When social identity threat leads to the selection of identity-reinforcing options: The role of public self-awareness

•Public self-focus leads to choosing identity-reinforcing options in response to identity threat.•This identity-reinforcing response is mediated by the desire to convey a consistent self to others.•The effects emerge among those high in the desire to convey a consistent public self-image to others.•This identity-reinforcing response is observed when the product choice can be viewed by others.

This research shows that activating public self-awareness leads individuals to increase their association with symbolic representations of their identity. When a social identity was threatened, participants high rather than low in public self-awareness were more likely to select options that reinforced their association with the identity (Studies 1a, 1b, and 2). This response was mediated by the desire to convey a consistent self to others (Study 2). In line with the view that the effects are driven by public self-consistency motives, the effects emerge only among those motivated to convey a consistent public self-image (Study 3) and when product choices can be viewed by others (Study 4). Finally, when identity threat occurred in the presence of an ingroup audience, those high (but not low) in ingroup identification were more likely to select identity-reinforcing options when public self-awareness was heightened (Study 5). The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.