IDENTITY AND CULTURE

Identity is a word that has gained increased usage over the past decades, but it is
seldom defined or fully explained. And you are probably asking: how identity relates
to intercultural communication? By the end of this chapter, you should have an
answer to that query as well as a greater appreciation for the complexity of identity.
Identity is a multifaceted, abstract concept that plays an important role in daily
communicative interactions, and especially in intercultural communication.
Globalization is adding even greater complexity to cultural identities by the increased
mixing of cultures through cross-cultural marriage, international adoption,
immigration, and an overall broadening of opportunities for people of different
cultures to meet and interact across a variety of contexts. With this in mind, this
chapter will focus on some of the more salient aspects of identity.
Because the concept is so pervasive, it is necessary to have an appreciation of exactly
what identity entails. To provide that understanding, we begin by pointing out the
growing need to understand the role of identity in our culturally diverse, global
society. This is followed by a theoretical definition of identity, a discussion of some of
your many identities, and an examination of a few of the different ways identity is
acquired. We then address the many ways in which you establish and enact your
cultural identities and the role of identity in communication. Next, we look at the
growing phenomenon of bicultural and multicultural identities that are being
produced in a globalized world.
THE ROLE OF IDENTITY
Who am I?
Stop for a minute and reflect on that question.
Some of you will find the question relatively easy and be able to produce a
lengthy list of identifiers. Others will struggle and be able to write down only a
few items. Regardless of the length of your list, it shows the necessity of
understanding your sense of identity.

Identity development is considered a critical aspect of everyone's psychological

well-being. A principal objective of one's adolescence years is the formation of
an identity, and those who fail to achieve a secure identity are faced with
identity confusion, a lack of clarity about who they are and what their role is in
life.

Identity influences and guides expectations about your own and others' social
roles, as well as provides guidelines for your communication interaction with
others. For example, identity as professor or student provides the blueprint for
classroom behavior.

This brings us to a conclusion that …

DEFINING IDENTITY
…identity is an abstract, complex, and dynamic concept.
As a result of those characteristics, identity is not easily defined, and therefore
communication scholars have provided a variety of descriptions. For example,
some definitions address "identity" and others speak of "cultural identity."
However, as we will demonstrate throughout the section, we believe that culture
influences every facet of all our identities. Therefore, the two terms can be taken
as synonyms.
Identity is dynamic and multiple. By this we mean that identity is not static, but
changes as a natural process of your life experiences. For example, you left
behind your identity of being a high school student and assumed that of a
university student. However, you did retain the regional identity of your hometown
and state.
Therefore, your identity is a composite of multiple identities, which are integrated -
they do not work in isolation but in combination based on the context or situation.
As the context varies, you may choose to emphasize one or more of your
identities. For example, in a classroom your main identity is that of a student.
American writer Laurence Yep sees identity as "a person's conception of self
within a particular [social, geographical, political and] cultural context...
Identity gives the individual a sense of self and personhood."
Question: can we accept this as our working definition of identity?
A TYPOLOGY OF IDENTITIES
In an effort to better understand people’s multiple identities, some researchers
have constructed taxonomies for the different types. For instance, Turner
offers three identity categories: human, social, and personal.

• Human identities are those perceptions of self that link you to the rest of
humanity and set you apart from other life forms.

• Social identities are represented by the various groups you belong to – such
as racial, ethnic, occupational, age, religious, regional, and others.

• Personal identities are what set you apart from other in-group members and
mark you as special – e.g., ability to play piano or winning in sports.

Similar categories are offered by other scholars – for example, Hall speaks of
persona, relational and communal identities (communal being the same as
social in Turner’s study). Because differences in identity are relevant to
intercultural communication and its study, and these identities are
considered important during intercultural communication interactions, below
we will examine a few of your many identities and illustrate how culture
influences each.
 A Typology of Identities

1) RACIAL IDENTITY
Today, racial identity is commonly associated with external physical traits such
as skin color, hair texture, facial appearance, or eye shape. It is a matter of a
biological heritage that produces similar, identifiable physical characteristics.
Racial identity, however, also gives us the sense of belonging to a culture of a
large group – race – whose achievements we are proud of and identify with.

2) ETHNIC IDENTITY
Ethnic identity is derived from a sense of shared heritage, history, traditions,
values, similar behaviors, area of origin, and in many instances, language. It
gives us the sense of belonging to a certain immediate and closest community,
that provides us with all the listed aspects.

3) GENDER IDENTITY
Gender identity is quite different from biological sex or sexual identity. Gender
refers to how a particular culture differentiates masculine and feminine social
roles (gender roles) – basic patterns of behavior that a culture prescribes to men
and women.
 A Typology of Identities
4) NATIONAL IDENTITY
National identity refers to your nationality. For the majority of people, it is the
nation where they were born and/or raised. National identity usually becomes
more pronounced when a person is away from their home country. When asked
where they are from, travelers normally respond with their national identity. It is
important since it links us to the culture of that larger group.

5) REGIONAL IDENTITY
Almost every country can be divided into a number of different geographical
regions, and often these regions reflect varying cultural traits – such as accent,
dialect, customs, food, dress, variations in history, etc. It gives us a sense of our
“small motherland”, which helps us to accommodate ourselves in a larger context
of our nation, society, etc.

6) ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTITY
In many cultures, a person's organizational affiliation can be an important source
of identity. Exactly this aspect of identity largely gives us social recognition –
within and beyond our immediate in-group. It defines which contribution may the
society expect from you, and how this contribution could be awarded.
 A Typology of Identities
7) PERSONAL IDENTITY
Personal identity arises from those things that help set you apart from the
dominant culture, from others in your in-group, and that, as we believe, mark us
as unique or special.

8) CYBER AND FANTASY IDENTITY

Internet offers people the opportunity to present themselves in a variety of
different ways – to select and promote what they consider the positive features
and omit negative, or construct entirely new identities, which may not
correspond to their actual ones. Fantasy identity, also extending across
cultures, centers on characters from science fiction movies, comic books, and
anime. Every year people attend domestic and international conventions
devoted to these subjects. This aspect of identity can actually tell a lot about the
personality of its bearer.

9) AGE IDENTITY
Membership in one of the four main age groups - children, youth, adults, the
elder – prescribes you a lot about the roles to play in your community’s life and
the behavioral patterns to follow.
 A Typology of Identities
10) RELIGIOUS IDENTITY
As discussed previously, identification with a religion provides us with
guidelines, values, sense of purpose in life and security

11) SOCIAL GROUP IDENTITY

Membership in one of the three main social groups (or classes) - high,
middle, lower – also defines to a very high extent the values you follow
and the behavioral patterns you practice

12) MINORITY STATUS

Membership (if any) in a minority – a social group with limited access to
social benefits – also highly influences a person’s worldview and
behavioral patterns

Assignment 6 – Week 8
Identify your own self, using any SIX typologies of identity discussed
in class
Acquiring identities
From a theoretical perspective, Phinney offers a three-stage model to help explain
identity development.
• During the initial stage, unexamined identity, the individuals are not particularly interested
in exploring or demonstrating their cultural identity.
• The second stage, identity search, individuals become interested in learning and
understanding their identity. Movement from stage one to stage two can result from a
variety of stimulations – an incident of discrimination, attending a cultural event, taking a
culture class, or any other event that produces greater awareness of one’s cultural
heritage.
• Final stage, identity achievement, is reached when individuals have a clear and confident
understanding of their own cultural identity.
Among other theories, we should make an honorable mention of Martin and
Nakayama’s for minority and majority identities, but of particular significance in
modern context is their theory of biracial identity.
• Its first stage - phases where biracial individuals gain awareness of their personal
differences from others, and begin to sense they are not part of the norm.
• The second stage - the need to be accepted and the growth of a feeling that they must
choose one race or another.
• The third stage – they accept their duality, becoming more self-confident.
Ascribed and avowed identities
Identities can also be described as ascribed and avowed, based on how they are
achieved - involuntarily or voluntarily. Racial, ethnic and sexual identities are
acquired at birth and are considered ascribed, or involuntary. By contrast, your
identity as a university student is avowed, because you voluntarily elected to
attend the school. However, though it is a voluntary identity, your culture has
established rules that delineate special behavior for students. When enacting
your student identity, you will try to conform to those rules, both consciously and
unconsciously.

Establishing and enacting cultural identity

As you go about the daily routine, stepping into various contexts, different identities
are established, re-established and displayed. They may be established in the
rites of passage (from circumcision to getting a degree), in the school
classrooms, and in a lot of other ways. Identities are also enacted in many ways
– by displaying your religious or spiritual identity, or by involvement in
commemorative events. Obvious markers of cultural identity are language,
accents, or family names. While many customs of identity enactment are
shaped by tradition, new age can bring about new ways – for example, new
immigrants tend to be more participating in the events on their native lands, like
sending money to political parties.