Ideology and agency in ethnic identity negotiation of immigrant youth

Abstract

Gerard Duveen's conceptualization of the relationship between social identity and social representations invites empirical investigation concerning the interrelated aspects of being identified and making identifications. In the present paper we compare two empirical studies of ethnic minority identity development at different levels. Study 1 assesses macro-level ideological boundary developments through an examination of changing majority-minority representations in public discourse, while Study 2 analyzes the meso-level through identity negotiation and positioning in focus group discussions among immigrant youth in Oslo. Convergent findings between the two studies challenge the imperative/contractual dichotomy which Duveen and others have used to illustrate how social representations impose different kinds of obligations upon social identities. Our analysis suggests that the particular relationship between ethnic identity and social representation should be modified in order to better understand agency within ideological constraint and agency in the form of resistance.<br><br> Copyrigt The Authors. PSR papers are bound by Creative Commons copyright agreements.