At the Margins: A Distinctiveness Approach to the Social Identity and Social Networks of Underrepresented Groups

Abstract

Using distinctiveness theory, this research showed that the relative rarity of a group in a social context tended to promote members' use of that group as a basis for shared identity and social interaction. Relative to majority group members, racial minorities and women in a master of business administration cohort were more likely to make identity and friendship choices within-group. The marginalization of racial minorities in the friendship network resulted both from exclusionary pressures and from minority individuals' own preferences for same-race friends. By contrast, the marginalization of women resulted more from exclusionary pressures than from their preferences for woman friends.