National Identity and Belonging: A minority perspective
Consensus and Conflict Department
Project head: Dr. Nadya Gharaei
European transnational studies show that people with a history of migration - and Muslims in particular - often feel significantly less of a sense of belonging at a national level than those without a history of migration (Fleischmann & Phalet, 2018; Leszczensky et al., 2020; Verkuyten & Martinovic, 2012). These findings also apply to Germany. Against this background, the project addresses the question of how people with a history of migration in Germany perceive the content of German national identity and what it means to be "German". For example, to what extent do they perceive that it is important to have German ancestors or to be born in Germany in order to be "German"? In addition, the project aims to investigate the extent to which these perceptions of German national identity on the part of people with a history of migration affect their feelings of belonging in Germany, their well-being in general and their political participation in society. Methodologically, the project is based on quantitative data, including survey data from the "Friendship and Identity at School" project of the Mannheim Center for European Social Research (MZES) and the "Multiple Identities in Context" project.
Funding: Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (Institutional funding)