Browsing by Author "Eskelinen, Anna"

The thesis discusses American Chinese ethnic identity and factors affecting it. The thesis also explores whether the American Chinese have assimilated into American society. The theoretical framework of the thesis is formed by Stuart Hall's theory of cultural identity and the theory of assimilation by Peter Salins. The thesis represents conceptual cultural research and its research method is a literature review. The source materials of the thesis are comprised of texts written by American Chinese researchers in which they discuss their experiences in the United States. The findings of the thesis are that the American Chinese ethnic identity is not unified, but within the group there are differences in the form and content of ethnic identity. The thesis reveals that the key features of the American Chinese ethnic identity are pan-Asianism, in which cultural identities based on nationalities are combined with a broader Asian identity, and a hybrid identity in accordance with Stuart Hall's identity theory, which simultaneously contains elements from two or more cultural backgrounds. The Americans Chinese consider it important to preserve Chinese cultural traditions. Factors influencing the American Chinese ethnic identity that arise in this thesis are American Chinese communities, the attitudes of the majority population, and representation, that is, how they are presented in popular culture and media. The study shows that the way of representation of the American Chinese has been stereotypical and scarce, which has affected their ethnic identity. Within the American Chinese group there is also dispersion in assimilation. It can be said that the American Chinese in general have assimilated into American culture and society at least at the level of behavior and adopted superficial aspects of it. Younger age groups have assimilated at a deeper level and embraced American values.