Language identity and sense of belonging among 1.5-generation Asian and Asian American immigrant young adults in the United States

Abstract

Language identity has been defined in the research as an individual’s connection to their sense of self using language with others. Understanding language identity construction in a new environment among Asian immigrants, a racial/ethnic minority population, is important for addressing health disparities and inequities. This study examined how language identity could be defined by 1.5-generation Asian and Asian American immigrant young adults and how using multiple languages influenced their sense of belonging in the United States. Additionally, we investigated how languages influenced the way they interact with others and see themselves and what language use contexts and characteristics helped them establish their language identity. Participants were defined as individuals who arrived in the United States from Asia with their first-generation parents when they were 5–17 years old; had lived in the United States for at least 12 months; were residing in the San Francisco Bay Area, California; and were aged 18–29 at the time of the study. We conducted eight focus group discussions with 24 participants (two to four participants in each group) and analyzed verbatim transcriptions using Dedoose. We report on three themes identified in the analysis: (a) languages played a key role in forming personal and professional relationships that impacted identities, (b) language identity was distinct from language proficiency, and (c) multilingualism shaped their ethno-racial identity and sense of belonging. Future research will pursue one-on-one in-depth interviews and longitudinal studies to subsequently understand individualized experiences and expand the scope of the target population to provide generalizability to other 1.5-generation Asian and Asian American immigrants.