The impact of religious identity on intergroup encounters

Abstract

In recent decades, social cohesion in Western societies has been progressively undermined, leading to increased polarisation and fragmentation. Efforts to counteract this trend have included organising intergroup activities to restore trust and foster ‘bridge-building’ between different communities. While social psychology has extensively explored the dynamics of intergroup encounters, particularly in terms of their ability to promote successful community bridging, the role of religious identity in these encounters remains underexplored. Through an integrative literature review, this article aims to investigate the influence of participants’ religious identity on the outcomes of these bridging activities. A systematic literature search was conducted across various academic databases, utilising combinations of search terms such as ‘intergroup encounters’ and ‘religion’. In the search, both forward and backward snowballing techniques were added to ensure a comprehensive selection of relevant literature. Our analysis reveals that two central aspects of religious identity – religious truth claims and the perception of religious identity as a voluntary choice – pose significant challenges to bridging initiatives. In addition, minority versus majority status and self-uncertainty further complicate the effectiveness of these encounters. While interfaith interventions are often presented as mechanisms for enhancing bridging social capital, the findings suggest that they may inadvertently lead to increased bonding within religious groups, reinforcing existing divisions rather than fostering broader social cohesion. The implications of these findings for community-building initiatives are discussed.