Malay theatre in Singapore : issues of cultural identity

This thesis explores the impact of culturally hybrid practices on the Singapore Malay community through fully comprehensive analyses of significant productions by two prominent Singapore Malay theatre groups. It demonstrates the value of applying contemporary cultural/semiotic theory and analysis to issues of cultural hybridity and identity to theatrical performance discourse.

The dialectic of Bangsa and Minzu and nation-building in Malaysia 1900-1990

Examines the evolution of the terms "bangsa" and "minzu", the reforms and adjustments made to define Malay and Chinese ethnic boundaries and the forms that resistance took in response to real and perceived threats to each community's rights vis-a-vis the other. Linked is the related issue of how these dialectical differences have hindered the process of nation-building in Peninsular Malaysia especially from 1957 until 1990.

Latin Americans in London:language, integration and ethnic identity

This thesis studies the links between language, migration and integration in the context of the 'new migrant' group of Latin Americans in London. It reviews the many ways in which language impacts the integration processes of migrants by influencing people's access to jobs, services, social contacts and information. By focusing on migrants' experiences this research also investigates the ways in which language and identity articulate, as well as the affective variables that are at play in the acquisition of the local language. With a large sector trapped in a cycle of poor command of English and labour market disadvantage, many Latin Americans experience exclusion and poverty. In reaction to this, a sector of the community is campaigning for ethnic minority recognition. This work reviews the debates for recognition and the strategy of organising around ethnicity, paying special attention to the role language plays in the process. The study is based on over two and half years of qualitative research, which included interviews, surveys, and long-term participant observation within a community organisation and a recognition campaign. Its interdisciplinary perspective allows the recognition of both the intimate links between language and identity, as well as the social and structural forces that influence migrants' linguistic integration. It unveils the practical and symbolic value that the mother tongue has for Latin American migrants and provides a broader account of their experiences. This research calls attention to the need for a more comprehensive approach to the study of language and migration in order to acknowledge the affective and social factors involved in the linguistic practices of migrants. By studying the community's struggles for recognition, this work evidences both the importance of visibility for minority groups in London and the intrinsic methodological limitations of monitoring through ethnic categorisation.

A meta-analysis of the correlation between heritage language and ethnic identity

The interaction between heritage language (HL) and ethnic identity has gained increasing scholarly attention over the past decades. Numerous quantitative studies have investigated and vindicated this interaction within certain contexts. Nevertheless, quantitative evidence on this interaction across contexts is absent to date. The current meta-analysis aims to make a contribution in this regard. By integrating relevant studies, this meta-analysis presents a powerful estimation of the reality in relation to the interaction between HL and ethnic identity. By virtue of certain retrieval strategies and selection criteria, the meta-analysis includes 43 data-sets emerging from 18 studies that have addressed the statistical correlation between the proficiency of HL and the sense of ethnic identity associated with different ethnic groups. When contrasted to one another, the results of these included studies are significantly different. However, when combined together, these studies point to a statistically significant moderate positive correlation between sense of ethnic identity and proficiency of HL across different ethnic groups. This result has a medium effect. The meta-analysis also inspires some methodological and theoretical discussions.

Ethnic Identity and School Ambition : the Case of Second Generation Youth from a Latin-American Background in Montreal

Ce mémoire propose d’étudier l’articulation entre l’identité ethnique (à l’adolescence) et l’ambition scolaire – ici définie comme l’ensemble des motivations, des moyens de persévérance et du niveau scolaire – notamment à travers les concepts d’assimilation et de la résistance culturelle (McAndrew 2008). Nous nous intéressons aux jeunes issus de l’immigration latino-américaine à Montréal. Il s’agit d’une analyse qualitative, plus précisément d’analyse de discours qui nous a permis de comprendre comment leurs expériences et leurs représentations des Latinos et des Québécois influencent leur identification ethnique ainsi que leurs perceptions et décisions en milieu scolaire. Les résultats de cette étude démontrent que l’identification ethnique, en corrélation avec le statut socio-économique et le genre, semble être liée à l’ambition scolaire. Malgré une certaine confirmation de la relation classique entre statut socio-économique et niveau de scolarité, les discours des participants ont permis de faire ressortir une particularité ethnique susceptible de contribuer à expliquer le choix de continuer aux études supérieures. Cet impact est plus important chez les jeunes femmes de notre échantillon; celles avec le niveau de scolarité le moins élevé, ont un statut socio-économique moindre et s’identifient davantage à la culture latino, en contraste avec celles les plus éduquées ayant aussi un statut socio-économique supérieur et qui s’identifiaient davantage à la culture québécoise.

Ethnic Identity in an Intercultural Geography: an Empirical Study = L’identité ethnique dans une géographie interculturelle: une étude empirique

This study explored the ethnic identity among 331 emerging adults (144 mestizos and 187 indigenous) from the Intercultural University of Chiapas (México). Scholars suggest that ethnicity is much more salient for ethnic minority adolescents than for adolescents who are members of the ethnic majority. Our aim was to compare the results of the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) between the majority ethnic group and the minority group studied. Specifically, the following hypothesis was examined: adolescents who are members of the ethnic minority group (indigenous) will score significantly higher on ethnic identity than adolescents who are members of the ethnic majority group (mestizos). The results supported these hypothesis. We suggest that the effect of an intercultural educative model could explain these results

Where else have you been? The effects of diaspora consciousness and transcultural mixtures on ethnic identity

In social science research, the demographic categories of ethnicity are linked to what the census bureau considers as a person’s ethnic heritage. However, these categories are based on the societal assumption that members of a given category share the same characteristics and life experiences, even though the heterogeneity between members within a category may be as diverse as between categories. The paper examines the 15 interview subjects of a research study drawn from 10 minority migrant groups, where seven of them indicated significant transcultural experiences before migrating to Australia. It argues that their lived experiences and subjectivity vary from others who migrated directly from their native countries. The formers’ diaspora consciousness and transcultural mixtures may introduce an artifact to a research study’s design, affecting the validity of the data collected. The paper examines other situations where this anomaly can occur and proposes precautions
to minimize its negative effects.