Multiplicity Across Cultures: Multiple National Identities and Multiple Value Systems
研究具有双重国家认同的亚裔加拿大人是否对每种身份关联不同的价值观体系,发现他们在作为加拿大人和亚洲人时对价值观类型的排序存在显著差异。
When we ask ourselves the question ‘Who am I?’, we usually utilize various self-descriptions through which we defined ourselves in the past. Those self-definitions may depend on group memberships, roles and social categories such as culture or religion. We were interested in the question of whether people with dual national identities associate distinct national value systems with each of those identities. In particular, we had focused on first and second generation Asian-Canadians and tested the hypothesis that distinct value systems are linked to each of one’s two national identities. Participants of South-East and East Asian origin or descent completed Schwartz’s (1992) value survey, once as Asians and once as Canadians. The participants revealed discrepancies in how they ranked the value types when instructed to do so as Canadians and as Asians. Specifically, the value types of universalism, self-direction, hedonism and stimulation were rated as significantly more important when participants were responding as Canadians, and the value types of conformity and tradition were rated significantly higher when the same participants were responding as Asians. These results are consistent with the results of other research that compares separate samples in Asia and in the West. But, the present research is fairly unusual in its examination and demonstration of separate value systems within individuals who have two national identities. The implications of having separate value systems associated with each of one’s national identities for the interplay between self-identification and culture and for value theory are discussed.