Relative deprivation, the construction of identity, and rebellious collective action: an application of integrated threat theory

This paper attempts to better understand the role that relative deprivation (RD) plays in violent collective action by reconsidering the function that identity has in minority-group mobilization. I use integrated threat theory (ITT) to show that past attempts at understanding this linkage have been incomplete because they fail to appreciate the importance of cultural discrimination. The importance of state-level behavior has also been undervalued in this respect and should be considered to be as important as the "framing" efforts of minority-group elites for violent behavior and the construction of identity. Results from a test of the Minorities at Risk (MAR) dataset provide supportive evidence for these propositions.