Discussing community will never be ended. The community has become part of the structure of society and has recognition for its existence, especially in discussions regarding community development. In its nature, every individual always interacts in groups with other humans, especially to fulfil their needs (Utami & Silalahi, 2013). It is this collection of individuals who then form social groups in their lives, where they will adapt themselves, shape behaviour, build loyalty, a feeling of shared destiny, known as conformity. From this brief explanation we can conclude that identity is an important part for individuals who join in, to see themselves in the context of the social environment.
Identity is a collection of characteristics that distinguish individuals, groups, organizations from other entities, which may have similar activities, such as values, norms, beliefs, preferences, goals, culture or experiences (Spears, 2011; Paulsen, 2002). This identity is greatly influenced by various factors such as family, culture, motivation, environment and so on (Crocetti, et al.2022). This identity then develops in line with the interactions carried out by the entity, so that it can shape its behaviour and social relationships. Referring to this identity, community members also need an identity to show their existence. This is a form of collective personality or a sense of affiliation that will be used to identify the existence of the community. Group identity can be formed through shared experiences, feelings of the same fate, the same background, interactions and similarities in culture or language. This community identity is then used as a source of support, strength or pride in building and developing activities in the development process.
Identity has a very big role in the existence of a community. Identity is used as a unifying platform (Zhang, et al, 2017) to strengthen the sense of unity, solidarity and togetherness of fellow members. In addition, identity becomes a forum for cultural preservation and inheritance, perpetuating traditions and community values to the next generation. For community members, identity is then used to get social support, when members experience difficulties or problems. Here, identity can provide motivation and a sense of pride. Many communities are identified as a place for marginalized people, for this reason identity can be used as a tool to fight discrimination and marginalization. Community members can speak out about injustice and inequality or oppression. From the description above, it can be concluded that community identity can be used as basic capital to mobilize community support to implement and fight for development and positive social change.
However, forming an identity is not an easy thing and requires quite a long time to align perceptions in determining what identity is mutually agreed upon. Some of the problems that can be identified as emerging in the formation of community identity are:
Therefore, identity must be built through a dynamic process (Crocetti, 2017). The involvement of all elements in the community is important. Communication and interaction that can be carried out in the process of forming and building identity can be done by involving active participation to build a sense of belonging through social interactions such as discussion, collaboration, education, narrative building activities to influence and form a common understanding. From this process, natural selection will occur in determining membership in the community, so that the community can get members who match their interests and passions, are committed to the activities and activities carried out by the community and adhere to existing community rules and values.
-Diana Anggraeni
References
Crocetti, E., Albarello, F., Meeus, W & Rubini, M. (2022). Identities: A developmental social-psychological perspective. https://doi.org/10.1080/10463283.2022.2104987
Crocetti, E. (2017). Identity dynamics in adolescence: Processes, antecedents, and consequences. European Journal of Developmental Psychology, Vol. 5. https://doi.org/10.1080/17405629.2017.1405578
Paulsen, N. (2002). Identity in organizations and organizational effectiveness. In B. Pattanayak &V. Gupta (eds.), Creating performing organizations: Perspectives for Indian managers,pp.151-177. New Delhi: Response Books (Sage Publications)
(2) (PDF) Identity in organizations and organizational effectiveness. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/37626879_Identity_in_organizations_and_organizational_effectiveness [accessed Mar 25 2024].Spears, R. (2011). Group Identities: The Social Identity Perspective. Handbook of identity, Theory and Research. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-1-4419-7988-9
Utami, FNH., dan Silalahi, BY. (2013). Hubungan antara identitas sosial dan konformitas pada anggota komunitas virtual kaskus regional Depok. Proceeding PESAT (Psikologi, Ekonomi, Sastra, Arsitektur & Teknik Sipil), Vol. 5. https://media.neliti.com/media/publications/170566-ID-hubungan-antara-identitas-sosial-dan-kon.pdf
Zhang, J., Hamilton, WL., Mizil, CDN., Jurafsky, D & Leskovec, J. (2017). Community Identity and User Engagement in a Multi-Community Landscape. Proc Int AAAI Conf Weblogs Soc Media. Community Identity and User Engagement in a Multi-Community Landscape - PMC (nih.gov)