The Construal of National Identities within the Luxembourg Context

We live in an increasingly mobile world. In line with the conference’s motto of “Nurturing Diversity for Sustainable Development” the current paper aims to make a contribution to the understanding of individual national identity construal processes within a multi-national environment. Understanding these processes may facilitate the fostering of the acceptance of culturally heterogeneous identities. Starting point for this on-going, empirical study is Luxembourg, a country with approx. ½ m inhabitants, a foreign population of 43% (increasing to over 60% in the capital) and three officially recognized languages which are spoken throughout the country. Luxembourg can be viewed as a “natural laboratory.” Given its size, population mix and closeness of borders there is ample opportunity for “second culture exposure.” How is national identity construed within such a diverse context? Is second culture
exposure experienced as an enrichment or a threat? Three groups, recruited on power analytical considerations and differentiated by their length of stay in Luxembourg (native residents, Luxembourgers with migrant background and sojourners) are analyzed regarding their national identity construal process along the primordialist – situationalist spectrum. Identity Structure Analysis (ISA) is used as theoretical framework and methodological tool. Given the multi-national context, it is assumed that situationalists will be in the majority across all three groups. However, given the developmental primacy of primordialism, some persistence of the primordial orientation is expected. Bicultural orientation is also assessed. Within this context, three questions are examined: Firstly, do individuals consider it possible to have more than one national identity? Secondly, if this is the case, are these national identities kept separate or integrated (cultural distance) and thirdly is this experienced harmoniously or as a source of conflict. Research on biculturalism and ISA are linked in the assumption that those individuals who gravitate towards situationalism will also consider it possible to have a bicultural identity. In a third step, the role of dispositional factors (Big FIVE personality variables) and demographic/ biographic variables will be examined as it is anticipated that these
influence how bicultural identity is expressed (separated vs. integrated) and experienced (conflicted vs. harmonious). The study explores to what extent dispositional and demographic factors determine how second culture is experienced – whether diversity is experienced as a source of enrichment and joy or threat.