indicating greater integration.
Feelings of authenticity. We culled five items assessing perceived authen-
ticity of specific social identities fromSheldon et al. (1997) such as This aspect of
myself is meaningful and valuable to me (a = 0.82). This measure reflects differ-
ing levels of autonomy in how an individual expresses a given identity; feeling au-
206 TRAGAKIS AND SMITH
TABLE 1
Social Identity Checklist Items
Self-disciplined Skillful Unworthy
Cooperative Traditional Active
Disorganized Decisive Emotionally stable
Moral Open to new experiences Independent
Adventurous Friendly Responsible
Sensitive Not creative Insecure
Competent Confused Selfish
Worthy Trustworthy Easily upset
Different Bad Good
Considerate Extraverted Unkind
Well-intentioned Reserved
Note. Participants rated each of the 32 attributes for each identity on an 8-point Likert-type scale
ranging from 1 (very uncharacteristic of me) to 8 (very characteristic of me).
thentic in how ones behavior reflects the real and sincere self. These values
were then averaged across social identities, resulting in an overall mean level of
authenticity.
Perceptions of discrimination. We also assessed perceptions of discrimi-
nation associated with each in-group. These questions, borrowed from Frable,
Wortman, and Joseph (1997) included the following: I have been treated unfairly
because of my _____ group membership [e.g., American nationality] and Peo-
ple of other _____ groups make life difficult for people in my _____ group. The
total rating across these two items served as a metric for perceived discrimination
within a given social group. These totals were then averaged to obtain the mean
subjective perception of social identity discrimination. These questions repre-
sented a unified construct with as >.57 within each of the five social identities and
a = .80 when including all 10 discrimination ratings.
Measures of psychological adjustment. We administered the Rosenberg
Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965) and the Satisfaction With Life Scale
(Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985) to assess participants overall well-be-
ing and self-worth. We examined trait depression and anxiety using two well-es-
tablished scales: the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (Radloff,
1977) and an abbreviated seven-item version of the Costello-Comfrey Anxiety
Scale (Costello & Comfrey, 1967).
Procedure
After the screening procedures, participants were scheduled for two 1-hr sessions.
Participants were told that they were participating in a study of self- and group
identification in order to document descriptions of different social groups. This
cover story was designed to curtail self-presentational concerns. In the first ses-
sion, participants rated their five social identities and ratings of authenticity and
perceived discrimination. In the second session, participants completed the psy-
chological adjustment measures. We counterbalanced all measures.
RESULTS
Preliminary Analyses
Neither gender nor age was significantly related to social identity integration. How-
ever, we found significant age effects on feelings of authenticity, r(265) = 0.15, p <
.05, with older participants reporting greater authenticity across their social identi-
ties than younger participants. Although we found no significant gender effects on
SOCIAL IDENTITY INTEGRATION AND ADJUSTMENT 207
feelings of authenticity (p > .90), results showed that women exhibited poorer psy-
chological adjustment across measures of depression, anxiety, andself-esteem(ps <
.001, Cohens ds > 0.51). Results also showed that older participants demonstrated
less depression (r = 0.13, p < .05) than did younger participants.
The Relation Between Multiple Social Identity
Integration and Adjustment
First, we substantiated that individuals exhibited varying degrees of social identity
integration, and this was confirmed (M = 0.88, SD = 0.35).Second, we tested the
correlation among multiple social identity integration and the psychological ad-
justment measures and found greater integration was significantly related to in-
creased well-being, lower levels of depression and anxiety, and higher self-esteem
(see Table 2).
Feelings of Self-Authenticity as a Predictor of Adjustment
Authenticity ratings were also variable (M = 27.73, SD = 3.21) and their distribu-
tion demonstrated a slight positive skew. Feeling authentic was positively corre-
lated with well-being and self-esteem and negatively correlated with depression
and anxiety. As seen in Table 2, authenticity was also significantly related to social
identity integration. As expected, this indicates that individuals who were more in-
tegrated felt more authentic across social identities. Next, we examined the possi-
ble mediational role of authenticity in the integrationadjustment relation. We
conducted analyses following procedures recommended by Baron and Kenny
(1986). Despite the significant correlation between the predictor variables,
multicollinearity was not a limitation of these analyses, with variance inflation fac-
208 TRAGAKIS AND SMITH
TABLE 2
Study 1: Partial Correlations Among Social Identity
Integration, Authenticity, and Perceived Discrimination
With Psychological Adjustment Measures
Measure 1 2 3
1. Multiple social identity integration
2. Authenticity .31***
3. Perceived discrimination .11 .26***
4. Well-being .35*** .39*** .21**
5. Depression .32*** .37*** .33***
6. Anxiety .17** .22*** .20**
7. Self-esteem .22 .43*** .29***
Note. Lower values equal more integrated. Age effects were partialled out of analyses.
*p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.
tors = 1.133. Table 3 conveys the relative beta weights in the regression analyses.
We then tested the potential drops in beta for significance using Sobel tests
(MacKinnon, Warsi, & Dwyer, 1995). Results showed that authenticity was a par-
tial mediator of psychological adjustment as operationalized by well-being
(Sobels z = 3.80, p < .001), and depression (Sobels z = 3.71, p < .001) such that
the relations were reduced, but still significant, after authenticity was added to the
equation. However, authenticity was a full mediator of anxiety (Sobels z = 2.60, p
< .01), and self-esteem (Sobels z = 4.23, p < .001). Thus, among these main-
stream participants, multiple social identity integration was associated with psy-
chological adjustment to the extent that they experienced authenticity.
Adjustment as a Predictor of Feelings of Self-Authenticity
Following Kraemer, Wilson, Fairburn, and Agras (2002), we also tested the reverse
causal meditational model, whereby the outcome and meditational variables are
interchanged. Data are presented in Table 4. The reduction in betas in this reverse
model look similar for each adjustment measure, and in all cases, the relation be-
tween multiple identity integration and authenticity was significantly reduced (All
Sobels z 3.06, p < .01) but still significant (all betas remained at p < .001), after
each adjustment measure was added to the equation. Thus, it appears that we can-
SOCIAL IDENTITY INTEGRATION AND ADJUSTMENT 209
TABLE 3
Study 1: Specified Order Beta Weights With Authenticity as the Mediator
Between Multiple Social Identity Integration and Adjustment Measures
Measure Initial beta
Beta after
authenticity added
Well-being .35 .25***
Depression .31 .22***
Anxiety .16 .10**
Self-esteem .21 .08***
**p < .01; ***p < .001.
TABLE 4
Study 1: Reverse-Order Beta Weights With Adjustment Measures as the
Mediator Between Multiple Social Identity Integration and Authenticity
Initial
beta
Beta after
well-being
added
Beta after
depression
added
Beta after
anxiety
added
Beta after
self-esteem
added
Beta after
health
symptoms
added
Authenticity .32 .21** .21** .25** .23**
Note. For Sobels z value indicating significant reduction in beta, **p < .01.
not rule out this reverse model; multiple social identity integration enhances ad-
justment, which, in turn, (at least partially) makes a person feel more authentic. We
return to this issue in the general discussion.
Perceived Discrimination as a Predictor of Adjustment
Although ratings of perceived discrimination was significantly related to lower
self-esteem, higher depression, higher anxiety, and lower well-being (all ps <.003),
perceiveddiscriminationwasnot significantlyrelatedtosocial identityintegration.
DISCUSSION
Results showed that among mainstream members of a society, social identity inte-
gration (across five identities) was positively related to psychological adjustment.
Furthermore, we found evidence that feelings of authenticity played at least some
part in mediating this relation. However, Study 1 intentionally tested a mainstream
group of individuals (LDS students in Utah) that possessed generally congruent,
positive, identities. Study 2 involved an attempt to replicate and extend our find-
ings to a marginalized group, gay men in Utah.
STUDY 2
METHOD
Participants
Atotal of 145 self-identified gay males were paid $15 for their participation. Mem-
bers of the gay community were recruited through lesbian, gay, bisexual, and
transgender group meetings/events and by postings on e-mail list servs. Because of
limited financial resources, only Caucasian American men who self-identified as
gay were recruited. The majority of participants identified as Latter-Day Saint (n =
43), Episcopal (n = 35), Christian (n = 14), (Roman) Catholic (n = 13), Pagan (n =
7), Unitarian (n = 6), or Buddhist (n = 6). Other religions (with less than 2 partici-
pants per group) included Jewish, Quaker, Taoist, Wiccan, New Age, and other
variations. Participants reported a mean age of 41.9 years (SD = 13.7 years), and
the majority were employed full-time (76.6%).
Materials and Procedure
Participants rated six social identities: (a) nationality (American), (b) ethnicity
(Caucasian), (c) gender (male), (d) religion, (e) occupational identity, and (f) their
210 TRAGAKIS AND SMITH
identity as gay. All other measures in this study were identical to Study 1, with a
fewexceptions. First, we added a measure of identity valence because of the poten-
tial role of perceived discrimination and negative views within social identities.
The adjectives that tapped into valence included good, worthy, bad (R), and un-
worthy (R). These trait ratings were totaled for each identity (after appropriate re-
verse-scoring) and then averaged across identities forming an index of identity va-
lence. The same perceived discrimination ratings from Study 1 were again used.
Thus, unlike in Study 1, participants completed both ratings of perceived discrimi-
nation and ratings of identity valence within each social-identity checklist, which
were first tested individually and then combined to form a measure of overall per-
ceived social identity negativity. Second, we included the Symptoms Checklist
(Bartone, Ursano, Wright, & Ingraham, 1989) to measure participants frequency
of health symptoms, such as headaches or upset stomach. Internal reliability and
predictive validity for this instrument are high (Corcoran & Fischer, 2000).
The procedure in this study resembled Study 1, but was slightly modified so that
participants could complete the questionnaire packet at home. Participants were
instructed to complete all surveys at once, although the surveys were split into two
counterbalanced packets, separated by two distracter tasks to prevent carryover ef-
fects. Participants were compensated with $15 for their participation.
RESULTS
Preliminary Analyses
Similar to the findings in Study 1, age exhibited a strong relation with the main
variables. Older participants demonstrated more integration across social identi-
ties, r(138) = 0.40, p < .001, (recall that integration is indexed by lower variation,
thus the negative correlation). Age was also significantly related to both measures
of perceived identity negativity (ps < .01), with older participants perceiving less
negativity across their group memberships. Older participants also reporting
greater authenticity across their social identities than did younger participants,
r(138) = 0.23, p < .01. Last, age was significantly correlated with all of the depend-
ent measures in the study (ps <.01) such that older participants were better ad-
justed than the younger participants.
Relation Between Multiple Social Identity
Integration and Adjustment
Similar to Study 1, Study 2 also provided evidence that individuals across group
memberships exhibited varying degrees of social identity integration (M = 0.96,
SD = 0.34). As seen in Table 5, greater multiple social identity integration was sig-
SOCIAL IDENTITY INTEGRATION AND ADJUSTMENT 211
nificantly related to lower levels of depression and anxiety, higher self-esteem, and
fewer health symptoms. These effects were above and beyond the effect of age.
However, subjective well-being was not significantly correlated with multiple so-
cial identity integration.
Feelings of Self-Authenticity as a Predictor of Adjustment
Similar to Study 1, we totaled authenticity ratings for each social identity. This to-
tal value was averaged across social identities and then correlated with the mea-
sures of psychological adjustment in line with previous analyses. However, we
were concerned that two of the original five authenticity items may be problematic
to our gay male sample (I have freely chosen this aspect of myself and I amonly
this way because I have to be) and unnecessarily stack the deck against men who
are gay reporting feeling authentic. As such, we computed authenticity scale reli-
ability scores both with (a = .829) and without (a = .857) the two items. Because
of the good internal consistency with all of the items, and to maintain parallel anal-
yses, we opted to use all five items of the authenticity measure. It is notable that the
subsequent results were similar when using the three-item measure. Mean authen-
ticity ratings were variable (M = 25.55, SD = 3.13) with a slightly positively
skewed distribution. As seen in Table 5, authenticity was significantly and posi-
tively related to self-esteem, and subjective well-being and negatively to depres-
sion. Authenticity was also significantly related to social identity integration, and
both measures of perceived social identity negativity, indicating that individuals
who felt more authentic across social identities were more integrated, perceived
less discrimination, and perceived their identities more positively.
212 TRAGAKIS AND SMITH
TABLE 5
Study 2: Partial Correlations Among Social Identity
Integration, Authenticity, and Social Identity Negativity
With Psychological Adjustment Measures
Measure 1 2 3 4
Multiple social identity integration
Authenticity .25**
Perceived discrimination .17* .31***
Identity valence (negativity) .42*** .42*** .22**
Well-being .14 .25** .29** .38***
Depression .29** .19* .36*** .27**
Anxiety .29** .10 .30*** .28**
Self-esteem .21* .25** .21* .49***
Health symptoms .25** .17 .26** .33***
Note. Lower values equal more integrated. Age effects were partialled out of analyses.
*p <.05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.
We again tested whether feelings of authenticity served as a mediator between
integration and adjustment because depression and self-esteem were significantly
related to both multiple social identity integration and feelings of authenticity. Un-
like in Study 1, there was no evidence for mediation across the two adjustment
measures despite that multicollinearity was not a concern in these analyses with
variance inflation factors 1.23. For this marginalized minority sample, the rela-
tion between social identity integration and adjustment did not appear to be caused
by feelings of authenticity.
Perceived Social Identity Negativity
as a Predictor of Adjustment
The two metrics of perceived social identity negativity were significantly posi-
tively correlated r(139) = 0.22, p < .01, although clearly this correlation was small.
Despite the small size of the relation between the two indexes of perceived
negativity, as seen in Table 5, both of these metrics were significantly correlated
with all outcome measures in the same and expected directions. In particular, both
identity valence and perceived discrimination were significantly correlated with
multiple social identity integration and feelings of authenticity such that individu-
als who rated their social identities in a more negative fashion or felt discriminated
as a function of their group memberships manifested less social identity
integration.
To test whether overall perceptions of social identity negativity served as a me-
diator between integration and adjustment, we first standardized and then com-
bined the two measures for an overall index of perceived social identity negativity.
As Table 6 shows, mediation results were mixed. No evidence for mediation
emerged for depression and anxiety. However, perceived identity negativity did
emerge as a mediator between social identity integration and self-esteem and
SOCIAL IDENTITY INTEGRATION AND ADJUSTMENT 213
TABLE 6
Study 2: Specified Order Beta Weights With Perceived Social Identity
Negativity as the Mediator Between Multiple Social Identity
Integration and Adjustment Measures
Measure Initial beta
Beta after perceived
social identity
negativity added
Well-being .13
Depression .28 .19
Anxiety .26 .19
Self-esteem .19 .08*
Health symptoms .24 .15*
Note. For Sobels z value indicating significant reduction in beta, *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.
health symptoms. Identity integration, then, was associated with better adjustment
(in part) to the extent that perceived social identity negativity was low.
Last, we tested the reverse meditational model, interchanging the mediator (so-
cial identity negativity) with the outcome measures. Data are presented in Table 7.
The reduction in betas in this reverse model look similar for each adjustment mea-
sure, and in all cases the relation between multiple identity integration and authen-
ticity was significantly reduced (all Sobels zs 2.34, p < .01) but still significant
(all betas remained at p < .01), after each adjustment measure was added to the
equation. Thus, it appears that as with Study 1s results, we cannot entirely rule out
this reverse model; multiple social identity integration enhances adjustment which
in turn (at least partially) makes a person feel less negative about his social identity.
DISCUSSION
Study 2 tested the influence of integration across six diverse social identities. Re-
sults showed that similar to Study 1, multiple social identity integration was signif-
icantly related to less depression and enhanced self-esteem. In addition, integra-
tion was also related to fewer health physical ailments. However, unlike Study 1,
feelings of authenticity did not significantly contribute to the relation between in-
tegration and adjustment. Instead, the relation between integration and self-esteem
and health symptoms was at least partially accounted for by feelings of social iden-
tity negativity.
Study 2, similar to Study 1, found reliable age effects. Relatively older individ-
uals reported more integration and perceived less discrimination. This finding is at
least suggestive of a developmental trajectory in the integration of social identities,
including stigmatized identities, which is later discussed in more detail. As time
passes, people may examine and reconcile how they define themselves across
group memberships.
214 TRAGAKIS AND SMITH
TABLE 7
Study 2: Reverse-Order Beta Weights With Adjustment Measures as the
Mediator Between Multiple Social Identity Integration and Overall
Perceived Social Identity Negativity
Initial
beta
Beta after
well-being
added
Beta after
depression
added
Beta after
anxiety
added
Beta after
self-esteem
added
Beta after
health
symptoms
added
Perceived social identity
negativity
.38 .28** .22** .26** .24** .26**
Note. For Sobels z value indicating significant reduction in beta, **p < .01.
GENERAL DISCUSSION
This project answered the call of Ashmore et al. (2004) in their reviewof the social
and collective identity literature for more empirical research on the dynamics asso-
ciated with the content of social identities. We hypothesized multiple social iden-
tity integration to be correlated with psychological adjustment measures, and this
was supported. Specifically, depressive symptoms, anxiety, self-esteem, and
health symptoms were all related to social identity integration, across five (Study
1) to six (Study 2) tested identities. These findings support reviews of the literature
on the effect of self-structure on adjustment. Namely, Campbell et al.s (2003)
meta-analysis identified that integration within the self has a consistent, positive
effect on psychological adjustment. This contradicted seminal work by Linville
(1987), which indicated that self-complexity acts as a stress buffer, leading to less
depressive symptoms and other measures of adjustment (see also Donahue et al.,
1993). The present project lends further support to the view that integration within
the self, rather than self-complexity, is linked with better adjustment.
Both studies presented here also suggest that disparate social identities, such as
nationality, gender, ethnicity, religion, occupation, and sexual orientation identity,
can all be assessed using a standardized, trait-rating approach. Specifically, indi-
viduals were shown to exhibit varying degrees of similarity in the content of their
multiple social identities. Individuals across studies differed in their ratings on
identical adjectives across social identities, and they varied in feelings of authen-
ticity. Although individuals were generally more integrated (i.e., demonstrated
similar trait ratings) across their social identities than not, the present research
showed a clear range in social identity integration. This finding, in and of itself, is
important for a number of reasons. First, these findings underscore that multiple
social identities in the same individual can be considered and rated in distinct ways
(Roccas & Brewer, 2002), including ratings on traits that are stereotypic in nature.
Second, the present standardized trait-rating approach has implications for social
identity research in general, especially research with minority populations, such as
lesbian and gay individuals or individuals in ethnic minority groups. By casting a
wide-enough net, to include generalized stereotypic traits that apply to multiple
groups as well as unique descriptors, a wealth of social identities can be rated.
Relation Between Identity Integration and Adjustment
These two studies helped to do the following: (a) to affirm the positive relation be-
tween greater multiple social identity integration and enhanced adjustment and (b)
to tease apart the process. The first study examined a mainstream LDS college
sample, with potentially more congruent identities. The second study examined a
gay male community sample with potentially conflicting identities (e.g., sexual
orientation and religion). Among the mainstream individuals, we found identity
SOCIAL IDENTITY INTEGRATION AND ADJUSTMENT 215
integration influenced adjustment to the extent that feelings of authenticity were
high. Similar to research by Smith et al. (e.g., Coats, Smith, Claypool, & Banner,
2000; Smith, Coats, & Walling, 1999), we found evidence that social identities
were synthesized and incorporated into a true and authentic self, positively
predicting adjustment. However, no such effects were found in the gay male com-
munity study.
Although historically, the LDS faithful have suffered discrimination and prej-
udice (see Hampshire & Beckford, 1983) in Utah, where this study was con-
ducted, the LDS faith is the largest, most prominent, and dominant religion (see
May, 2001). In contrast, many negative stereotypes still exist about men who
identify as gay (e.g., Herek, 1998), setting the stage for elevated feelings of dis-
crimination consciousness (Pinel, 2004) and sensitivity to group-related situa-
tional threats (Purdie-Vaughns, Steele, Davies, Ditlmann, & Crosby, 2008). In
Utah, in particular, people who identify as gay or lesbian are often overt targets
of prejudice and discrimination (e.g., Burrington, 1998). In fact, in 1995 Utah
was the first state to prohibit marriage between same-sex couples (Adam, 2003).
Thus, it is not surprising that unlike the LDS sample, for men who identify as
gay, perceptions of discrimination would take on a more central role in how so-
cial identity integration translates (or does not translate) to adjustment. The pres-
ence of less identity integration was associated with more perceived discrimina-
tion which, in turn, was related to decreased self-esteem and more self-reported
health ailments.
The difference in predicting adjustment between mainstream and marginalized
identity integration was interpreted using Deauxs (1996) two basket theory of so-
cial identity. Her work showed that social information about the self is often stored
separately from individual self-information. Social identities, then, can have a di-
minished effect on feelings of authenticity and overall functioning. For the gay
men in this project, there seems to have been some strategic compartmentalization
of social group information about the self, a protection fromperceived discrimina-
tion and negative self-views. For these gay men, their holistic sense of a true and
authentic self was generally not implicated by dis-integration across their social
identities. It is possible that social identity integration might best be considered as
embodying two facets: integration of self-definitions across social identities as
well as the integration of each social identity with the global self. Given that our
studies are among the few to examine the relation between integration of self-defi-
nitions across social identities and within social identities, more research is
needed.
Limitations and Future Directions
In this project, the groups rated were selected a priori and may not have been cen-
tral to some participants in the studies. Although this project cast a wider net than
216 TRAGAKIS AND SMITH
previous research in terms of the number and types of social identities under study,
results may have been hampered by this preselected method. Demographic groups
may be less integral to the self for some individuals. For example, women are
shown to focus their identity on their dyadic relationships rather than on large col-
lective identities (e.g., Gabriel & Gardner, 1997, cf. Walsh & Smith, 2007). Future
research would benefit from allowing participants to select their central in-groups
to rate.
More pressing, of course, is the correlational design of the current project. Al-
though separated by time (Study 1) and distracter tasks (Study 2), all measures
were essentially collected at the same time. Thus, the directionality of the relations
observed cannot be asserted. Our data did not determine a causal sequence in the
relations among identity integration, authenticity, and psychological adjustment.
Although we had theoretical reasons to assume psychological adjustment as the
endpoint, our data also supported adjustment as a mediating variable in feelings of
authenticity (Study 1) and social identity negativity (Study 2). The strength of the
models were similar, both accounting for 1820%of the variance. Thus, we are un-
able to draw strong conclusions about the order of variables. Indeed, a third possi-
bility is that poorer adjustment predicts social identity integration. Individuals who
see themselves in more negative ways and experience more negative emotionality
might then see themselves more disparately than those who are better adjusted.
This direction, however, seems less plausible than the reverse. First, one consistent
association with social identity integration was depression. Depressives are
well-known to exhibit low levels of effort and energy, per the Diagnostic and Sta-
tistical Manual of Mental Disorders (American Psychiatric Association, 2000).
Although integration seems to take effort over time, seeing the self in varied ways
across social groups does as well. It would be unlikely that an individual who tends
to demonstrate more depressive symptoms would make the effort to see them-
selves in other than a consistently negative manner. Second, psychological adjust-
ment seems to be, in and of itself, a reaction to the self-in-the-world. The more
likely directional argument, then, is that social identity integration predicts adjust-
ment. Nevertheless, it is plausible to assume that the association between social
identity integration and adjustment is recursive in nature (e.g., Sheldon &
Houser-Marko, 2001).
Our findings also lend some support for a developmental trajectory in social
identity integration (Amiot et al., 2007). For example, research shows that lesbian
and gay individuals follow a developmental course of identity awareness and ex-
ploration, ending in a synthesized, comfortable identity stance (e.g., Troiden,
1989). In such identity development models, the end state is comfort, calm, and
positive general adjustment. One tentative interpretation of our data is that rela-
tively older individuals in our studies seemed to have reached the end state of this
social identity development process, a finding that merits future research with a
wider age range.
SOCIAL IDENTITY INTEGRATION AND ADJUSTMENT 217
On the whole, this project provides support for the robust association between
integration of social identities and enhanced psychological adjustment across two
diverse samples. Our findings add to the literature on social identity, providing a
more far-reaching look at the role of social identity on adjustment by including re-
ligious and sexual identities in addition to many of the other primary demographic
groupings that define people as individuals. In this research, the linkages through
which social identity integration related to adjustment were found to differ be-
tween mainstream and marginalized samples, suggesting the need to consider the
both identity contents and contexts in future research. Understanding diverse
groups, and the social identities within them, is key to enhancing and improving
peoples daily lives.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Funding for Study 2 was provided in part by the Clayton Award for Excellence in
Research on Underrepresented Populations, awarded by the Department of Psy-
chology at the University of Utah, along with a private donation by a generous
community member. The authors are grateful to Dr. Ian Handley and Karyn Lewis,
MS, for their comments on an earlier draft. The first author also thanks his disserta-
tion committee chairs, Dr. Frederick Rhodewalt and Dr. Paul Florsheim, for their
efforts to improve this project.
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