Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
acceptedVersion
Publication Date
11-2013
Abstract
Bicultural Identity Integration (BII), or biculturals’ perceived compatibility between their two cultural identities, has been found to predict a variety of psychological processes and behavioral outcomes. However, it is not clear why biculturals differ in their levels of BII. We suggest that the valence of bicultural experiences influences BII. Furthermore, we predict that biculturals’ level of BII can be changed momentarily by recalling valenced bicultural experiences. An experimental study manipulating recall of positive or negative bicultural experiences found that recalling positive bicultural experiences increased BII, whereas recalling negative bicultural experiences decreased BII. However, recalling experiences irrelevant to bicultural experiences did not change BII. Theoretical and practical implications of the malleability of BII are discussed.
Keywords
bicultural identity integration (BII), cultural identity, valenced bicultural experiences, malleability
Discipline
Multicultural Psychology | Personality and Social Contexts
Research Areas
Psychology
Publication
Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology
Volume
44
Issue
8
First Page
1235
Last Page
1240
ISSN
0022-0221
Identifier
10.1177/0022022113490071
Publisher
SAGE
Citation
CHENG, Chi-Ying, & LEE, Fiona.(2013). The Malleability of Bicultural Identity Integration (BII). Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 44(8), 1235-1240.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/1407
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1177/0022022113490071