The Quest for Identity: From Minority Groups to Generation Xers

by Taylor, Donald M.

• ISBN13: 9780275973100
• ISBN10: 0275973107
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-11-01
• Publisher: PRAEGER AGENCY ACCOUNT

Summary

There are groups in society that experience profound social problems, and there are others that show signs of a growing social malaise. The problems include massive academic underachievement, family dysfunction, substance misuse, violence, and delinquent behavior. In the United States and Canada, this highly unflattering profile applies to Aboriginal people, African Americans, and certain Hispanic groups. To this list, Taylor adds the ever-growing number of so-called "street kids" that roam inner-city streets, and, finally, to a lesser, but no less frightening extent, he adds what have traditionally symbolized society's most privileged group--young, white men. As Taylor points out these are not the only groups who stand out as noticeably disadvantaged, but they are among the most visible, and due to his research and activities, groups that allow him to test his arguments and offer his proposals for change. Drawing upon his research experience in Canada, the United States, South Africa, and Indonesia, Taylor examines the impact of assimilation, and policies of cultural diverstiy and multiculturalism on these groups. He offers surprising insights into the causes of group malaise and individual failure, and his conclusions are bound to be of significant interest to scholars, students, and researchers involved with intergroup dynamics and cultural diversity.

Author Biography

DONALD M. TAYLOR is Professor of Psychology at McGill University. His previous publications include Coping with Cultural and Racial Diversity (Praeger, 1990) and Theories of Intergroup Relations, 2nd editon (Praeger, 1994).

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Collective Identities in Crisis	1	(16)
Society's Disadvantaged Groups: The Grim Reality	17	(16)
Collective Identity: A Person's Primary Psychological Blueprint	33	(22)
Traditional Explanations for Group Differences: The Usual Suspects	55	(16)
Valueless Colonialism and the Destruction of Collective Identity	71	(20)
Collective Identity Overload: A Threat to Society's Most Disadvantaged and Not So Disadvantaged Groups	91	(16)
Collective Demotivation	107	(10)
Toward a Healthy Collective Identity	117	(10)
References	127	(4)
Index	131