Identity negotiation of upwardly mobile migrants – combining interactional sociolinguistic and social psychological analysis to advance our understanding of self-group affiliation and distancing

While both interactional sociolinguistics (S) and social psychology (P) study identity negotiation and address research topics with societal relevance (e.g. discrimination against migrants), there is little cross-fertilization between the two disciplines. Also, even though they draw on very diverse research methods (S: qualitative analyses of authentic interactions and research interviews; P: quantitative survey research and experimental manipulations), there is quite some overlap in the findings concerning how people negotiate ingroup affiliation and distancing.

In this project, we aim to explore the potential of the cross-fertilization between the two disciplines by studying a societally relevant phenomenon with which both PIs have strong research experience, viz. the identity dilemmas that migrants face when pursuing upward professional mobility in work settings. Earlier research in both disciplines has shown that these migrants, as members of negatively stereotyped groups, are placed in the complex situation of choosing whether to be loyal and maintain strong ties with one’s devalued identities, or whether to distance the self from these identities in an attempt to fit in with the groups in one’s new environment.

This complex phenomenon is addressed by means of a mixed methods approach, starting with a focus on processes of identity construction as they are made relevant in the workplace and in other social contexts as well as while reflecting on these identities during research interviews. The research will then capitalize on the insights gained from this first qualitative research phase to investigate these processes in larger quantitative survey research and in stronger causal analyses through experimental research. This research will be particularly innovative because of (1) its multi-faceted view on this important societal issue and (2) the insights it will offer into the various ways in which both approaches contribute to our understanding of identity.