Social Identity Amongst Wenzhouese Migrants To Italy:Asian Values Adherence And Bicultural Possibilities

The Chinese community in Italy is one of the biggest in Europe, and the vast majority of Chinese people living there come from Wenzhou and the surrounding areas. Nevertheless, Chinese migration to Italy (as with international migration to Italy in general) is a relatively new phenomenon, compared with that to other European countries. In fact, large numbers of Chinese started to migrate to Italy only in the1980s.Much anthropological and sociological research on the phenomenon of Chinese migration to Italy has been conducted, but studies with a psychological focus are lacking. In the literature, adherence to Asian values has been found to be a strong characteristic in Chinese emigrants in other countries, and also to represent one of the biggest differences with the host cultures. In addition, in previous research, a positive correlation between a strong ethnic identity and life satisfaction was shown. In the light of these findings, the present study aims to illustrate how the Social Identity Theory represents a useful perspective to be applied to the experience of migrant groups, in which the in-group/out-group comparison would be a suitable means for the recognition and perception of one’s own ethnic identity.This claim is actualised through a case study, utilising a mixed quantitative/qualitative methodology. The research investigates the adherence to Asian values amongst Wenzhouese migrants in Prato (Italy) as compared to the adherence to Asian values amongst Wenzhouese in Wenzhou. A questionnaire about adherence to Asian values (the AVS-R) was administered to a sample of95Wenzhounese who live in Wenzhou and surrounds, and to a sample of82Wenzhouese who live in Prato. In addition, a longitudinal analysis is performed of the migration experience of a sub-group of respondents, in relation to their perceived ethnic identity and life satisfaction before and after migration. For this purpose, a semi-structured interview about perceived identity, Asian values, migration-related expectations and life satisfaction was administered to a sample of19participants. Examined across the sample as a whole, the results show that there is no significant difference in adherence to Asian values between Wenzhouese in Wenzhou and Wenzhouese in Prato, but also reveal a strong perceived ethnic identity and high levels of life satisfaction. The first two findings are discussed as evidence of the applicability of the Social Identity Theory to the migrants’experience. At the same time, they could be interpreted (and exploited) as being consistent with the Italian media discourse on the Chinese in Italy, which sees the Chinese community as "closed" and "attached to their own traditions". However, the study has also found some significant differences in the adherence to Asian values between sub-groups, as well as a tendency to a slight decrease in adherence over the years, which allows the fruitful application of bi-dimensional theories of acculturation. The acculturation process of the sample supports the theory of the construction of bicultural personalities, which has been shown to be the ideal outcome of cultural encounters from an intrapsychological point of view. This would also be consistent with the third finding of this study:the high levels of life satisfaction. Possible implications of the results, in the light of bidimensional models of acculturation, are drawn out.