The Norm of Reciprocity in Intergroup Context: A Normative-Identity Model

Reciprocity, regarded as a fundamental psychological phenomenon, may underlie a wide range of interpersonal and intergroup behaviors. Various disciplines such as behavioral economics, anthropology, sociology, and psychology as well documented how reciprocity is a strong determinant of human behavior. On the other hand, less is known about intergroup reciprocity, its functions and consequences as well as the psychological mechanisms through which these effects manifest, remain mostly unknown. In this paper, we propose a model to understand how the reciprocity norm operates in the intergroup contexts, through employing the Personal Norm of Reciprocity model (Perugini et al., 2003) and the Self-Categorization Theory (Turner et al., 1987). We suggest that the conditions that give rise to intergroup reciprocal behavior are ingroup identification, labeling outgroup behavior as a favor or transgression, and the internalization of the reciprocity norm. We also propose that the intergroup outcomes, such as ingroup favoritism, discrimination, collective action, and conflict resolution, might become more understandable when taking into account the reciprocity as an explanatory variable.