optimal distinctiveness model

n. Brewers optimal distinctiveness model is based on the premise that social identities are derived from a tension between the opposing needs for inclusion and distinctiveness. The need for inclusion involves individuals' desire for belonging and similarity to others, while distinctiveness involves the desire for individuation and uniqueness. This model describes the process by which individuals achieve a balance between these fundamental needs through the formation and activation of social identities. Within any social 
context, social categories exist that vary in their level of inclusiveness or size. According to the model, individuals select identities that provide a sense of inclusion in a larger collective but are exclusive enough to provide a basis for distinction from others (e.g., minority groups). Group identification and loyalty are hypothesized to be enhanced for optimal group identities where the needs for inclusion and differentiation are satisfied simultaneously. – KAS, ClP