Ingroup identification and relative deprivation: an examination across multiple social comparisons

Most research on social identity and relative deprivation has focused on the salience of social identity in social comparisons. In contrast, little research has studied relative deprivation in relation to one's identification with the ingroup, and across a variety of comparison targets. Using samples of Latino and African–American respondents, the present study investigated ingroup identification and relative deprivation in comparisons with Ingroup Members, Other Minorities, and Whites. High-Identification respondents felt more group deprivation than Low-Identification respondents in comparisons with both Other Minorities and Whites. High-Identification respondents also reported more personal deprivation than Low-Identification respondents when comparing themselves with Whites and less personal satisfaction when comparing themselves with Other Minorities, yet they generally expressed satisfaction in comparisons with Ingroup Members. Results suggest that ingroup identification and comparison targets are important considerations for deprivation research, as one's relationships with targets may be associated with outcomes of social comparisons. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.