Doctoral Dissertation Research: Muslim Pan-ethnic Identity and Political Engagement across European Countries

目前的估计认为，1990年至2040年期间，穆斯林在欧洲人口中所占的比例预计将翻一番。移民人数的增加对下一代欧洲穆斯林的成功融入构成了挑战。移民到欧洲的穆斯林代表了文化、民族和种族的多样性;然而，政府政策和公共话语往往将穆斯林视为一个单一的群体。该项目调查了欧洲移民的穆斯林后裔在青春期出现的共同群体身份，并考虑了这种共同群体身份如何反过来又可以用于成年后的政治参与和融入。调查结果将加强对宗教在民主社会中的地位的理解，这些社会正在适应快速的人口变化和日益增加的宗教多样性。具体而言，该项目将宗教视为身份的来源、社会分裂的可能性以及将边缘化少数群体纳入主流民主进程的机制。这项研究将提供深入了解宗教作为社会关系的基础和伊斯兰教在欧洲社会中的地位。研究结果还将对穆斯林人口增加的国家的学校官员、社会工作者和决策者产生影响。理论家认为，边界？被定义为对他者的感知在欧洲是基于宗教的。然而，没有研究探讨边界是如何创建的国家和宗教身份的显着性，感知宗教歧视和政治参与的影响。研究人员认为，欧洲的穆斯林身份是一种种族化的泛种族身份：一种强加的分类，将来自不同背景的个人统一起来。具体而言，本项目调查如何接收的背景下（国家纳入政策和本地多数的区域态度）形状的穆斯林泛民族身份的三个方面：1）独立于民族起源和个人宗教信仰的青少年时期的发展，2）其根源在宗教歧视的共同经历，3）其在成年后通过泛民族组织的政治参与的潜力。为了研究跨这三个领域的泛民族认同，本项目采用潜在增长曲线分析建模穆斯林青少年？德国、荷兰、英国和瑞典的九年级和十一年级之间的身份突出性，以及分析穆斯林的多层次模型？在19个欧洲国家的宗教和政治融合。这项研究使用了最近在四个欧洲国家进行的移民子女纵向研究、对十九个欧洲国家进行的欧洲社会调查以及国家一级移民政策的数据。

Current estimates hold that the Muslim share of the population in Europe is expected to double between 1990 and 2040. Rising immigration poses challenges for the successful incorporation of the next generation of European Muslims. Muslim immigrants to Europe represent a diversity of cultures, ethnicities and races; yet government policies and public discourse often treat Muslims as a monolithic group. This project investigates the emergence of a shared group identity in adolescence for Muslim descendants of immigrants in Europe, and it considers how this shared group identity, can, in turn, be used for political engagement and incorporation in adulthood. Findings will enhance understanding of the place of religion in democratic societies that are adapting to rapid demographic change and increasing religious diversity. Specifically, this project examines religion as a source of identity, as a potential for social cleavage, and as a mechanism for the incorporation of marginalized minority groups into the mainstream democratic process. This research will provide insights into religion as a basis for social relations and the place of Islam in European societies. Results will also have implications for school officials, social workers and policy makers in countries experiencing an increase in the Muslim population. Theorists argue that boundaries?defined as perceptions of otherness?in Europe are based on religion. However, no research has examined how boundaries are created by states and their implications for religious identity salience, perceived religious discrimination, and political participation. The researchers posit Muslim identity in Europe as a racialized pan-ethnic identity: an imposed categorization which unifies individuals from diverse backgrounds. Specifically, this project investigates how the context of reception (national incorporation policies and regional attitudes from the native majority) shapes three facets of Muslim pan-ethnic identity: 1) its development in adolescence independently from national origins and personal religiosity, 2) its roots in shared experiences of religious discrimination, and 3) its potential for political engagement in adulthood through pan-ethnic organizations. In order to study pan-ethnic identity across these three domains, this project uses latent growth curve analysis for modeling Muslim adolescents? identity salience between ninth and eleventh grade in Germany, the Netherlands, England and Sweden, and multilevel modeling for analyzing Muslims? religious and political incorporation in nineteen European countries. The research uses the recently available Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study in four European Countries, the European Social Survey of nineteen European countries, and data on country-level immigration policy.