Springer Non-Western Identity: Research and Perspectives (Identity in a Changing World)

Identity is a construct strongly rooted and still predominantly studied in Western (or WEIRD; Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic) contexts (e.g., North American and Western European). Only recently has there been more of a conscious effort to study identity in non-Western (or non-WEIRD) contexts. This edited volume investigates identity from primarily a non-Western perspective by studying non-Western contexts and non-Western, minority, or immigrant groups living in Western contexts. The contributions (a) examine different aspects of identity (e.g., personal identity, social identity, online identity) as either independent or interrelated constructs; (b) consider the associations of these constructs with aspects of intergroup relations, acculturative processes, and/or psychological well-being; (c) document the advancement in research on identity in underrepresented groups, contexts, and regions such as Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and South America; and (d) evaluate different approaches to the study of identity and the implications thereof. This book is intended for cultural or cross-cultural academics, practitioners, educators, social workers, postgraduate students, undergraduate students, and scholars interested in studying identity. It provides insight into how identity in non-Western groups and contexts may both be informed by and may inform Western theoretical perspectives. From the Back Cover Identity is a construct strongly rooted and still predominantly studied in Western (or WEIRD; Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic) contexts (e.g., North American and Western European). Only recently has there been more of a conscious effort to study identity in non-Western (or non-WEIRD) contexts. This edited volume investigates identity from primarily a non-Western perspective by studying non-Western contexts and non-Western, minority, or immigrant groups living in Western contexts. The contributions (a) examine different aspects of identity (e.g., personal identity, social identity, online identity) as either independent or interrelated constructs; (b) consider the associations of these constructs with aspects of intergroup relations, acculturative processes, and/or psychological well-being; (c) document the advancement in research on identity in underrepresented groups, contexts, and regions such as Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and South America; and (d) evaluate different approaches to the study of identity and the implications thereof. This book is intended for cultural or cross-cultural academics, practitioners, educators, social workers, postgraduate students, undergraduate students, and scholars interested in studying identity. It provides insight into how identity in non-Western groups and contexts may both be informed by and may inform Western theoretical perspectives. About the Author Byron G. Adams is currently an Assistant Professor of Work and Organizational Psychology at the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands and a Senior Research Associate at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa. During the production of this book, he also held an Assistant Professorship at Tilburg University in the Netherlands and a Visiting Professorship at Ghent University in Belgium. His general research focuses on themes of identity as a broad construct and its relation with acculturation, inclusion, diversity, and psychosocial functioning across cultures, within different life domains and lifespans. He currently serves on the Governing Council for the Society for the Study of Emerging Adulthood (SSEA) and is a board member of the committee Cultural Diversity (NIP).   Fons (A) J. R. van de Vijver (1952–2019) held the chair in cross-cultural psychology at Tilburg University in the Netherlands and extraordinary chairs at North-West University in South Africa, the University of Queensland in Australia, an