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Social Identity Theory

You don't just have opinions. You have a team. And when someone attacks the team, it feels like they're attacking you personally.

Social identity theory explains something obvious that most people never examine: a large part of who you think you are comes from the groups you belong to. Your nationality, your political affiliation, your religion, your generation, your football club — these aren't just labels. They're woven into your sense of self. When the group is praised, you feel pride. When the group is criticised, you feel hurt. Even if the criticism is accurate.

This is why political debates feel so personal. You're not just discussing policy — you're defending your identity. Changing your mind doesn't feel like updating a position. It feels like betraying your people. So you dig in, not because the argument is strong, but because the cost of switching feels unbearable.

Every power structure in history has understood this. Divide people into groups, give each group a sense of superiority, and they'll police each other for free. You don't need to control what people think if you can control who they think they are.

The question worth asking is uncomfortable: how many of your beliefs did you actually choose, and how many did you inherit from the group you happened to land in?

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