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The Contours and Sources of Ethnic Identity Choices Among Asian Americans

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  • Pei‐te Lien
  • M. Margaret Conway
  • Janelle Wong

Abstract

Objective. How do individuals of Asian descent in the United States identify themselves in ethnic terms and why? The purpose of this research is to map the contours of ethnic self‐identities among Asian adults and explain their identity preferences in this immigrant community of color. Methods. We analyze a new and large‐scale survey that collected public opinion from randomly selected individuals of the six largest Asian American descents who resided in five major metropolitan areas in 2000–2001. Results. We find that two‐thirds of the respondents prefer to identify themselves in ethnic‐specific modes. Although only one in six respondents preferred to identify themselves as “Asian American,” close to six in ten respondents indicated acceptance to this panethnic term as part of their identification. Using multinomial regression analysis, we show that indicators of primordial ties and prior socialization, in addition to cultural, social, and political integration, are instrumental in structuring ethnic identity preferences among Asian Americans. Conclusions. Our results confirm ethnic identity as a fluid, malleable, and layered phenomenon that depends on context. Our findings also highlight the need for reconsideration and expansion of the extant conceptual frameworks on studying ethnic identity formation for a nonwhite, multiethnic, multilingual, and globally connected population.

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  • Pei‐te Lien & M. Margaret Conway & Janelle Wong, 2003. "The Contours and Sources of Ethnic Identity Choices Among Asian Americans," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 84(2), pages 461-481, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:socsci:v:84:y:2003:i:2:p:461-481
    DOI: 10.1111/1540-6237.8402015
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    Cited by:

    1. Saemyi Park, 2021. "Asian Americans’ Perception of Intergroup Commonality with Blacks and Latinos: The Roles of Group Consciousness, Ethnic Identity, and Intergroup Contact," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-20, November.
    2. Deanna Sharpe & Mohamed Abdel-Ghany, 2006. "Determinants of Income Differentials: Comparing Asians with Whites and Blacks," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 27(4), pages 588-600, December.
    3. Rui Yao & Deanna Sharpe & Elizabeth Gorham, 2011. "An Exploratory Study of Chinese Americans’ Debt Ownership," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 32(4), pages 600-611, December.
    4. Deanna Sharpe, 2008. "Economic Status of Older Asians in the United States," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 29(4), pages 570-583, December.
    5. El Hazzouri, Mohammed & Main, Kelley J. & Carvalho, Sergio W., 2017. "Ethnic minority consumers reactions to advertisements featuring members of other minority groups," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 34(3), pages 717-733.
    6. Jennifer Lee & Karthick Ramakrishnan & Janelle Wong, 2018. "Accurately Counting Asian Americans Is a Civil Rights Issue," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 677(1), pages 191-202, May.
    7. Stephanie M. DiPietro & Robert J. Bursik Jr., 2012. "Studies of the New Immigration," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 641(1), pages 247-267, May.
    8. Andrew Francis-Tan & Zheng Mu, 2019. "Racial Revolution: Understanding the Resurgence of Ethnic Minority Identity in Modern China," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 38(5), pages 733-769, October.
    9. Ngoc Phan & John A. Garcia, 2009. "Asian‐Pacific‐American Partisanship: Dynamics of Partisan and Nonpartisan Identities," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 90(4), pages 886-910, December.
    10. Branden B. Johnson, 2004. "Arguments for Testing Ethnic Identity and Acculturation as Factors in Risk Judgments," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(5), pages 1279-1287, October.

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