The role of shared social identity in the willingness of Czech citizens to accommodate Ukrainian refugees in their households

1 ABSTRACT The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 led to a massive influx of Ukrainian refugees into the Czech Republic within a short period, triggering an unprecedented wave of solidarity among Czech citizens toward foreign refugees. One notable manifestation of prosocial behavior was the willingness of many Czechs to provide accommodation to refugees in their own homes. This thesis examines the role of shared social identity in the decision of Czech citizens to offer accommodation to Ukrainian refugees after the Russian invasion in 2022. Based on a qualitative analysis of interviews with Czech hosts who accommodated Ukrainian refugees in their homes, the thesis identifies key processes that supported the emergence of shared identity between Czech respondents and Ukrainians: psychological proximity, perceived similarity, the significance of selected group characteristics, recategorization, shared past, shared destiny, and superordinate identity frameworks. The findings show that respondents used these frameworks naturally and in an interconnected way, and that it was their combination that created the feeling that Ukrainians were "people like us." Emotions, especially indignation, compassion, and gratitude, played a significant role in reinforcing this perception and directly motivated prosocial...