Caribbean and South Asian identification with British society: the importance of perceived discrimination

Abstract

This article engages the debate on ethnic minority migrant incorporation by examining national identification dynamics among Caribbeans and South Asians in Britain. Caribbeans tend to be more economically, culturally and socially incorporated than South Asians in Britain. Therefore, according to conventional wisdom, Caribbeans should be more likely than South Asians to have high levels of positive British identification. Instead, public opinion data reveal that South Asians have higher levels of positive attachment to British identity. To explain this puzzle, I focus on the ways in which incorporation outcomes are mixed across indicators. I argue that high expectations of discrimination among Caribbeans contribute to lower levels of positive attachment to British identity. These findings suggest that understanding variation among incorporation outcomes is necessary for grasping the complexity of ethnic minority migrants’ lives. Moreover, this article shifts the focus away from migrants’ incorporation progress and towards host-society discrimination.