Abstract
AbstractIncreased cultural diversity has led to considerable debate on how to best promote intergroup harmony within pluralistic nations. In the current research, we consider the nature of interculturalism, a new diversity ideology extensively discussed by political philosophers and policy‐makers in Europe and beyond. Interculturalism consists of three interrelated components of dialogue, unity, and identity flexibility. Using data (N = 2,364) from three national surveys in two ethnically diverse nations (Netherlands and USA), we test a new measure of interculturalism and establish its independence from multiculturalism and assimilation. We then demonstrate that interculturalism predicts positive intergroup outcomes, over and above multiculturalism, and is in a theoretically meaningful way related to various criterion measures. Collectively, these studies establish the uniqueness of interculturalism from multiculturalism and demonstrate its promise for improving intergroup relations in culturally diverse nations.
Highlights
During the last decades, the concept of intercultur‐ alism has increasingly been used in the philosophi‐ cal, political, and public debates on diversity issues
We consider the nature of interculturalism, a new diversity ideology extensively discussed by political philosophers and policy‐makers in Europe and beyond
We demonstrate that interculturalism predicts positive intergroup outcomes, over and above multiculturalism, and is in a theoretically meaningful way related to various criterion measures
Summary
The concept of intercultur‐ alism has increasingly been used in the philosophi‐ cal, political, and public debates on diversity issues. As a result, it may encourage resentment, fragmentation, and disunity (Joppke, 2006; Sen, 2006). It is argued that “multicul‐ turalism frequently shared [with assimilation] the same, schematic con‐ ception of society set in opposition of majority and minority, differing only in endorsing separation of the minority from the majority rather than assimilation to it” The Council in‐ stead prefers “interculturalism” that differs from multiculturalism in its emphasis on the three interrelated aspects of intergroup dialogue, iden‐ tity flexibility, and the promotion of a sense of unity (Cantle, 2012; Meer & Modood, 2012).
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