ABSTRACT
Contemporary individuals are increasingly responsible for managing their self-development. Many have the resources and relative autonomy to fashion multiple aspects of the self that are deployed, in part, as a function of the demands of a given cultural space. This permits hybrid self-constructions and fluid identities that offer the possibility of a rich and diverse experience of selfhood that would facilitate the development of fresh perspectives. At the same time, individuals are embedded in spaces that socialize them into doing self-work that is increasingly congruent with market forces, operating often on an unconscious level. One risk is that of a commodification and homogenizing of self-states with the attendant limits on authenticity and personal agency. In unthoughtfully avoiding pursuing knowledge, wealth, and agency, there is the risk of becoming overly disengaged and alienated. For the Africana worker in China, it is challenging to define a self that also encompasses community and explores, and where appropriate embraces commonalities and differences. Particularly challenging for them is becoming fully involved in Chinese communities given immigration restrictions, language barriers, and cultural wariness. For many, the consequence is that of living in an in-between space and therefore not quite fully belonging anywhere.
