Identity fusion can foster intergroup trust and willingness to cooperate.

Abstract

Identity fusion - a construct that captures extreme ingroup commitment - has traditionally been associated with intergroup violence. However, recent research suggests that identity fusion is also associated with feelings of security that promote intergroup interactions. This apparent contradiction was explored by examining moderators of the relationship between identity fusion and positive intergroup relations across two studies. Study 1, a pre-registered study on intergroup relations in the turbulent Bangsamoro region of the Philippines (N = 816), found that identity fusion was positively associated with outgroup trust when the outgroup was perceived positively. Study 2 (N = 1576) replicated these results across Gambia (n = 236), Pakistan (n = 505), Tanzania (n = 337), and Uganda (n = 498), while also finding that perceptions of the relationship itself (e.g., whether cooperation was judged beneficial to the ingroup) similarly moderated the effect of identity fusion on willingness to cooperate. These results suggest that identity fusion can have positive consequences for intergroup relations, depending on contextual perceptions.