Russian-speaking identity and its impact on interethnic relationships (the case of Uzbekistan)

On September 22nd, Kamila Isaeva (MSc in Psychology at HSE and TiU), made a report "Russian-speaking identity and its impact on interethnic relationships (the case of Uzbekistan)". The report took place at the scientific seminar "Culture matters".

The study examines multiple identities in the multicultural context of Uzbekistan. The historical and political situation of the country created a unique context where language and ethnicity do not coincide for all groups. In this research, she explores how national, ethnic, ethnolinguistic, and religious identities are associated with interethnic friendship and romantic relationships in four main ethnolinguistic groups: Uzbek Uzbek-speakers, Russian Russian-speakers, Uzbek Russian-speakers and Russian-speakers from other ethnic groups. The results suggest that national identity is associated with the attitudes towards interethnic romantic relationships and marriages and ethnolinguistic identity with interethnic friendship across all the groups. Some associations are group-specific, for example, ethnolinguistic identity is positively associated with interethnic romantic relationships only for Russian-speaking Uzbeks. Moreover, religious identity is negatively associated with interethnic romantic relationships for all the groups except Russian-speaking Russians, but for both Russian-speaking and Uzbek-speaking Uzbeks, it is also positively associated with co-ethnic friendship. So, in this context people can be different not only in linguistic and ethnic terms but in ethnolinguistic terms.