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Differentiation of individual selves facilitates group-level benefits of ultrasociality

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 June 2016

Sarah E. Ainsworth
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, FL 32224s.ainsworth@unf.edu
Roy F. Baumeister
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306baumeister@psy.fsu.eduhttps://psy.fsu.edu/faculty/baumeister.dp.html
Kathleen D. Vohs
Affiliation:
Department of Marketing, University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management, Minneapolis, MN 55455. vohsx005@umn.eduhttps://carlsonschool.umn.edu/faculty/kathleen-vohs

Abstract

Gowdy & Krall's target article complements our recent theorizing on group behavior. In our comment, we elucidate complementary aspects of the two theories and highlight the importance of differentiation of selves for human groups to reap the benefits of ultrasociality. We propose that achieving optimal group outcomes depends on the differentiation of individual selves.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016 

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References

Baumeister, R. F., Ainsworth, S. E. & Vohs, K. D. (2016) Are groups more or less than the sum of their members? The moderating role of individual identification. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 39. doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X15000618 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
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