["Journal of Community &Applied Social Psychology, Volume 36, Issue 4, July/August 2026. ", "\nABSTRACT\nCommunity identity is consistently linked to community participation, yet the directionality of this relationship, specifically its within‐person dynamics, remains unclear. Theoretical frameworks posit community identity as a precursor to, a byproduct of, or a mutual reinforcer of community participation. We tested these theories using a three‐wave longitudinal design with 1‐month intervals among 508 Chinese urban residents. Random intercept cross‐lagged panel models revealed a positive between‐person linkage between community identity and community participation. Within‐person increases in community identity predicted subsequent increases in participation, whereas the reverse path was non‐significant. These associations held when analyses controlled for marital status, educational background, personal income, subjective socioeconomic status and trait self‐control, and they generalised across gender and age. These findings highlight that, at the within‐person level, community identity acts primarily as a precursor to community participation in the short term, thereby offering a more nuanced understanding of their complex temporal dynamics.\n"]