Aim
To investigate the role of social identity in self esteem
Methodology
This was a field study carried out on the campuses of 7 large American universities, which all had popular American football teamsResearchers recorded what clothing students were wearing the Monday after a big football match was played against a rival universityResearchers also called the students and asked them their opinion of their team's performance
Results
Students were far more likely to wear clothing associated with their university (like a T-shirt with the school logo) if their university team won the football matchWhen asked to describe their team's performance, students were more likely to use first person pronouns (ex. "We played a great game") if the team won, and more likely to use third person pronouns (ex. "They didn't play well as a team") if the team lost
Conclusion
Social identity (the groups you belong to) play an important role in self esteemTo maintain a strong sense of self-esteem, people tend to closely associate themselves with a group when it is successful, and establish distance from a group when it fails