BETWEEN THE ETHNIC AND THE CIVIC IDENTITY – ON THE PERCEPTIONS OF THE STUDENT POPULATION IN THE REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA

Abstract

The research of the ethnic and national identity in a multicultural society such as the Macedonian one is relevant in reference to the question how those who identify with their ethnic group position themselves towards the broader political community. Does the strong attachment towards one’s own ethnic group, especially when minority groups are concerned, means absence of attachment towards and identification with the state, as many authors who study social identities show? Taking into consideration the Macedonian social context, we have set off from the assumption that it was possible for these two identities to be mutually exclusive, but also compatible. In a survey of student population in the R. Macedonia, four categories that express the relation of ethnic versus national identity have been offered. The results proved the general hypothesis– namely, the minority effect- according to which the minority group gives greater significance to the characteristics of their own minority belonging. However, the largest majority of ethnic Albanians chose modalities that indicate compatibility of the two researched identities, even in cases when they emphasize their ethnic background. This could be an encouraging indicator in a multicultural and divided society, but still the question remains what almost half of the examined population of ethnic Albanians mean when they choose the categories that contain both ethnic and civic traits. Some of the results which refer to the attachments to different categories and the presence of the participative component, partly provide an answer to this question.