Collective Identity, Cultural Difference and the Developmental Trajectories of Immigrant Groups

There are several ways, however, to understand these theoretical developments and disagreements. They could be due to new results of empirical research. They could be influenced by changing normative standards and commitments. Or they might reflect conceptual changes and differences on a more abstract level. It is this last question which will mainly be pursued in this chapter. There are conceptual confusions and

infelicities about the term collective identity. Some parts of the controversies surrounding this term could be removed by a more precise formulation, and the term might retain its usefulness. First, then, a discussion of some problematic uses of ‘collective identity’, and as a consequence some proposals for conceptual clarification.