Ethnic-Cultural Identity and Role Perception among Youth Workers

Abstract

Assimilation, integration, separation, and marginalization—the four acculturation strategies— manifest in an individual’s identity. They emphasize upholding the culture and the willingness to adapt elements of the majority culture. Thus, this research investigates the association between ethnic-cultural identity and role perception among youth workers (YW) working with at-risk adolescents in Israel of three minority groups—Arabs, immigrants from the CIS, and immigrants from Ethiopia. Minority-group youth workers working with adolescents of their ethnic group are expected to be agents of change, directing the adolescents to act by the rules and customs of the majority society. Nevertheless, this expectation baffles YWs since they are torn between universal professional values and minority group norms. Namely, their belongingness to the ethnic groups hinders neutral, non-aligned action, and they struggle to identify with the message they are expected to deliver on behalf of their employers. Since their job does not involve intercultural mediation, the research hypothesis assumed that minority-group YWs would experience more significant role conflict than their majority-group peers. The results, however, are unexpected because they showed that role conflict is not related to the YW’s place of origin or the group’s values but rather to the working environment within the YW group. This deduction suggests the importance of organizational culture and its effect on the role-conflict experience. Additionally, the study explores the three minority groups’ findings regarding acculturation strategies and presents essential components of each group’s conflicting role.