The effect of perceived discrimination on the national identification of students with a Turkish or Moroccan background in the Netherlands

Abstract

This study examines whether perceived discrimination influences the national identification of Turkish-Dutch and Moroccan-Dutch adolescents in the Netherlands, and if this direct effect is (at least partly) mediated by ingroup identification. Former studies that have been conducted regarding this relationship are in disagreement about whether perceived discrimination affects the national identification of people with a migration background. To test if there is a relationship between perceived discrimination and national identification in this study, survey data of 471 adolescents with a Turkish or Moroccan background was used. The results show that perceived discrimination is negatively related to identification with the Netherlands. Furthermore, the results do not confirm that the relationship between perceived discrimination and national identification is mediated by ingroup identification. Even though ingroup identification does not mediate the relation between perceived discrimination and national identification in this study, it was found that ingroup identification is a direct predictor for national identification as well.