Development-ally focused: a review and reconceptualization of ally identity development

• Date: 12 September 2023
• Pages: 114-131
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/EDI-10-2022-0284
• Published date: 12 September 2023
• Author: Larry Martinez,Isaac Sabat,Enrica Ruggs,Kelly Hamilton,Mindy Bergman,Kelly Dray

Development-ally focused:

a review and reconceptualization

of ally identity development

Larry Martinez

Department of Psychology, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon, USA

Isaac Sabat

Department of Psychology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA

Enrica Ruggs

University of Houston, Houston, Texas, USA

Kelly Hamilton

Department of Psychology, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon, USA

Mindy Bergman

Texas A&M University System, College Station, Texas, USA, and

Kelly Dray

PricewaterhouseCoopers International Ltd, Houston, Texas, USA

Abstract

Purpose –Although allies have been shown to be effective at helping to ignite positive change for

marginalized groups, the literature on ally identity development is fragmented.

Design/methodology/approach –Wedraw from developmental, contextual, and identity theories to review

the existing literature and focus squarely on the ally experience, resulting in a synthesized process-based

conceptualization of ally identity development.

Findings –At each stage, we discuss intrapersonal experiences individuals are likely to have internally,

interpersonal experiences that are likely to occur with others, and catalysts for progression to subsequent

stages. In doing so, we outline the multilevel factors that influence and are influenced by ally development in

hopes of identifying what motivates or dissuades individuals from becoming more active allies.

Originality/value –We provide practitioners and scholars with a deeper understanding of the organizational

and societal benefits associated with allyship behaviors, as well as tools for increasing their presence within

organizations.

Keywords Allies, Identity management, Identity development, Inclusion, Diversity

Paper type Conceptual paper

There is ample evidence that allies (i.e. individuals who are actively committed to supporting,

advocating, protecting, and standing up for individuals who belong to stigmatized groups;

Ragins, 2008) can be powerful agents for change. The history of the USA, for instance,

demonstrates the power of White individuals joining the Freedom Riders as allies to help

secure basic liberties for Black individuals during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s

(Lebrun, 2015). More recently, many White people have become more aware and devoted to

racial equity in response to police violence against George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and many

EDI

43,1

114

Portions of this research were supported by the Grant # T03OH008435 awarded to Portland State

University, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for

Occupational Safety and Health. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not

necessarily represent the official views of NIOSH, CDC or HHS.

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:

https://www.emerald.com/insight/2040-7149.htm

Received 17 October 2022

Revised 8 May 2023

Accepted 8 June 2023

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion:

An International Journal

Vol. 43 No. 1, 2024

pp. 114-131

© Emerald Publishing Limited

2040-7149

DOI 10.1108/EDI-10-2022-0284

other people of color, and allyship manifests as support and advocacy for other stigmatized

groups, identities, and characteristics.

Allies have significant potential for influencing large-scalesocietal change. Allies can help

establish normswithin social groups given theiroften privileged, in-group status(Czopp et al.,

2006). Further, allies who are not members of the groups for which they are advocating are

likely to be viewed more objectively in confronting instances of unfair, prejudicial treatment,

giventhat they do not appear to havea vested interest in the outcome(Czopp et al.,2006;Ratner

and Miller, 2001). Allies also alleviate the burden from stigmatized targets in dismantling

individualand systematic prejudices(Czopp et al., 2006). Thus, it is clearthat allies can play an

importantrole in reducing mistreatment andadvocating for social justice in differentcontexts.

Given the clear importance that allies have in society, it is critical to understand how

individualscome to identify as allies and engage in allybehaviors. This endeavor is somewhat

complicatedin the literature giventhe lack of consensus aroundthe terms “ally”and “allyship.”

Allyship is often viewed as working to reduce oppression and support individuals from

marginalizedgroups (Washington and Evans,1991). Yet, as noted by Collier-Sprueland Ryan

(2023), definitions of allies vary based on perspective (e.g. did the person intend to be an ally

versus did thetarget believe the “allied”behaviorwas effective) and what is actuallydone (e.g.

are specificbehaviors required for someone to be consideredan ally? can someone be an ally if

they have not engaged in ally behavior recently?). For the purposes of this review, we define

allies as individuals who are intentionally preparingthemselves and/or engaging inbehaviors

to reduce oppression and support membersof marginalized groups.

Some research has examined the processes associated with this type of identity development,

which has resulted in several different (though sometimes overlapping) theoretical models and

descriptions of how people come to identify and behave as “allies.”The research to date is

dispersed across different fields (e.g. clinical, educational, developmental, and organizational

psychology), which has led to a lack of cohesive understanding of ally identity development.

Thus, our goal is to synthesize the literature to more comprehensively describe the processes

individuals go through as they become more dedicated allies.

In thispaper, we review the work relatedto allyship in general and allyidentity development

specificallyand introduce a five-stage conceptualization of ally development that incorporates

this past work. In framing our conceptualization, we draw upon social psychological and

developmentalframeworks as well as the existing literature related to allyshipacross a broad

array of disciplines. We adopt a stage-based orientation modeled after Erikson’s (1968)

groundbreaking theory of psychosocial development, which focused on how people resolve

intrapersonal and identity issues throughout their lifespan. We conceptualize ally identity

development as a process with several stages that are somewhat separated by defining

experiences. Whereas most previous models focus on allies for particularstigmatized groups

(e.g.allies for gay and lesbian individuals),our conceptualizationtakes a globalperspective that

spans across ally development, identity,and behaviors for various stigmatized groups.

In the sections that follow, we discuss each of the five stages in detail and highlight both

intrapersonal and interpersonal experiences that are likely to occur at each stage as well as

factors that can act as catalysts for progression to subsequent stages. We also describe the

benefits associated with this progression. Furthermore, we enumerate the factors that

prevent or support this ally identity development. This helps scholars and practitioners to

better understand strategies for increasing ally development and engagement with social

justice movements occuring within and outside of organizational contexts.

Review methodology

We systematically searched online databases such as PsycINFO, Elsevier ScienceDirect

Journals Complete, EBSCOHost, Taylor & Francis eJournals, and Google Scholar in February

Ally identity

development

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