ABSTRACT
One of the key debates within the social sciences which was identified in Chapter 1 in the context of changing times is the question of who we are and where we belong. As communities change and re-form, identities become mobile and mobilised. These mobilities focus on the relationship between the personal and the individual on the one hand, and the social on the other. What links are there between individuals and the societies in which they live? How does the one influence the other? Is it possible to distinguish between the one and the other? This issue has been addressed within the social sciences through the concept of identity. Identity offers a means of thinking about and understanding how the personal and the social are connected.
