Cultural Identity
entry by Julie M. Marx, Global Family Expert at Expat Valley
An individual’s sense of belonging to, and identification with, one or more cultural groups, shaped by shared values, practices, language, and history. In internationally mobile individuals, cultural identity is often fluid, layered, or in active negotiation.
Comparable terms
Ethnocultural identity (research — emphasizes ethnic dimensions) · Intercultural identity (education, training — emphasizes the space between cultures) · Hybrid identity (academic — contested; some find “hybrid” reductive or othering) · Cultural self-concept (clinical, psychology)
Why this matters
Cultural identity for mobile people is often layered, shifting, and hard to explain. Making it explicit helps normalize having “and/and” identities instead of one neat label. It also guides parents and schools to respect all parts of a child’s cultural story.
Cross-references
Cultural Homelessness (Identity & Belonging), Rootlessness (Identity & Belonging), Sense of Belonging (Identity & Belonging), TCK (Identity & Belonging), Bicultural Child (Family Dynamics), Global Nomad (Identity & Belonging), Hidden Immigrant (Identity & Belonging), Liminality (Identity & Belonging), Expandable Worldview (Identity & Belonging). These entries together map the risks and resources surrounding cultural identity in globally mobile lives: cultural homelessness and rootlessness describe what can happen when a stable cultural self-concept and sense of belonging do not consolidate, while sense of belonging, bicultural child, TCK, and global nomad show different ways cultural identity is constructed across multiple contexts. Hidden immigrant and liminality capture the inner experience of looking culturally at home while feeling in-between, and expandable worldview documents one of the key strengths that can emerge when complex cultural identities are supported rather than suppressed.
Sources
Pollock, D.C., Van Reken, R.E., & Pollock, M.V. (2017). Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds (3rd ed.). Nicholas Brealey Publishing. The third edition introduces updated models for identity formation, including a revised PolVan Cultural Identity diagram, specifically developed to address the layered cultural identities of globally mobile individuals.
The concept of hybrid identity draws on broader postcolonial scholarship (e.g. Bhabha, H.K. (1994). The Location of Culture. Routledge).
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