CONCEPTUAL TRAPS: IDENTITY, INTEGRATION AND INCLUSION/EXCLUSION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES Cover Image

BEGRIFFLICHE FALLEN: IDENTITÄT, INTEGRATION UND INKLUSION/EXKLUSION NATIONALER MINDERHEITEN
CONCEPTUAL TRAPS: IDENTITY, INTEGRATION AND INCLUSION/EXCLUSION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES

Author(s): Christian Schuster
Subject(s): Economy
Published by: Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyai
Keywords: national minorities; identity; integration; differentiation; system boundaries; language.

Summary/Abstract: In the discourses of politics, of mass-media and of science, the term “national minorities” is often accompanied by other, even more problematic terms, such as identity, integration, and inclusion/exclusion. The article highlights some of the ambiguities in the usage of these terms, some social and political consequences of the inaccurate communication and combination of these words and the implications for national minority policies. Combining a Luhmannian systems theoretical approach and research findings from evolutionary psychology, the author argues that the complexity of language is of dramatic importance when it comes to avoiding ethnic conflicts and social exclusion of minorities.

  • Issue Year: 60/2015
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 75-86
  • Page Count: 12