ERIC Number: EJ1233309
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019-Nov
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1474-9041
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Who Is "German" and Who Is a "Migrant?" Constructing Otherness in Education and Psychology Research
Moffitt, Ursula; Juang, Linda P.
European Educational Research Journal, v18 n6 p656-674 Nov 2019
Despite growing European and global interconnectedness, questions of national identity have only gained in importance in recent years. Yet the role researchers play in perpetuating norms of national belonging has gone largely unexamined. Who is included in unmarked national group labels such as German, Dutch, or Danish, who is understood as Other, and how terminology relates to exclusionary notions of national identity warrants greater investigation. Thus, using an exploratory review of recent research in the German context, the current study aimed to (a) identify relevant terminology in empirical education and psychology studies; (b) employ constructionist analysis to examine its situated meaning; (c) discuss societal and methodological implications; and (d) propose guidelines for more accurate and inclusive research. Based on a constructionist thematic analysis, a reiteration of a white ingroup and perceived immigrant Other was found. This dichotomy reinforces an exclusionary notion of who is German while omitting relevant information, such as participant generation or citizenship, from analyses. In doing so, researchers are perpetuating essentialized notions of national belonging while reporting incomplete and potentially inaccurate findings. Though selecting demographic information can be complex, recognizing the impact of labels and acknowledging heterogeneity are essential elements of inclusive and representative research.
Descriptors: Immigrants, Nationalism, Language Usage, Psychology, Guidelines, Whites, Citizenship, Labeling (of Persons), Psychological Studies, Foreign Countries, Immigration, Race, Databases, Discourse Analysis, Comparative Analysis, Ethnicity, Minority Groups
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Germany
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A