Auswahl der wissenschaftlichen Literatur zum Thema „Group identity“

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 1999.
Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 89-92). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users. Address: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/uoregon/fullcit?p9955915.

Thesis (M.A. in National Security Affairs) Naval Postgraduate School, Dec. 2000.
Thesis advisors, Glenn Robinson, Anna Simons. "December 2000." Includes bibliographical references (p. 103-107). Also available in print.

Des etudes anterieures ont ete incapbles de determiner quels facteurs sous-tendent l'identite sociale. A l'aide de plusieurs innovations methodologiques (une mesure permettant d'exprimer librement les facteurs relies a l'identite sociale, le fait de choisir l'endogroupe et l'exogroupe et une conceptualisation de l'identite sociale comme etant composee de l'attirance envers l'endogroupe et du rejet par l'exogroupe), cette etude avait pour but d'etudier l'influence des trois facteurs postules par Tajfel (cognition, emotions et evaluation) et les croyances symboliques (coutumes, valeurs et normes) sur l'identite sociale. Les resultats de cette etude indiquent qu'une evaluation positive de l'endogroupe, les emotions positives envers l'endogroupe et une evaluation negative de l'exogroupe menacant sont associees a une identification sociale plus forte. De plus, les resultats de cette etude demontrent qu'une difference individuelle (A quel point vous percevez-vous comme un membre typique de votre groupe?) est associee a des facteurs relies a l'endogroupe (une identification plus forte et une integration du concept de soi plus eleve) et a l'exogroupe (menace intergroupe, discrimination personnelle et collective).

The primary purpose of this study is to investigate whether the effect of group identity on individuals' willingness to cooperate is moderated by benefit asymmetry (i.e., mutual cooperation may benefit some group members more than others). I conduct an experiment in which participants act as group members for a hypothetical company. Consistent with expectations, I find that a strong group identity promotes employees' cooperation rates, but only in situations in which benefits resulting from mutual cooperation are symmetric. When the benefits are asymmetric, employees' willingness to cooperate depends on whether they are disadvantaged or advantaged as well as the level of group identity. Specifically, the disadvantaged employees are less likely to cooperate when group identity is high. In contrast, the advantaged ones' willingness to cooperate is unaffected by the level of group identity. Results of my study suggest that, in situations of benefit asymmetry, inducing a high level of group identity may have unintended negative consequences on group performance as well as organizational productivity.

I have from my publications selected one book and four articles I believe show an inherent theoretical and methodological consistency within the field of onomastics. The following are submitted: Mål og med, Målføre og médnamn frå Smøla, Tapir Akademisk Forlag, Trondheim 2000; ‘Sjønamn på medfjella’, in Namn of Nemne 15/1998 (:21-31); ‘Norse Topographical Names on the West Coast of Scotland’, in Scandinavia and Europe 800-1350 Contact, conflict and co-existence, ed. By J. Adams and K. Holman, Brepols, 2004 (:97-108); ‘Explorers, Raiders and Settlers. The Norse Impact on Hebridean Place-Names’, in Cultural Contacts in the North Atlantic Region: The Evidence of Names, ed. By P. Gammeltoft, C. Hough and D. Waugh, 2005 (:141-56), and ‘Scandinavian-American place-names as viewed from the Old World’, in Language Contact Across the Atlantic, ed. By I. Clarkson and S. Ureland, Tübingen, 1996 (:255-67). In addition I submit an essay ‘Fashion, Limitation and Nostalgia: Scandinavian Place-Names Abroad’, which discusses the underlying theory of the selected work. The book and articles argue the importance of considering the user-group when analysing patterns concerning distribution and time-span of productive use of classes of place-names. I have built on and extended theoretical ideas from Magnus Olsen, who was the first to show that our inventory of names is dependent upon the group(s) we function within, and from WHF Nicolaisen’s writings about our individual onomasticon.  In my book and articles it is shown how this is of importance within a fisherman’s milieu on the west coast of Norway, where highly specialised place-names are part of a very restricted and exclusive in-group language. Further, it is demonstrated that certain strata of Norse names in Scotland belong to time periods when the Norse arrived as explorers, while other names date to when the Norse came as settlers. Finally, this is exemplified with Scandinavian place-names from the relatively recent immigration to North America, where it is demonstrated that place-names fulfil a function as cultural signs within an immigrant group in need of identity markers.

The current project investigates exclusion in terms of racial/ethnic identity and group behavioral norms. Research concerning the "black sheep effect" evidences the tendency for group members to derogate a fellow in-group member who has violated an important social norm (Marques, Yzerbyt, & Leyens, 1988). Similarly, Oyserman's (2007) model of identity-based motivation argues that any group identity can shape behavior through a process of identity infusion such that group members are motivated to behave in ways that are in-group identity-infused and equally avoid behaviors that are out-group identity-infused. Finally, identity misclassification research provides evidence that individuals feel threatened by the notion that they may have behaved in ways that are congruent with an out-group (e.g., Bosson, Prewitt-Freillino, & Taylor, 2005). Therefore, when a behavior is infused with the identity of an out-group, avoiding such behaviors is seen as an expression of belonging to one's in-group. The current project assesses the consequences of group identity-infusion specifically in the area of academics and racial/ethnic identity. In Study 1, identity-threatened participants who were excluded by an in-group member attributed their exclusion to their out-group identity-infused behavior, but they did not expect exclusion, nor experience heightened negative emotions or anxiety as a result of exclusion. In Study 2, though strongly identified participants were more likely to choose an identity-affirmed partner regardless of task condition, no differences were found for ratings of potential partners. Future research should address ecological validity issues and attempt to make more naturalistic observations of these behavioral patterns. Additionally, a younger sample should be used in order to assess exclusion for "acting White" among students who are legally required to be in school, rather than those who have chosen to pursue higher education.

Since rock became the subject of academic study, its attendant ideology has been scrutinised and its mythical and Romantic components exposed. Largely absent from this account has been a thorough analysis of the phenomenon of the ‘band’. The role of individual acts and the wider contexts in which they worked has been discussed at the expense of an examination of an important form of music-making. This thesis seeks to address that gap. Using a mixture of literary research and ethnography, I present an overall picture of the band as a modus operandum, charting its evolution during the emergence of rock and presenting evidence that it has become a key means by which people enter and engage with the field of popular music. I suggest that debates about ‘authenticity’ in rock, in seeking to see through industry rhetoric have overlooked the way in which creativity in bands is closely connected to social interaction. My historical analysis brings to light the way in which the group- identified band has become embedded into popular music practice through the power of narratives.Two case studies, contextualised with archival material and interviews, form the basis for a model for collective creativity. By demonstrating how social action and narrative myth feed into one another, I argue that the group identity of a band is the core of the industrially mediated texts to which audiences respond. Our understanding of how authenticity is ascribed in popular music, and rock in particular, has paid too much attention to genre-based arguments and not enough to musical and social methods. I propose a way of revising this to take better account of rock as an actual practice.

This thesis studies the effect of uncertainty in the group identity or the payoffs on social preferences. It also tests the robustness of Dana, Weber and Kuang's results and presents a model to understand the findings of the experiment. Chapter 1 investigates the effect of uncertainty in group membership of the subjects on social preferences. We find that the decision to know the group identity of the counterparts' who turn out to be an in-group member in the dictator and response games increases the likelihood of choosing the social-welfare-maximising outcome. The revelation of matched player's identity decreases the likelihood to reward and increases the likelihood to punish. Chapter 2, studies the effect of uncertainty in payoffs on social preferences in the presence of group identity. We find that the uncertainty on payoffs does not reduce the fair choices if the subjects are matched with an in-group member. However, the decision to know the payoffs of an out-group counterpart increases the likelihood of choosing self-interested choice. Chapter 3 tests the robustness of Dana, Weber and Kuang's result in a within-subjects experiment. Our data confirm the DWK's findings, but there is an increase in the number of self-interested choices in the hidden-payoffs treatment. Chapter 4 presents a model that combine Fehr and Schmidt preferences and prospect theory in order to understand the result of second treatment of DWK's experiment. In the treatment, the subjects have an option to reveal their counterparts' payoffs. We find a threshold for β = 1/5 beyond which the utility of revealing he hidden payoffs and choose the fair choice is higher than not revealing. Also, the combination of Fehr-Schmidt preferences with two alternative decision theories, expected utility and prospect theory, produce the same β.

Com a individus, definim les nostres identitats de grup mitjançant la categorització dels altres individus i de nosaltres mateixos en moltes categories socials com la de gènere, raça, religió, nacionalitat, conviccions polítiques i professió, entre moltes altres. Aquest procés de categorització ens confereix una noció de "qui" som, a quins grups socials pertanyem i, el que és més important, com s'espera que ens comportem. Aquesta tesi gira entorn a dos fenòmens d'especial rellevància en la literatura sobre la identitat de grup; la discriminació i els conflictes intergrupals. La identitat de grup es considera un factor subjacent de les conductes discriminatòries i l'aparició de conflictes entre membres de diferents grups socials. Hi ha una àmplia evidència que mostra que la mera categorització en categories socials és suficient per desencadenar conductes discriminatòries contra membres d'altres grups socials. A més, la història de la humanitat ofereix molts exemples de conflictes i genocidis més arrelats en la diversitat d'identitats de grup que en les disputes econòmiques. No obstant això, no tots els membres d'un grup social discriminen en la mateixa magnitud, ni tots els grups socials estan involucrats en conflictes. El primer treball d'aquesta tesi proposa una mesura empírica que va més enllà de la categorització dels individus en categories socials. Utilitzant la voluntat d'adquirir béns representatius de grups socials, aquest article mesura i quantifica la intensitat de la identitat de grup per investigar els factors que reforcen i atenuen la identitat de grup dels individus. Els resultats proporcionen evidència sobre com la convergència i divergència en els comportaments de membres d'un grup social reforcen i atenuen la intensitat de la identitat de grup dels individus, la qual cosa és crucial per predir l'aparició de conflictes intergrupals a nivell col·lectiu i forts graus de discriminació a nivell individual. La literatura que estudia els efectes de la identitat de grup en la presa de decisions individuals s'ha centrat principalment en estudiar la discriminació i els conflictes intergrupals assumint que la identitat de grup dels individus és coneguda i observable. No obstant això, moltes identitats de grup es basen en conviccions i creences que no són directament observables a partir dels trets físics dels individus i, per tant, poden ser incertes (per exemple, la religió i la ideologia). El segon treball presentat en aquesta tesi explora els efectes de la incertesa de la identitat de grup sobre els patrons de discriminació quan els individus decideixen amb qui interactuar, i les seves repercussions en l'eficiència de la coordinació col·lectiva. La gestió de la diversitat i incertesa de les identitats de grup és un factor important per determinar els guanys i l'èxit de les organitzacions i empreses, especialment quan la força laboral és diversa i pot tenir dificultats de coordinació i cooperació. Els resultats trobats en el segon treball mostren el paper que juga la incertesa de la identitat de grup en les preferències d'interacció dels individus i ofereixen diverses idees gerencials per dissuadir la discriminació entre els empleats alhora d’interactuar i augmentar la seva eficiència de coordinació quan treballen en equip. Finalment, l'últim treball presentat en aquesta tesi contribueix a la literatura de polítiques i intervencions orientades a mitigar la discriminació i els prejudicis entre membres de grups socials en conflicte. Si bé aquesta literatura s'ha centrat en estudiar com el contacte entre membres de diferents grups socials redueix la discriminació i els prejudicis, hi ha una manca d'evidència sobre intervencions amb les mateixes finalitats que no requereixin contacte entre individus. L'últim treball presentat en aquesta tesi explota un context natural en què els individus de dos grups socials actualment en conflicte es veuen obligats a cooperar per aconseguir un objectiu comú superior sense poder posar-se en contacte. Aquest context ofereix l'oportunitat de posar l'èmfasi no en el contacte entre individus sinó en els objectius comuns superiors com a factor atenuant de la discriminació. Els resultats mostren que els individus es van tornar més egoistes a mesura que s'aconseguia gradualment l'objectiu comú superior. A més, els individus d'un grup social en particular també van augmentar la seva discriminació a mesura que s'aconseguia gradualment l'objectiu comú. Aquests resultats mostren com els objectius comuns superiors poden esdevenir un factor mitigador de la discriminació i l'egoisme.
Como individuos, definimos nuestras identidades grupales mediante la categorización de los demás individuos y de nosotros mismos en muchas categorías sociales como la de género, raza, religión, nacionalidad, convicciones políticas y profesión, entre muchas otras. Este proceso de categorización nos confiere una noción de "quiénes" somos, a qué grupos sociales pertenecemos y, lo que es más importante, cómo se espera que nos comportemos. Esta tesis gira en torno a dos fenómenos de especial relevancia en la literatura sobre identidad grupal; la discriminación y los conflictos intergrupales. La identidad grupal se considera un factor subyacente de las conductas discriminatorias y la aparición de conflictos entre miembros de distintos grupos sociales. Existe una amplia evidencia que muestra que la mera categorización en categorías sociales es suficiente para desencadenar la discriminación contra miembros de otros grupos sociales. Además, la historia de la humanidad ofrece muchos ejemplos de conflictos y genocidios más arraigados en la diversidad de identidades grupales que en las disputas económicas. Sin embargo, no todos los miembros de un grupo social discriminan en la misma magnitud, ni todos los grupos sociales están involucrados en conflictos. El primer trabajo de esta tesis propone una medida empírica que va más allá de la categorización de los individuos en categorías sociales. Utilizando la voluntad de adquirir bienes representativos de grupos sociales, este artículo mide y cuantifica la intensidad de la identidad grupal para investigar los factores que refuerzan y atenúan la identidad grupal de los individuos. Los resultados encontrados proporcionan evidencia sobre cómo la convergencia y divergencia en los comportamientos de miembros de un grupo social refuerzan y atenúan la intensidad de la identidad grupal de los individuos, lo cual es crucial para predecir la aparición de conflictos intergrupales a nivel colectivo y fuertes grados de discriminación a nivel individual. La literatura que estudia los efectos de la identidad grupal en la toma de decisiones individuales se ha centrado principalmente en estudiar la discriminación y los conflictos intergrupales asumiendo que la identidad grupal de los individuos es conocida y observable. Sin embargo, muchas identidades grupales se basan en convicciones y creencias que no son directamente observables a partir de los rasgos físicos individuales y, por lo tanto, pueden ser inciertas (por ejemplo, la religión y la ideología). El segundo trabajo presentado en esta tesis explora los efectos de la incertidumbre de la identidad grupal sobre los patrones de discriminación cuando los individuos deciden con quién interactuar, y sus repercusiones en la eficiencia de la coordinación colectiva. La gestión de la diversidad e incertidumbre de las identidades grupales es un factor importante para determinar las ganancias y el éxito de las organizaciones y empresas, especialmente cuando la fuerza laboral es diversa y puede tener dificultades para coordinarse y cooperar. Los resultados encontrados en el segundo trabajo arrojan luz sobre el papel que juega la incertidumbre de la identidad grupal en las preferencias de interacción de los individuos y ofrecen varias ideas gerenciales para disuadir la discriminación entre los empleados para interactuar y aumentar su eficiencia de coordinación cuando trabajan en equipo. Finalmente, el último trabajo presentado en esta tesis contribuye a la literatura de políticas e intervenciones orientadas a mitigar la discriminación y los prejuicios entre miembros de grupos sociales en conflicto. Si bien esta literatura se ha centrado en estudiar cómo el contacto entre miembros de diferentes grupos sociales reduce la discriminación y los prejuicios, existe una falta de evidencia sobre intervenciones con los mismos fines que no requieran contacto entre individuos. El último trabajo presentado en esta tesis explota un contexto natural en el que los individuos de dos grupos sociales actualmente en conflicto se ven obligados a cooperar para lograr un objetivo común superior sin poder ponerse en contacto. Este contexto ofrece la oportunidad de poner el énfasis no en el contacto entre individuos sino en los objetivos comunes superiores como factor atenuante de la discriminación. Los resultados muestran que los individuos se volvieron más egoístas a medida que se lograba gradualmente el objetivo común superior. Además, los individuos de un grupo social en particular también aumentaron su discriminación a medida que se lograba gradualmente el objetivo común. Estos resultados muestran como los objetivos comunes superiores pueden mitigar la discriminación y el egoísmo.
As individuals, we define our group identities by categorizing others and ourselves into many social categories like gender, race, religion, nationality, political convictions, and profession, among many others. This categorization process confers us a notion of “who” we are, which social groups we belong, and more importantly, how we are expected to behave. This thesis revolves around two phenomena at the core of group identity literature; discrimination and intergroup conflicts. Group identity is considered an underlying factor of discriminatory behaviors and the emergence of conflicts between members of social groups. There is extensive evidence showing that the mere categorization into social categories is enough to trigger discrimination against members of other social groups. Moreover, human history provides many examples of conflicts and genocides rooted in group identity diversity more than in economic disputes. However, not all social group members discriminate in the same magnitude, nor all social groups are involved in conflicts. The first paper of this thesis proposes an empirical measure that goes beyond categorizing individuals into social categories. Using willingness to acquire representative goods of social groups, this paper measures and quantify group identity intensity to investigate reinforcing and attenuating factors of group identity. The results found provide evidence on how convergence and divergence in behaviors among social group members reinforce and attenuate the group identity intensity of individuals, which is crucial in predicting the emergence of intergroup conflicts at the collective level and strong degrees of discrimination at the individual level. The literature studying the effects of group identity on individual decision-making has largely focused on studying discrimination and intergroup conflicts assuming individuals’ group identity is known and observable. However, many group identities rely on convictions and beliefs that are not directly observable from individual physical traits, and therefore, might be uncertain (e.g. religion, ideology). The second paper presented in this thesis explores the effects of group identity uncertainty on discrimination patterns when individuals decide whom to interact with and its repercussions on collective coordination efficiency. Managing group identity diversity and uncertainty is a major factor in determining organizations and firms' profit and success, especially when a diverse workforce might find it difficult to coordinate and cooperate. The results found in the second paper shed light on the role group identity uncertainty plays in individual interaction preferences and offer several managerial insights for deterring discrimination among employees to interact and increase their coordination efficiency when working in teams. Finally, the last paper presented in this thesis, contributes to the literature of policies and interventions aimed at mitigating discrimination and prejudices between members of social groups in conflict. While this literature has focused on studying how the contact between members of different social groups reduces discrimination and prejudices, there is a lack of evidence on interventions with same purposes not requiring contact between individuals. The last paper presented in this thesis exploits a natural occurring context in which individuals of two social groups currently in conflict see themselves forced to cooperate in order to achieve a superordinate common goal without being able to get in contact. This context offers the opportunity to put the emphasis not in the contact between individuals but in the superordinate common goals as a mitigating factor of discrimination. Results show that individuals got more selfish as the superordinate common goal was gradually achieved. Furthermore, individuals from one social group also increased their discrimination as the common goal was gradually achieved. These results highlight superordinate common goals mitigate discrimination and selfishness.

Discussions of extremist ideologies naturally focus on how in-groups criticize and attack out-groups. But many important extremist ideological texts are disproportionately focused criticizing their own in-group. This research report will use linkage-based analysis to examine Siege, a White nationalist tract that has played an important role shaping modern neo-Nazi movements, including such violent organizations as Atomwaffen Division and The Base. While Siege strongly attacks out-groups, including Jewish and Black people, the book is overwhelmingly a critique of how the White people of its in-group fall short of Nazi ideals. Siege’s central proposition—that the White in-group is disappointing, deeply corrupt, and complacent—shapes its argument for an “accelerationist” strategy to hasten the collapse of society in order to build something entirely new. Finally, this report briefly reviews comparable extremist texts from other movements to draw insights about how in-group critiques shape extremist strategies. These insights offer policymakers and law enforcement tools to anticipate and counter violent extremist strategies. They also highlight less-obvious avenues for potential counter-extremist interventions and messaging campaigns.

Large and growing numbers of young people are in neither employment nor education and training. Many of them are young mothers (termed “parenting girls” in this report). When the Commonwealth of Learning’s Open Schooling initiative heard that Rwanda was having some success in getting parenting girls back into school, it commissioned a study to get a better understanding of the learning pathways involved. Focus group interviews were conducted over several months with parenting girls who had returned to education. In these focus groups, the researchers explored how the girls’ pregnancy and subsequent dropping out of school had impacted their lives, the factors that led them to return to school and the factors that could help build their resilience to remain in school.

This CREID Policy Briefing provides recommendations to address the marginalisation, discrimination and exclusion faced by Kakai women in Iraq. Members of the Kakai minority have faced discrimination and marginalisation during many different periods of the Iraqi state. Prior to the US occupation of Iraq in 2003, Kakais were deported to other regions as part of a government drive to alter the demographics of Kurdish majority areas. After 2003, the Kakais faced oppression as a minority group during a long period of sectarian fighting. This oppression continued with the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist attack on Iraq in 2014. The marginalisation of the Kakais is exacerbated by a lack of legal recognition and differing views over their minority status.

Doctoral students have higher rates of mental ill health than comparable populations. Contributors include institutional stressors such as competitive fields, uncertain futures and liminal professional identity. This exploratory study drew on social psychology, taking a broad narrative approach, to explore what professional (academic) communities postgraduate researchers (PGRs) identify with, and how these identifications relate to wellbeing. Focus groups were conducted with social science and humanities PGRs in three UK Russell Group universities. PGRs experiences were diverse, but common themes related to ambiguity about their roles as students and researchers; the precariousness of academic careers; commitments to scholarly research; the importance of validation from supervisors and the wider academic community; and the particular challenges when other social roles (e.g. relating to ethnicity or parenthood) align poorly with academic roles. Key conclusions are the importance of validating and supportive research communities that did not necessarily map onto departments or disciplines; meaningful and practically empowering supervisory relationships, which can serve as a buffer against stress and uncertainty; and the relative paucity of ‘postgraduate/doctoral researcher/student’ as a social identity.

This CREID Policy Briefing provides recommendations to address the marginalisation, discrimination and exclusion faced by displaced Yazidi women in Iraq. Throughout the history of their presence in Iraq, the Yazidis have experienced harassment, persecution, killing and displacement. Most recently, they have been exposed to genocide from the Islamic State (ISIS) group after they took control of Sinjar district and the cities of Bahzani and Bashiqa in the Nineveh Plain in 2014, destroying Yazidi homes, schools, businesses and places of worship. Yazidi people were killed or forced to convert to Islam. Over 6,000 were kidnapped, including over 3,500 women and girls, many of whom were forced into sexual slavery. Men and boys were murdered or forced to become soldiers. Any remaining citizens were displaced. Seven years later, more than 2,000 Yazidi women and children were still missing or in captivity, more than 100,000 Yazidis had migrated abroad, and over 200,000 Yazidi people were still displaced, living in camps.

Around the world, people with disabilities can be the most marginalised in society. Having a disability and being a member of a religious minority or an excluded social group can compound the reasons why some people find themselves on the outskirts of social systems which normally provide financial and moral support and a sense of identity and belonging. A recent study from India found that identity markers such as religion, caste and gender can exacerbate the exclusion already experienced by people with disabilities. Taking deliberate steps to strengthen the social inclusion of people with disabilities who also come from minority religious groups and socioeconomically marginalised backgrounds can help them fulfil their potential to fully and effectively participle in society on an equal basis with others, and strengthen community ties, making the society in which they live more inclusive.

Founded in 2016, Avlaremoz began its life as an online publication created by a group of Jews and non-Jews from Turkey to educate the Turkish public about antisemitism and the Holocaust. The small platform presents a new Jewish approach for participating in public life in Turkey. This piece uses examples from Avlaremoz’s coverage of Holocaust education, queerness, language politics, and Armenian issues to clarify this novel politicisation of Jewish identity.

The article focuses on the «Intellectual Dark Web», an informal group of scholars, publicists, and activists who openly opposed the identity politics, political correctness, and the dominance of leftist ideas in American intellectual life. The author examines the reasons for the emergence of this group, names the main representatives and finds that the existence of «dark intellectuals» is the evidence of important problems in US public discourse. The term «Intellectual Dark Web» was coined by businessman Eric Weinstein to describe those who openly opposed restrictions on freedom of speech by the state or certain groups on the grounds of avoiding discrimination and hate speech. Extensive discussion of the phenomenon of «dark intellectuals» began after the publication of Barry Weiss’s article «Meet the renegades from the «Intellectual Dark Web» in The New York Times in 2018. The author writes of «dark intellectuals» as an informal group of «rebellious thinkers, academic apostates, and media personalities» who felt isolated from traditional channels of communication and therefore built their own alternative platforms to discuss awkward topics that were often taboo in the mainstream media. One of the most prominent members of this group, Canadian clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson, publicly opposed the C-16 Act in September 2016, which the Canadian government aimed to implement initiatives that would prevent discrimination against transgender people. Peterson called it a direct interference with the right to freedom of speech and the introduction of state censorship. Other members of the group had a similar experience that their views were not accepted in the scientific or media sphere. The existence of the «Intellectual Dark Web» indicates the problem of political polarization and the reduction of the ability to find a compromise in the American intellectual sphere and in American society as a whole.