 27. Identity Negotiation  595
The Perceiver’s Initial Identity 
and Relationship  Goals
All identity negotiations are shaped by the 
joint contributions of at least two parties. 
Thus, the perceiver’s initial identity and 
relationship goals play integral roles in de -
termining the outcomes of identity negotia -
tions. For instance, perceivers’ identities and 
goals compel them to enter certain environ -
ments and opportunity structures, and to 
avoid others. Once both parties have entered 
the relationship, the identity negotiation 
process can begin in earnest. To this end, 
targets and perceivers systematically deploy 
a host of interpersonal identity negotiation 
strategies.
Negotiations between  the Target 
and the Perceiver
Targets may communicate their identities be -
fore they even open their mouths by display -
ing identity cues. For example, flashy sports 
cars that communicate wealth and confi -
dence or ripped jeans that convey a laid-back 
approach to life project a particular identity 
to one’s partner. Moreover, consciously or 
not, targets tend to arrange and design their 
dorm rooms, offices (Gosling et al., 2002), 
homes (Sadalla, Vershure, & Burroughs, 
1987), and personal websites (Back et al., 
2010) in ways that elicit identity-  consistent 
evaluations from others. Of course, tar -
gets also convey their identities to others 
through direct verbal communications. For 
example, the shy, unadventurous bookworm 
who wants her new college roommate to see 
her as such may quietly state, “I’ll probably 
spend most nights studying in the library.”
Upon communicating his or her identity, a 
target must wait for the perceiver’s counter -
offer and then respond accordingly. If a per -
ceiver responds to his roommate’s displays 
of introversion with “Don’t be shy! Come 
out with me and I’ll introduce you to peo -
ple,” the target must then decide whether to 
utilize a more forceful impression manage -
ment strategy or acquiesce to the perceiver’s 
counteroffer. One possibility is to reassert 
his introversion by behaving in an even more 
introverted fashion (Stets & Burke, 2003). 
Consistent with this notion, self-  proclaimed submissive individuals exaggerated their 
submissiveness when interacting with a con -
federate who ostensibly perceived them as 
dominant (Swann & Hill, 1982). More re -
cently, when college-  age men received feed -
back that they scored in a feminine manner 
on a test of gender knowledge, they subse -
quently asserted their masculinity by punch -
ing a pad with greater force (Bosson, Van -
dello, Burnaford, Weaver, & Wasti, 2009). 
And when adolescents were sensitized to 
the manipulative and unfair practices of the 
food industry (e.g., marketing addictive junk 
food to young children), they recognized 
healthy eating as more autonomy-  assertive 
and preferred healthy alternatives to sugary 
snacks and drinks (Bryan et al., 2016). In 
such instances, identity negotiation can be a 
powerful mechanism through which people 
display agency (Swann & Jetten, 2017).
According to the clarity principle discussed 
earlier, targets should use as many channels 
of communication as possible to convey 
their desired identities to perceivers. The 
use of multiple channels may be especially 
helpful when people encounter resistance in 
bringing others to see them congruently. Re -
turning to the earlier example, the introvert -
ed target may increase the likelihood that 
her roommate will come to see her as shy 
if she supplements her verbalizations with 
nonverbal cues such as speaking in hushed 
tones, allowing her hair to fall into her face, 
and adopting an anxious expression each 
time her roommate invites her to a party. 
Moreover, the shy target may communicate 
his intention to “power study” by stacking 
piles of books on his desk, sprinkling study 
guides and daily organizers throughout the 
apartment, and highlighting exam dates and 
paper deadlines on his calendar.
In response to the target’s exaggerated 
efforts to elicit an identity-  consistent ap -
praisal, the perceiver must now make an -
other counteroffer. In keeping with the co -
operation principle, social harmony will be 
maximized if the perceiver acquiesces to the 
target’s wishes and offers behaviors that val -
idate her preferred (i.e., introverted) identity. 
For example, the roommate may back down 
and stop insisting that they attend social 
events together. Furthermore, both parties 
may cooperate by following each concession 