What does deindividuation refer to?

Deindividuation refers to the phenomenon where individuals in a group lose self-awareness and feel less accountable for their actions, often leading to behavior that they might not typically exhibit when they are alone. This loss of self-awareness can occur in large crowds or anonymous situations where individuals feel submerged in the group, causing a reduction in personal responsibility and an increase in impulsive behaviors.

When a person is deindividuated, they may feel less restrained by social norms, which can lead to actions driven by the group's emotional atmosphere rather than their own individual standards and morals. This concept is often discussed in social psychology to explain why individuals may engage in atypical behaviors, such as aggression or riotous actions, when they are part of a large group.

The other choices highlight concepts that do not accurately capture the essence of deindividuation, such as enhancing individual identity or reinforcing social roles, which run contrary to the idea of losing one's identity in a crowd. Thus, the choice that best represents the meaning of deindividuation is indeed the loss of self-awareness and inhibition in crowds.