Basque identity, collective empowerment and level of psychological well-being

Social identity is a factor related to well-being and community participation. Some studies have shown the link between social identity and empowerment and that the interaction between the two makes welfare and community participation rates higher. However, the nature of these relationships may be conditioned by the person perceiving their own group as a minority and / or a discriminated group. In fact, these relationships occur mainly in groups that are in a situation of minority and / or discrimination, but not in more hegemonic or majority groups.

To advance in this thesis, Jon Zabala, member of the consolidated research group Culture, Cognition and Emotion of the Faculty of Psychology at the University of the Basque Country (UPV / EHU), has conducted a cross-sectional study to analyze the relationship that social identification (or fusion of identities) and collective psychological empowerment have with the personal well-being, social welfare and community participation of 748 Basques and Basques.

As Zabala explained, “we have seen that people who feel very identified or fused with Basques (or Basque speakers) and have a high degree of empowerment show high rates of personal and social well-being and community participation; in fact, they show higher rates than non-merged people with a low degree of empowerment “. On the other hand, the results of the research suggest that “social identification balances the negative aspects derived from perceiving the group as a linguistic minority,” the author states. In addition, “we have detected that for the well-being of people who consider the status of euskaldun as a minority in their environment, such as in cities or places where Basque is more fragile, it is more important to feel identified with Basques.”

According to the researcher, the advances made in the cultural aspect, and especially in the linguistic aspect, are clearly consistent with the perception of power of the Basque community to change society and achieve its goals. However, “we still find certain indicators of vulnerability, such as the fragile situation of the Basque language and some specific indicators of linguistic discrimination in some situations, which can be considered as a threat to the survival of the Basque language and, therefore, , of the Basque identity “, affirms Zabala.

Jon Zabala. (Photo: UPV / EHU)

According to the theory of social identity, “when a group is a minority and perceives relevant threats that affect their identity, identity is activated and can initiate processes of empowerment,” says the researcher from the Faculty of Psychology. It is possible that, despite the good socio-economic position in general of this social group and the successes achieved in terms of language, the awareness of being a linguistic minority both in the world and in the population of the Basque Country as a whole. , contributes to the fact that the identification or the degree of identity fusion with the euskaldunes and, especially, the empowerment act like factors especially important for the well-being “.

Researchers have perceived a strong link between collective empowerment and well-being: “We are surprised that a social factor like this has such a strong relationship with personal well-being,” says Zabala. “Collective psychological empowerment has been a very important factor and we need to keep researching. ” The characteristics of the group investigated are not usual in comparison with those of numerous investigations that have been carried out to date in this matter (especially the ethnic identity of African Americans has been studied). Therefore, the researchers state that this work is useful for other research being conducted in this field globally.

The study, entitled “Basque Ethnic Identity and Collective Empowerment: Two Key Factors in Well-Being and Community Participation,” has been published in the academic journal Frontiers in Psychology. The research was carried out within the framework of Jon Zabala’s doctoral thesis in the Culture, Cognition and Emotion research group of the Faculty of Psychology of the UPV / EHU, under the direction of professors Aitziber Pascual Jimeno and Susana Conejero López . In the collection of data have had the collaboration of AEK. The study was carried out with the help of the predoctoral program of the Department of Education of the Basque Government. (Source: UPV / EHU)