Abstract
This study tests the salience/prominence of Chinese ethnic identity by applying identity theory, social identity theory, and social network analysis. Using survey data of Chinese graduate students in two universities in the United States, I show how Chinese ethnic identity salience varies with the percentage of Chinese in an individual’s ego network revolving around him or her. In addition, among newcomers to the United States, as the percentage Chinese in ego networks increases, the decline of Chinese identity salience/prominence declines, but for old timers in the United States, as the percentage Chinese increases, the decline of Chinese identity salience/prominence is reversed. The ethnic identity salience lapses with time unless the respondents keep a cohort of co-nationals. Moreover, a cosmopolitan sociocultural environment is conducive to the maintenance of ethnic identity when an individual has many co-nationals in his or her ego network while having many co-nationals does not stop the decline of ethnic salience in an isolated social environment.
Highlights
Structural symbolic interactionism emphasizes the impact of the structures of society on individuals’ interaction with others to convey who they are, or the meanings of their identities
This study contributes to our understanding of the social contexts in which ethnic identity varies in salience/prominence
A cosmopolitan sociocultural environment with high degree of diversity in terms of race/ethnicity and culture is conducive to the maintenance of ethnic identity when an individual has many co-nationals in his or her ego network
Summary
Structural symbolic interactionism emphasizes the impact of the structures of society on individuals’ interaction with others to convey who they are, or the meanings of their identities. Self—consisting of multiple identities—emerges from the patterned and organized social structure and is organized (Burke & Stets, 2009). Traditional symbolic interactionism opposes any suggestion that social structure is stable and posits that identities are fluid as individuals construct identities differently across situations. Along the lines of structural symbolic interactionism, identity theory argues for the correspondence between social positions in networks of social relations and role identities such as student. Empirical work to test and explore the relationship between identity and network characteristics has appeared. McFarland and Pals (2005) operationalize ego network context such as prominence to predict identity change. Empirical work to test and explore the relationship between identity and network characteristics has appeared. McFarland and Pals (2005) operationalize ego network context such as prominence to predict identity change. Walker and Lynn (2013) suggest that role identity salience—the likelihood a role identity is enacted— increases as role-based others are more closely connected with non–role-based others. Stark (2015) reveals how the tendency to avoid friends who have minority friends enables majority group members to stay away from minority group members
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