We have all
witnessed how demonstrations and peaceful protests can bring about positive
social change. We have seen how mobilization that started from social networks
can bring down dictatorships, how LBTQI groups and their supporters have paved
the way for legislative changes across the world and gain access to legal
marriage and adoption, or how feminist activists can significantly influence
politics surrounding reproductive health rights by organizing social protests.
And I guess that many people around the world, myself included, feel happy and
proud about such efforts (and associated victories) to create more inclusive
and respectful societies. Still, what do we know about the effects of social
protest on our wellbeing? Are we happier or sadder when we take to the streets
with other people asking to be heard and demanding change? What are the consequences
that mobilizing for collective action has in our lives?
Source:
https://kellymcbride.wordpress.com/category/lgbt/
Instances in which people act together
on behalf of a group with the aim of reaching a specific goal are referred to
as collective actions (Wright, Taylor, & Moghaddam, 1990), and they can reflect
a multitude of strategies, such as signing petitions, joining demonstrations, and
organizing strikes, among many others (Van Zomeren, Postmes, & Spears, 2012).
At present, there is a vast body of
research stemming from different disciplines trying to explain the whens, whys and hows of
collective action throughout the world (e.g. Bliuc,
Reynolds, & Muntele, 2007; Klandermans, 1997; Polletta, & Jasper, 2001; Van Zomeren, Postmes, & Spears,
2008) and significant attention has been given to the causes and antecedents of
collective action. For example, Klandermans and
Oegema (1987) have shown that taking collective action involves a series of
decision-making processes that will affect the choice of whether or not a
person will take part in a specific activity. In this line, they argue that the
path towards action mobilization usually involves four main steps which people
have to go through in order to participate in collective action: 1) becoming
sympathetic to a cause; 2) becoming a target of mobilization attempts; 3)
becoming motivated to participate; and 4) overcoming barriers to participation.
In a different but related line of research, Van
Zomeren and colleagues (2008) have proposed a social identity model of
collective action (SIMCA), to explain the conditions leading people to engage
in social protest. They have shown that there are three main variables of
interest to consider when determining the potential for collective action: 1)
the first of these variables relates to identity: a person is more likely to
mobilize when they have a subjective sense of identification connecting them to
the people who are also mobilizing or the targets of their mobilization; 2) the
second variable refers to affective injustice, which can be seen as feelings
derived from the perception of an injustice and that can be expressed as
outrage or collective anger directed at the situation or the perpetrators of
the situation at stake; and 3) the third variable refers to perceived efficacy,
meaning that people will more likely engage in collective action if they
believe that their goal will be attained through such actions. Taken together,
these variables can significantly predict the potential for mobilization in
terms of different types of collective actions, but also in terms of different
causes and groups, distinct situations of injustice or disadvantage (e.g.
structural or incidental) and in a wide range of settings and contexts (e.g.
Tausch et al., 2011).
Source: http://citizenmetz.com/2014/09/02/our-atmospheric-commons-doesnt-have-to-be-a-tragedy/
However, to this day, much less is known about the
potential consequences of collective action for our subjective wellbeing. The
limited body of research existent does point to a consistent link between
collective action and subjective wellbeing (e.g. Klar & Kasser, 2009; Kerstetter,
Green, & Phillips, 2014). For example, Klar and Kasser (2009) have shown
that activists (in comparison to a control group), tend to report higher levels
of hedonic (i.e. wellbeing as life satisfaction, an outcome focused on a lack
of negative affect and the presence of positive affect), eudaimonic (i.e.
wellbeing as a process of making meaning of one’s life and expressing their
true self), and social wellbeing (i.e. wellbeing as a reflection of one’s
circumstances and functioning within a given society). Furthermore, Kerstetter
and colleagues (2014) found that, in a rural American community, working with
non-profit organizations promoted wellbeing, because these organizations
function as a support basis for individuals to fulfil their personal
aspirations. Going a step further, Foster (2014), through an experimental
paradigm, showed that the link between collective action and wellbeing is
moderated by perceptions of the issue at hand. More concretely, through an
experimental study with undergraduate female students in Canada, he showed that
for those who perceived gender discrimination as pervasive, taking action led
to higher levels of reported wellbeing than doing nothing. However, for those who
perceived gender discrimination as an isolated phenomenon, doing nothing was
associated with lower negative mood than was taking action.
It is also possible that collective action influences
wellbeing through its connections with emotions (e.g. Livingstone,
Spears, Manstead, Bruder, & Shepherd, 2011). Interestingly, previous research has shown that the emotional effects of
collective action can be both positive and negative: in an experimental study,
Becker, Tausch and Wagner (2011) found that individuals who participate in
collective action experience both outgroup-directed anger and contempt while
experiencing more self-directed positive effect. This seems to suggest that the
emotional consequences of participating in collective action are complex and
dynamic and most likely mediated by different variables, such as ingroup
identification and self-esteem (Becker et al., 2011).
Given the aforementioned literature, we can argue that
collective action may affect people’s subjective wellbeing through different
mechanisms. On the one hand, this link may be due to collective identity: when
people mobilize they might develop a higher sense of belonging and identifying
with a group, which in turn would increase their wellbeing due to their
awareness of being connected to a group that is positively valued
(McAdam, 1989; Tajfel & Turner, 1986). On the other hand, it is possible
that the link between collective action and subjective wellbeing is due to the
accumulation of cultural capital, in the sense that mobilization creates
opportunities for the development of different capabilities and a sense of
efficacy (e.g. Van Zomeren et al., 2008; Van Zomeren, Spears,
Fischer, & Leach, 2004). Finally, one
can also argue that the links between collective action and wellbeing may be
influenced by several factors from a person’s direct context, but also their
own standing on a given society. In this line, potential mediators and
moderators of this relation can be related, for example, to: a) the individual’s
socioeconomic status; b) political orientation; c) self-focused, ingroup and
outgroup-focused emotions; d) identification with a cause; and e) legitimacy of
the demands, among others.
At present, the literature is still scarce and dispersed but new venues
of research will definitely increase our understanding of the processes and
mechanisms influencing the links between collective action and wellbeing. In an
attempt to contribute to the literature and discussion on this topic, Sofia
Donoso, Ana Figueiredo, Francisca Gutierrez, Glória Jimenez, Paula Luengo,
Eduardo Mora and Ana Velitchkova are currently collaborating on a project
entitled “In search for the happy activist: When and how is collective action
conducive to subjective wellbeing?” at the Center for Studies in Conflict and
Social Cohesion (COES) in Chile and, together, they hope to shed some new insights into this body of research.
To conclude, be it because we want
to show our solidarity with a cause, or because we find it important to defend
a group we care about, or even because we want to show our government we’re not
happy about their work, each and every one of us has, at least once, taken part
in a situation or event in which people come together and join efforts in order
to reach a goal or to instill a desired outcome within a given context. So, the
next time you are confronted with the possibility of mobilizing for something
you care about, think as well of the positive consequences such mobilization
can bring to your own wellbeing. Who knows, maybe you’ll be more motivated to
take action… and feel happier afterwards.
References
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consequences of collective action participation: Differentiating self-directed
and outgroup-directed emotions. Personality
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Foster, M. D. (2014). The relationship between
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discrimination and dimensions of action. Sex
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Ana Figueiredo is a postdoc researcher at the Center for Social and Cultural Psychology at the Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
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