RUNNING HEAD: DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
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Differences in identity constructions between students of Turkish origin and exchange students
from Turkey in the Netherlands
Nina Schmitt
ANR: 813566
Tilburg University
Authors note
June 2014
Kutlay Yagmur
Department of Communication and Information Sciences
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
Table of content
Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... 4
Chapter 1 Introduction................................................................................................................................... 5
Chapter 2 Review of literature .................................................................................................................... 10
2.1. The concept of social identity........................................................................................................... 10
2.2. Concept of ethnic identity ................................................................................................................ 13
2.3. Primordialist and new approaches to diversity ................................................................................. 16
2.4. Conditions for the formation of identity in an immigration context ................................................ 18
2.5. Return migration and the perception of local Turks ......................................................................... 21
Chapter 3 Profile of the Turkish community in the Netherlands ................................................................ 25
3.1. History .............................................................................................................................................. 25
3.2. Current facts and statistics ................................................................................................................ 27
3.3. School and education........................................................................................................................ 28
3.4. Employment ..................................................................................................................................... 30
Chapter 4 Method ........................................................................................................................................ 32
4.1. Research design ................................................................................................................................ 32
4.2. Informants ........................................................................................................................................ 33
4.3. Data collection.................................................................................................................................. 35
4.4. Data analysis..................................................................................................................................... 36
Chapter 5 Results......................................................................................................................................... 38
5.1. Characterization of the two groups................................................................................................... 38
5.2. Different perspectives on each other ................................................................................................ 41
5.3. Ethnic identity-What does being Turkish mean? ............................................................................. 41
5.4. The perspective of local Turks on Turkish exchange students ......................................................... 45
5.5. The identity of Turkish exchange students ascribed by local Turkish students ............................... 47
5.6. The perspective of Turkish exchange students on local Turkish students........................................ 47
5.7. The identity of local Turkish students ascribed by Turkish exchange students ............................... 50
5.8. Religious identifications ................................................................................................................... 52
5.9. An inaccurate impression of Turks in the Netherlands .................................................................... 54
5.10. Misconceptions and comprehensions in the perspective of each other .......................................... 55
5.11. Individual identity of Turkish exchange students and local Turkish students................................ 57
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Chapter 6 Discussion ................................................................................................................................... 60
6.1. Implications ...................................................................................................................................... 64
6.2. Limitations and future research ........................................................................................................ 65
Chapter 7 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 66
References ................................................................................................................................................... 68
List of Figures and tables ........................................................................................................................ 72
Figure 1 Immigration of persons with Turkish or Moroccan citizenship……….………………………………… 26
Figure 2 School dropout (22 years old and younger) sorted by origin………………………………...…………..30
Figure 3 Unemployment sorted by origin, 2013……………………………………...……….……………………………. 31
Figure 4 Mosque attendances……….……………………………………...……………………. ................................... 32
Table 1 Overview Informants of the interviews…………………………………..…….…………………………………..34
Appendices .................................................................................................................................................. 73
Appendix I Interview guides ....................................................................................................................... 74
Interview guide ET .................................................................................................................................. 74
Interview guide LT (Dutch/English) ....................................................................................................... 75
Appendix II Transcripts of the interviews with ET (Turkish exchange students) ....................................... 76
Interview ETI1 ........................................................................................................................................ 76
Appendix III Transcripts of the interviews with LT (local Turkish students) ............................................. 81
Interview LTI7 ........................................................................................................................................ 81
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
Abstract
The research field of ethnic identity and identity formation has so far refrained on doing research
that compares the minority of an ethnicity living in different countries with people of the home
country. In this study, I question whether the groups of Turkish students who grew up in the
Netherlands formed the same identity as exchange students from Turkey that come to complete a
degree. In order to investigate how the different cultural spaces formed the identities of these two
groups as well as their respective impression of one another, I performed qualitative interviews
with the members of each group. The analysis of the interviews showed that there are significant
differences between the two groups. The immigrant Turks on the one hand are very conservative
and religious and the exchange students on the other hand are quite modern and western.
Nevertheless they have some important common characteristics like the Turkish language.
Furthermore, the Turkish exchange students were found to have many prejudices against the
immigrant Turks whereas they see the exchange Turks rather neutral. All in all it could be
confirmed that the identity of these two groups is indeed shaped differently because of the
different contexts and conditions in the two countries that they grew up in. Therefore, it is
important to distinguish between these diverse groups rather than attribute one common identity
to them, as is often done by the majority of people.
Keywords: identity formation, Turkish students, ethnicity, ethnic lens
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Chapter 1 Introduction
‘You don´t look like Turkish at all` (ETI8, 46I8)
In this thesis formation of Turkish identity by two different groups of Turkish students is
investigated. In order to reflect on identity perceptions and personal identifications of Turkish
young people, I aim to compare two groups of Turkish students. One group is comprised of the
students who came for a limited amount of time to the Netherlands to pursue a degree, the other
of local Turkish students who were born and raised in the Netherlands with parents or
grandparents coming from Turkey as immigrants. As there are different aspects to identity, I want
to focus on ethnic identity on the one hand and on social identity on the other hand, which are
both connected and meaningful for the individual. Nevertheless, identities are not as fixed as
often assumed and in a time of globalization identities are influenced by many different factors,
like mobility, educational ambitions, religion, language, acculturation, belonging to a minority or
physical aspects such as gender and age as well as contextual factors and many others.
The local Turkish students grew up in the Netherlands as a minority whereas the
exchange students grew up in a homogenous cultural space. This presumably has a crucial
influence on their individual identity formation. Their direct surroundings may have shaped their
identities in different ways because one group had to compensate for the influences of two
cultures while the other one did not. We can form the following hypothesis: ‘The identity
construction of the two groups of Turkish students differ due to the different conditions of the
environments that they grew up in.’
It is important to contrast two identities of one ethnicity because out groups, like in this
case the Dutch, tend to think that all Turkish are the same. This study now aims to show that
identities are more diverse than assumed by comparing two different groups of students that are
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believed to have the same ethnic identity, namely Turkish. Students with parents of a different
cultural background might form a more differentiated and clearer identity than students who are
born in a country and raised by parents of the same culture. They have never left their country
and are therefore probably not aware of their ethnic identity. In contrast, the identity of students
with mixed cultural backgrounds is the result of acculturation because they combine the culture
of their parents with the culture of the country they grew up in. It can be expected that they are
aware of their cultural identities. As a consequence, it is necessary to question the common
concepts of social and ethnic identity in order to understand the complex interrelationships
between identity, ethnicity, and inherited culture.
I chose to investigate students because they have the most contact with different
nationalities and have greater mobility more than older people whose identities are already fixed.
The identity of students is still open to changes and experiences like going abroad, which can
have a major influence. Their identity may, for example, become more visible to them when they
encounter other people, habits, customs, languages, foods, and many more things that define the
new cultural space. The identity formation of the two groups varies, of course, from individual to
individual but I want to find out what the main influences are, that create the differences between
the two Turkish groups. To demonstrate this I am looking at the individual perception of one
group about the other.
To be more specific I want to investigate the questions: ‘What are the differences in
identity constructions of local Turkish (LT) students and Turkish exchange students (ET). How
do they differ?’ and ‘how do they describe the respective other in contrast to themselves’? In
order to do so I conduct interviews with members of both groups.
In general, identities are mainly seen as attached to the nationality but for most people, the
personal identity is not primarily connected to their passport information. I want to show that
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identity is more than nationality or ethnic origin, especially in the case of so called ‘mixed
identities’. In fact, it is common to first identify people by their nationality. Placing people into
categories is easy and often used to distinguish them and make sense of the world. Unfortunately,
the existing diversity gets overlooked. In this thesis, I aim to show that the ethnic categories
which tend to be attached to the individual are invalid in the sense that there is more to a person
than its ethnic identity.
Previous studies investigate only one group and compare them to the ethnic majority or to
a different minority in the Netherlands. Furthermore, various studies that examine ethnic identity
only have been done quantitatively, such as the study of Verkuyten (1990) titled: ´Self-esteem
and the evaluation of ethnic identity among Turkish and Dutch adolescents in the Netherlands`.
He also only focusses on the ethnic identity and looks for correlations with self-esteem by using
survey data. I want to investigate the effects of the minority status on the individual compared to
the effects of being a member of the Turkish majority. Of course minority status has an influence
which will be visible in the identity of the local Turkish students. I am interested in their identity
as well, but I do not wish to compare this minority with the Dutch majority. It is not the aim to
include the Dutch opinion on Turkish in depth, as it has been widely analyzed and documented in
the literature. It is more interesting to explore the differences between Turkish students that grew
up in entirely different cultural spaces (Verkuyten 1990).
Another prominent study of the field of identity formation is a study done by P. Vedder:
´Language, ethnic identity, and the adaptation of immigrant youth in the Netherlands`. He
compares the Turks with Surinamese immigrants by using surveys. Contrary to my study, he
focuses on the influence of language proficiency on adaptation to the Dutch culture or sticking to
the own culture (Vedder, 2005).
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Oomen (2006) wrote a thesis that investigates the topic of ethnic identity: ´Minority and
majority ethnic identity of Turks and Moroccans in the Netherlands: Reasons for ethnic
identification and influences of social contact`. She wished to find out whether Turks and
Moroccans identify more with their minority status or with their Dutch majority status. This topic
is relevant for my paper but only for the group of local Turkish students as an aspect of their
identity. I do not make a comparison with Moroccans and this study also differs because my
research is qualitative (Oomen, 2006).
A study which examines ethnic identity of local Turks also exists but it does not compare
this identity to the one of Turkish in Turkey: ‘National (Dis) identification and Ethnic and
Religious Identity: A study among Turkish-Dutch Muslims’ by M. Verkuyten and A. Yildiz.
(Verkuyten & Yildiz, 2007)
The topic of national identification as opposed to ethnic identification is covered by the
article ´Immigrants’ national identification: Meanings, determinants, and consequences` by M.
Verkuyten and B. Martinovic and focuses on the identity formation of immigrants in general and
not specifically on Turkish immigrants. Nevertheless, the identification with the Netherlands of
the local Turkish is relevant in my study as it is part of their dual identity as being Turkish by
origin and Dutch by nationality (Verkuyten, 2012).
On the effects of language use and acculturation processes on identity, there is one article
by B. Bakker: ´Turkish cheeseheads and Dutch sultans: an intergenerational perspective on the
relationship between acculturation, language and identity among Turkish immigrants in the
Netherlands`. It is also another example of a study that compares Turkish immigrants in the
Netherlands with the Dutch majority. An online survey was used to find out more about the
identity of Turks in the Netherlands. In addition it was investigated what influences language as
well as acculturation have. This study is similar to my study as it addresses the subject of identity
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formation of local Turks in the Netherlands and it also gives useful insight in the matter (Bakker,
2007).
A study about identity formation in general is ´Identity Formation in Turkish and
American Late Adolescents` by R. Taylor and G. Oskay. Here, the identity of the majority and
that of minority groups in the USA are compared in a qualitative way. It contributes to my topic
by supporting a distinct image of identity of a Turkish minority group in contrast to a majority
group. As the exchange students grew up with a majority status, the differences between them
and the local Turkish in the Netherlands can be similar to any other majority a Turkish minority
coexists with (Taylor & Gulter, 1995).
An example of a study that investigates religious identity is S. Ozyurt´s research titled:
´Negotiating multiple identities, constructing western-Muslim selves in the Netherlands and the
United States`. It is one of the studies on Turkish immigrants. Here the religious identity and the
difficulty of combining that identity with a social identity of woman living in western states is a
central issue. The emphasis is on the coexistence of both identities and will also be relevant in my
investigation on the identity formation of the LT students. In some cases this identity stands in
contrast with the identity of the ET students, so Ozyurt´s study addresses already interesting and
important issues that are emphasized in my study (Ozyurt, 2013).
So far, there is an absence of studies on Turkish exchange students in the Netherlands and
their identity formation compared to the local group, however there is an article which relates to
the topic of Turkish students studying abroad: ´Brain drain from Turkey: an investigation of
students’ return intentions` by N. Güngör and A. Tansel (Gungor & Tansel, 2008).
As this overview showed, my topic is relevant because there is a lack of information
about different identity constructions within one ethnicity. In fact, no study compares the identity
formation of Turkish students descending from immigrants with exchange or short term staying
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Turkish students in the Netherlands, to my knowledge. Furthermore, similar topics have mostly
been investigated only quantitatively, so my method of approaching this question is new and
different because I will do qualitative research. Semi- structured in depth interviews are the most
appropriate method for my study especially because the topic of identity is a highly sensitive
subject that needs an approach which considers the nuances of the participant’s answers. Another
strength of the research is that interviews can provide a very detailed insight into the new topic,
avoiding generalizations, which makes this research particularly relevant.
Chapter 2 Review of literature
2.1. The concept of social identity
Hogg defines social identity as follows:
The ‘social identity (is) the part of the self-concept that derives from our membership of
social groups’ and the ‘personal identity (is) the self-defined in terms of unique personal
attributes or unique interpersonal relationships (Hogg & Vaughan, 2008, p. 123).
The concept of social identity that my research builds upon comes from the social identity
theory. H. Tajfel and J. Turner contributed important concepts that will be discussed here. They
claim that the social identity of an individual is constructed through their interactions with the
environment. In other words, the context in which we live in significantly defines or even
predicts our identity. People can behave and define themselves differently depending on the
environment which supports the theory that there is not one fixed identity per person (Hogg &
Vaughan, 2008).
The environment plays a considerable role for identity formation because each
environment immediately influences the behavior of the individual. We adapt depending on the
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context of a situation and show different sides or roles of our self which Turner defines as ‘selfconceptions’. The self-concept per se is assumed to be a higher level of the social identity which
functions as a control center for the behavior generated for each environment (Turner & Tajfel,
1982).
On the basis of Gordon’s research (1968), Turner distinguishes between social identity
and personal identity as the two categories that make up an identity. The ‘personal identity’
includes features that differ on the individual levels such as attitudes, physical appearance,
personal qualities, taste, personality, level of education etc. whereas the ‘social identity’ includes
general group categories as listed by Zavallonie where religion is also a part of (Turner & Tajfel,
1982), (Gordon, 1968).
As a consequence, social identity is inseparable from the concept of a group because an
identity cannot stand alone. It is constructed in interaction with relevant others. An identity is in
its general terms shared by a group:
[…] group includes several elements which, at different levels, identify an individual;
this applies to social categories as general as those of age, sex or nationality, but it may
also refer to roles or social positions such as the membership of a profession, a political
affiliation, etc. (Zavalloni, 1973, p. 245).
From this statement we can conclude that gender, nationality and age can be essential
factors of identification.
Social identity is furthermore explained as the sum of identifying factors which are
important to limit the identity of a person. These factors differ from person to person which is
why no identity is like any other. The individual has to decide on categories that it does and does
not belong to by encountering different people and by interacting with them. Step by step group
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membership is established because a specific identity also defines the group that the individual
belongs to (Turner & Tajfel, 1982). Thus identities are built on common grounds with other
people but this also implies that individuals can belong to different groups at the same time as
they share the characteristics of more than one group. A social group is defined as ‘two or more
individuals who share a common social identification of themselves or, which is nearly the same
thing, perceive themselves to be members of the same social category’ (Turner & Tajfel, 1982, p.
15). For our own identification it is vital whether we act as a group or alone. Research has
revealed that individuals in a group favor their own group over other groups. ‘[…] social groups
tend to be more competitive or at least differentiate themselves more than individuals under the
same condition’ (Turner & Tajfel, 1982, p. 21).
As there is not only one group we exclusively belong to, we can assume that there is also
more than one identity. Everyone has in fact multiple identities. The self-concept of a person
differs from context to context. Whereas one context defines an individual’s gender another
defines his or her role in the family. This study will focus on the difference between the identities
that are ascribed to people and which identities they subscribe to themselves (Interpersonal
Communication and Relations ), (Hogg & Vaughan, 2008).
J. Blommaert suggests that the diversity of a person´s individual identity is even more
complex today because the world has become a place where people have more geographical
mobility and the internet has changed the diversity of people ´superdiversity`. This has an
influence on the social lives and language of people. A social group can be extended to the online
environment and social connections across very large distances can exist. This research will not
include the online identity of my informants instead the focus will be on the concepts of social
identity theory in face-to face interactions.
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Belonging to several groups at the same time requires what Blommaert calls ´registers` of
norms and identities (Blommaert, 2013). Depending on the context an individual is in, the
identity changes and with it the language. The students which are subject of this research are
required to have skills that allow them to survive in the superdiverse environment of an
international university and to form not only one but many identities: ´Superdiverse social
environments are intensely polycentric and, thus, put high demands on register development for
those who live and act in them ` (Blommaert, 2013, p. 195).
2.2. Concept of ethnic identity
Identity is a complicated subject and differs from person to person. So far, research has
not been able to formulate a commonly agreed definition of how identity is shaped and changes
over time. However, social identity theory provides an overview which supplies a basic
understanding of identity. The problem with identity is the complex interaction of the
individuality and the dependence on the context of the individual. Therefore it is likewise
difficult to define ethnic identity, which might be a core issue of identity as a whole. Liebkind
defines the different ways of looking at ethnic identity in ‘The ethnic component of social
identity’ or as ‘ethnic self-identification’ (Liebkind, 2006, p. 80).
Ethnic identity depends even more on the context, more precisely on the socio cultural
space in which a person is born grows up in. In addition, ethnicity is seen as something flexible
which can change by moving to another cultural space. As a consequence the individuals
themselves will change as well. So the ethnic identity like social identity is not fixed (Liebkind,
2006).
We can form the hypothesis that the local Turkish students, that grew up in the socio
cultural space of the Netherlands have a mixed ethnic identity. It would include, on the one hand,
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the through acculturation changed Turkish ethnic identity of their parents and, on the other hand,
the ethnic identity of the Dutch culture surrounding them. This mixed identity can focus on one
specific identity, depending on whether they are with Dutch or Turkish people.
Another possible identity would be a Counter-Dutch identity. However, not every
identity of the Turkish minority members stands in contrast to the national Dutch identity or is a
half Turkish, half Dutch mixed identity. There are many more layers depending on the individual.
Liebkind emphasizes the fact that ethnic minorities are not ‘closed cultural entities’ (Liebkind,
2006, p. 80), but instead open to the implementation of cultural practices of the host culture.
Time and generational change also have a strong influence on identities. The two can weaken
boundaries that are built on perceived differences by both groups: minority and majority. The
situation of the exchange students is of course completely different because they developed an
identity which is congruent rather than contrasting with their environment. They cannot mix their
Turkish culture with a deviant one.
Liebkind describes ethnic identity encompasses: ´ […] self-identification, feelings of
belongingness and commitment to a group, a sense of shared values, and attitudes towards one’s
own ethnic group’ (Liebkind, 2006, p. 78). According to her, the two main factors that contribute
to identity are history and culture. History describes the past of the ethnicity that gave it a specific
shape. Furthermore, every ethnicity is believed to have a unique culture, which in itself has a
spectrum of variances. The unique culture of one ethnic group can be distinguished from the
unique culture of a different ethnic group. Liebkind mentions that some aspects of identity might
have a stronger meaning for a particular ethnic identity. For example the gender roles of a
specific culture influence the expectations of the individual. While gender is not always a central
social identity, it may cause major differences in the lives of men and woman in the context of
their ethnic identity.
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Furthermore, the dynamics of ancestry play a central role for ethnic identity. A feeling of
obligation can cause the individual to follow certain rituals because they are part of the common
heritage of the ethnic group (Liebkind, 2006). Ethnic groups, like social groups, are essential to
the formation of the identity because the individual learns cultural practices of the ethnic group
their family belongs to. At the same time other peer groups like the classes in school, institutions,
media and the direct environment like the neighborhood we live in shape our social identities.
The way ethnic identity is described here, again highlights the attributes of Herders view.
It seems impossible to avoid it but the description of an ethnic group by Verkuyten includes a
broader view on the matter: ´ […] whenever the belief in common descent is used to bind people
together to some degree. This sense of origin is often accomplished by defining ethnicity in terms
of metaphors of kinship: ethnicity is family writ large’ (Verkuyten, 2005, p. 81). This description
mentions one very significant aspect, namely the influence of family on the formation of an
ethnic identity and the self-identification with a specific nationality. The family as the primary
group that one belongs to, provides the first important direction in life in terms of norms and
values. These can then be attached to a specific ethnicity but there are also universal values that
all groups subscribe to as well.
It is essential to note that people who grow up in the country of their origin are usually
not aware of their ethnic or cultural identity. The own nationality is rarely mentioned when
people are asked to describe themselves or their identity. Although ethnic identity is not visible to
one self it is still constantly shaped by the interactions with the same cultural environment into a
standard version of the own culture. However, this part of the ethnic identity can be salient for
people of an ethnic minority living in a country other than that of their origin. In that case, the
differences from the host culture make their own culture become visible (Sussman, 2000).
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2.3. Primordialist and new approaches to diversity
To this day the ideas of J.G. Herder, a German philosopher (1744-1803) have a strong
influence on various disciplines in the field of humanities and therefore also on theories of
acculturation, assimilation, and theories of ethnicity. He created categories of people by regarding
them as closed groups or self-evident units. The people who are part of one group are assumed to
all share the same identity, historical background, unique culture, solidarity, and strong
community bonds that form a network. Herder divided these assumptions into three specific
attributes of the individual in a group. He thought that everyone has very good connections to
everyone else in the group, that the individual has an identity based on common historical origin
with the others, and that they all have a culture and language that is exclusively valid in the
specific group. This view of groups is limited in its complexity since Herder ignores various
individuating aspects of communities and individuals. Most importantly those individuals are not
all the same but diverse and can be part of multiple different groups. The advantage of Herder´s
approach was that it was easier to conduct research on self-evident units rather than on diverse
individuals. However, it also painted the wrong picture of group dynamics. (Wimmer, 2009)
Nevertheless, Herder’s view is still shared by the majority of people as we tend to put
people into categories like nationality and ethnicity. We take it for granted that members of an
ethnic group all have the same identity and identification. The problem of this generalizing view
is that it ignores the reality of the individual identities that people form within Herders categories
and beyond. Furthermore,
[…] members of ethnic categories might not share the same culture, might not form a
‘community’ held together by densely woven social networks, and might disagree about
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the relevance of different ethnic categories and thus not hold a common identity
(Wimmer, 2009, p. 246).
So being part or seeming to be part of a distinct ethnic group does not mean that a person
is just one of many identical units.
A different approach to ethnicity is to describe it as ´ […] the result of a potentially
reversible social process of boundary-making […] ` (Wimmer, 2009, p. 254), (Brubaker, 2002).
Therefore, ethnicity is unfixed and dominated by different social influences and processes.
Depending on the boundaries between one ethnicity and another, the groups are shaped to fit a
certain form which is not irreversible. This means that an ethnic group which is a minority in one
country can differ significantly from the same ethnic group in another country or even in their
country of origin.
Ethnic groups do not appear out of nowhere because people form bonds that share cultural
attributes. However, according to J.C. Deschamps: ‘[…] a group has no existence but in its
relation to other groups’ (Deschamps, 1982, p. 87). This means that only the coexistence and
comparison with another group makes groups visible. Without the other group the first would not
be possible to define. In this thesis, two subgroups of Turkish identity are compared, specifically
on the one hand local students of Turkish decent and on the other hand Turkish exchange
students. The two groups can be called ‘identity groups’ because this defines the main difference
of its members best. Following Herders theory they would only be defined by their nationality
and ethnicity or, in the case of the local Turks, by their country of origin. This approach ignores
the individuality of each identity group (Wimmer, 2009).
As Wimmer points out, it is problematic to still regard third or fourth generation
immigrants as ethnic minorities because it reflects the opinion that they are not legitimate
members of the host society. This is also true for second generation immigrants. As long as the
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majority of the host country´s population does not accept the minority members as equal there are
still various boundaries between the two groups. These boundaries are built on Herders view that
looks through the ethnic lens in place of seeing the individual (Wimmer, 2009).
In order to conduct more accurate research, Wimmer suggests also using other
observation units like localities, individuals, class and institutional fields. In this thesis, the focus
is on individuals in the environment of the university. The observations were collected using
face-to-face interviews. With the help of their statements a picture of individual identity
formation shall become visible. It is meant to be a useful insight beyond the borders of the
Turkish ethnic group.
2.4. Conditions for the formation of identity in an immigration context
Growing up in the Netherlands with a Turkish minority background differs from growing
up in Turkey as a member of the majority. Therefore, the conditions of the social identity
formation must differ between exchange students from Turkey and local Turkish students.
Azmitia suggest that ethnic identity, like social identity in general, is formed in two ways,
making a commitment and exploring other possibilities. (Azmitia & Syed, 2008) This idea
implies that the identity formation process is a constant attempt to combine these two actions.
First, committing oneself to a social or ethnic group and second, searching for other groups that
support ones concept of identity.
The attempt of doing so may result in many difficulties for minority group members since
there is no limit to only one ethnic identity. The feeling of being in between two cultures and the
lack of a distinct cultural background can make it hard to find one‘s own individual identity. In
addition, the wish to satisfy both cultures in the identification process is difficult to handle: ‘Most
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immigrants and ethnic minority group members struggle with the question of combining
subgroup identities with commitments to the nation-state’ (Verkuyten & Yildiz, 2007, p. 1448).
It has been mentioned that it is possible to have different identities depending on the
social context. However, in the case of different ethnic identity, the identities can contradict each
other and therefore cause inner troubles for the individual. In a country where multiculturalism is
supported this does not need to result in major problems. Though, the Netherlands has changed
into a country where assimilation is favored over diversity. Minorities typically prefer
multiculturalism, because it allows them to preserve their own culture and, at the same time, they
are accepted by the majority of the country they live in (Verkuyten, 2009).
The social context of the Netherlands is suspected to enforce the choice of the own group,
own ethnicity over the identity of the Dutch majority. A member of a group which is under threat
or experiences social rejection tends to favor the own group and its values although the individual
social identity does not necessarily support all the norms and values of their group (Brewer,
1991). People in this situation doubt themselves more and search for elements that keep them
grounded like religion and culturally defined roles: ‘ In addition to a positive identity, feelings of
certainty, and a sense of belongingness and inclusion, they provide a cultural worldview and
meaningfulness’ (Verkuyten & Yildiz, 2007, p. 1449). Sussman speaks of the emergence of a
new social identity status of minority- or out group members which supports a stronger
identification with the own ethnic identity (Sussman, 2000).
Following these statements it can be assumed that the ethnic identity is more meaningful
than the social identity among members of the Turkish minority. The ethnicity plays a dominant
role in the formation of the social identity.
One aspect that encourages favoring the own ethnic group is the competition with the
Dutch majority, especially in the field of education. On the basis of Banks’ (Banks & Banks,
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
1995) and Sues’ (Sue & Sue, 2003) research Verkuyten wrote: ‘Multicultural acceptance and
recognition has been found to be important for psychological well-being and counseling and for
the educational process’ (Verkuyten, 2009). It can be thus assumed that a broad acceptance of the
Turkish minority would lead to academic performance at the same level as the Dutch majority.
However, this is not the case. In fact Turkish students perform worse than Dutch which supports
the hypothesis that there is a significant connection between acceptance and academic
performance.
Another aspect is that the perception of Islam, the religion the Turkish minority is
associated with, has become negative after September 11, 2001. This negative perception is wide
spread in public because of Dutch politics and media. Islam is even perceived as a threat
(Verkuyten & Yildiz, 2007). The effect of this on the identity perception of the local Turkish
students is most likely quite bad. A vital part of their identity, their religion, is suddenly regarded
as a peril and they are seen as potentially dangerous because they are part of the religious
community of Muslims. Such a situation is not easy to handle. As a result, the local Turkish
could, on the one hand avoid their Dutch surrounding and question their identity. On the other
hand, it is possible that they will emphasize their religion and try to make others understand that
they are not terrorists. This could for example happen by starting to wear a headscarf as a symbol
or marker of their religious identity. A third possibility is that they choose to favor the Dutch part
of their identity. However, the reaction depends on the individual. Everyone has their own way of
dealing with a complicated situation.
In general, it can be regarded as difficult to have a Dutch nationality but be of Turkish
descent, because favoring one identity can contradict a national attachment to the Dutch or
Turkish culture.
20
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
2.5. Return migration and the perception of local Turks
In order to get an understanding of how the two groups are, we need to look at the sociocultural characteristics of the countries in which the two groups grew up in.
The main difference between the Netherlands and Turkey is that the Turkish culture is
presumed to be highly collectivistic whereas the Dutch culture is regarded as mainly focused on
individualism. Based on Triandis’ research (Triandis, 1994), Verkuyten claims that in a
collectivistic culture, the family or the group is most important and that the individual follows the
aims of the group. The group is essential for the individual and is nearly inseparable (Verkuyten,
2001). In contrast, in an individualistic society, the wishes and goals of the individual are more
relevant than those of the family or group. These two concepts have a major influence on the
identity of the local Turkish students whereas the exchange students can be assumed not to have
been subject to a big individualistic influence.
By means of reflecting on return migration the different identity formation and the
opinion of the exchange students towards the locals can be explained. When people immigrate to
another country and stay and work there for years, they can be expected to feel the need to adapt
to the host culture. There are often programs helping to do so. After a first cultural shock, one
adapts to the new surroundings. Adaptation, as understood here, is defined by Sussman:
‘Adaptation emphasizes proactive attempts to be culturally flexible and resilient within the new
cultural environment’ (Sussman, 2000, p. 360).
Depending on the person’s own choice and the time spent in the other country this
adaptation and in the long term acculturation is more or less strong. When one is planning to stay
for a long time or forever the motivation to adapt is greater than for those that come only for a
limited time. Immigrants learn a new language, behave more according to the norms and values
21
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
of the new country and might integrate the host country´s traditions into their daily lives.
Different working conditions, different political situations, different food, new friends and
religion can have a major influence on the individual. The adaptation to the new surrounding is
often necessary in order to communicate and live successfully in the host country (Sussman,
2000).
In the past immigration to another country was something permanent. Today the time
spent abroad is shorter and people tend to return to their countries, which causes problems. After
a while, what happens is what Sussman calls an ‘identity shift’ of the immigrants in favor to the
new culture and away from the original one. Immigrants go through more or less strong ‘crosscultural transitions’, processes that lead to acculturation. A new identity appears as the end
product of acculturation and then someone is regarded as integrated. The reasons for this are that
the originally learned behavioral patterns of the own culture, are not applicable in the new one:
Cultural readjustments, prompted by the lack of fit between one set of cultural cognitions
and behavior no longer appropriate within the new cultural context, may lead individuals
to modify behavior, cognitions, or both and, consequently, cultural identity (Sussman,
2000, p. 363).
Even when the person is emphasizing their own culture it is impossible to not get
influenced by the new surroundings, so people change in every case. (Sussman, 2000) The result
is that the person coming back after a stay abroad is different from the one that went. This not
only applies in terms of individual identity, but also in terms of group identity. After years
abroad, the home culture will have changed as well because of new influences, modernization or
changes in politics. There are various aspects that change over time and that the expatriate did not
22
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
go through with his home country: ´ […] the returnee almost never re-enters the same society he
left behind but a society that has changed since his departure` (Dumon, 1986, p. 120).
The expatriate will have missed out on these changes so his perceived values, language
and traditions can be old fashioned and no longer applicable when he comes back. The problem
of no longer fitting in becomes salient, because the identity of the returning migrant is not
congruent with the identity of those who stayed. Family and friends cannot share the point of
view that the person learned or adapted abroad so it often happens that repatriates are seen as
outsiders because of their differences and inability to readjust to their own but then strange
culture: ‘New cultural scripts in which sojourners are now engaged and that enabled them to fit
more appropriately the host environment are not appropriate in the home culture’ (Sussman,
2000, p. 365).
Although the local Turkish students are no return migrants they can be assumed to be seen
in a similar way by the Turkish that grew up in Turkey. The second and third generation of
immigrants that this study focused on has presumably an even more different ethnic identity than
their acculturated parents or grandparents who were born in Turkey. Growing up in another
culture makes the ties with it much stronger and mixed identities emerge that are very far from
the current Turkish culture that the exchange students know. They have only seen Turkey in their
holidays and not as locals. Furthermore, the Turkish culture they grew up with, is a modified and
adapted version of the culture of the times when their parents left Turkey. The current Turkish
society may be very different of the one that the parents left (Lepore, 1986).
From this it follows, that the difficulties that the second generation would face upon
‘return’ might be bigger than those of the first generation. The reason is that the differences to
their own ethnic identity are extensively larger. They are not connected to the local networks and
23
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
do not know how to approach matters in the appropriate way because they are more familiar with
the host societies norms (Dumon, 1986).
On the other hand, the culture of origin in its new form could be regarded as a new culture
and an acculturation process could get started again in the individual. Dumon points out that for
many second generation children returning to the country of origin means going to a country
whose culture was mainly conveyed by their parents. As a result, they just get to know a minor
part of it and miss out on the diversity of their parent´s culture. In addition the children adapt to
the parent´s views, norms and values, which are now outdated. They are therefore very likely to
be more conservative than the youth of their age that grew up in the country itself as they identify
more with their parent´s generation (Dumon, 1986) .
When the second generation, in this research the local Turkish students, meet with
Turkish exchange students it can create a similar situation. It can be assumed that the norms and
values of the two groups are very different and we can predict that the local Turkish students are
more conservative. They would furthermore speak an older version of Turkish or other dialects as
opposed to standard Turkish spoken by the exchange Turks. They would also have different goals
in life. (Dumon, 1986) As they are guided by a picture of their culture that is created by their
parents they can be disappointed when facing the reality of current everyday Turkish life.
They may appear to be outsiders due to their failure to identify with the surrounding
social environment, lack of knowledge of the 'fatherland', an absence of friends and, in
some cases, their refusal to accommodate their expectations to the hard realities
encountered, to learn the new codes of social communication and work out new plans for
the future, embodying in them the new reality represented by their own country (in many
cases the country of their parents and not of themselves), (Lepore, 1986, p. 102).
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
This disappointment and difficulties can also become visible when the second generation
meets exchange students studying in the host country and experience their different behavior
which is supposedly very different from what they are told by their parents. Both groups would
have problems communicating and building friendships with each other. In a way, the second
generation finds themselves temporally displaced. They are young but yet represent their parent´s
generation. This could lead to frustration among the exchange students. In sum, we can assume
that the two groups will have difficulties identifying the other as coming from the same culture
and country of origin.
Chapter 3 Profile of the Turkish community in the Netherlands
3.1. History
The first immigrants from Turkey came in 1964 as temporary guest workers to the
Netherlands. The increasing demand for workers in factories started a wave of immigrants from
southern Europe and later Turkey. The work that they performed demanded physical strain and
therefore attracted mostly man. The idea was that the guest workers would stay for several years
and then return to their home countries. However, in the case of the Turks, the economic situation
in Turkey was less attractive so they stayed in the Netherlands.
It was not until 1973 that the workers were reunited with the families that had stayed in
Turkey. As a result, the number of female Turkish immigrants increased. Nevertheless, many of
the new workers who came constantly until the beginning of the 1990ies, were at first illegal.
Figure 1 shows the numbers of immigrants from 1969 until 2006. The increase from 1973 on is
clearly visible, reaching a peak in the year 1980. The beginning of the 1990ies marks the second
highest peak. After 1992 the immigration flow decreased significantly (Crul & Heering, 2008).
Furthermore, statistics about the number of Turkish immigrants from the 1960ies showed that
25
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
they remained in the Netherlands. More precisely, about three out of five stayed. This is 15% of
the immigrants who came between the years 1965 and 1966 and 55% of those who came between
the year 1972 and 1973. This can be explained by the fact that the immigrants’ wave of the
1970ies was mainly family reunions, with wives and children of the guest workers that had come
nine years before. Two thirds of them remained living in the Netherlands until the present day.
(Tas, 2004) The Moroccans immigrants, who are also represented in Figure 1, are of no relevance
to this research.
Figure 1 Immigration of persons with Turkish or Moroccan citizenship
(Crul & Heering, 2008)
The Turkish community that is now living in the Netherlands is diverse within itself
because the first generation immigrants came from different regions of Turkey, namely from
Karaman, Kayseri, Sivas, Yozgat and Ankara. These are all provinces of central Anatolia (Crul &
Heering, 2008).
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
There has been a significant change over time within the Turkish community which can
be explained by acculturation. The rates of teenage birth declined dramatically from the first to
the second generation. In the first generation, there were over 40 births per 1000 women between
the ages of 15 and 19, whereas there are only about 5 for the second generation for the same age
category (Garssen, 2005).
Nevertheless, Turkish woman have children at a much younger age than native Dutch do.
However, the trend is changing in the second generation in the direction of later motherhood. In
total the number of children born by woman of Turkish origin is declining significantly for the
second generation and is approaching the number of children born to Dutch woman (Schoorl,
1990). This is the result of lower birthrates but also because Turkish immigrants came only in
the 1970ies and 1980ies, so the second generation is still young and the third generation is still
rather small in number (Alders & Keij, 2001).
Only the third generation of Turkish immigrants is considered to be Dutch by birth, so
they are automatically naturalized. In contrast, second generation immigrants had to have a Dutch
father or, as of 1985, a Dutch mother to be naturalized automatically. If this was not the case,
Dutch citizenship had to be applied for. The requirements were proficiency in the Dutch
language, a stay in the Netherlands that extended the period of 5 years and a clean police record.
Since 2003 a naturalization exam has to be passed in order to prove a sufficient level of
integration into Dutch society (Crul & Heering, 2008).
3.2. Current facts and statistics
According to the national statistics ´Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek` (CBS) of October
the 21 of 2013 there were in total of 395.302 Turkish people living in the Netherlands.196.203 of
them were from the first generation of immigrants and 199.099 from the second generation.
27
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
Compared to the year 2000 there was an increase of population of 86.412 so 7, 81% (CBS, CBS,
2013). Looking at the newest numbers of asylum seekers from Turkey it can be noted that there
were only 85 in 2013. Over the years, starting from 2009 this number varied only slightly with an
increase in 2010 and a decrease after the year 2012. In 2009 there were 85, in 2010: 105, in 2011:
110 and in 2012: 105 (CBS, CBS, 2014). The reasons for immigration and long term residence in
the Netherlands were mainly family reunions. In 2012 there were 2540 immigrants. In contrast to
that only 555 people got a residence permit and were able to stay from the same year on, for
reasons of working (CBS, CBS, 2013).
The majority, so more than 60% of the Turkish living in the Netherlands, chooses local
Turkish partners to get married to. Around 20% chose to get married to Turkish people that are
born in Turkey and come to the Netherlands for the purpose of marriage. The so called ´migration
marriages` are becoming rare for the Turkish minority when compared to other minority groups
living in the Netherlands. Less than 10% chose Dutch partners and the rest other nationalities
(Tas, 2004).
3.3. School and education
In the Netherlands, children enter three different types of high schools, VMBO
(preparatory secondary vocational education), HAVO (senior general education) or VWO (preuniversity education). Depending on the type of diploma they have, they can access a higher level
of education. In the case of VMBO a MBO (secondary vocational education) or a HAVO (senior
general education), a higher education is possible. With a HAVO diploma they can access a HBO
(higher professional education) education and with a VWO (pre-university education) diploma
they can access a HBO or WO education. WO stands for scientific education, so university
28
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
studies. This means that the MBO is the lowest level of school education, followed by HBO and
with WO at the top (IAU & WHED, 2006).
In 2013, 58.000 of the working Turkish population of the Netherlands had only primary
education, 77.000 a VMBO or a MBO diploma and an extra formation. 98 000 had a HAVO,
VWO or MBO diploma and 24.000 had a HBO or a WO Bachelor degree. There were no Turks
with a WO Master or PHD according to the statistics of 2013 (CBS, 2013).
In the years 2009/2010, 5% of the Turkish people that were 22 years old or younger
dropped out of school. In 2010/2011 there were 5, 1%. People older than 23 years showed a
much higher dropout rate of 19.8% in 2009/2010 and of 19% in 2010/2011 (CBS, CBS, 2012).
The highest dropout rates can be found in the MBO education. The first generation of foreigners
in general (indicated as blue, 2005/2006 in Figure 2) is more likely to dropout from school than
in the second generation (indicated as brown, 2010/2011 in Figure 2). In total the school dropout
rates are decreasing. When compared to native Dutch, Turkish people have a twice as high
likelihood of dropping out of school.
29
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
Figure 2 School dropout (22 years old and younger) sorted by origin
(Autochtonen = native Dutch, Totaal = total, Turken = Turkish, Allochtonen = foreigners,
Surinamers = Surinamese, Marokkanen = Moroccan, Antillianen/Arubanen = Antillian/Aruban)
(CBS, CBS, 2012)
3.4. Employment
In total 157000 Turkish people were employed in the Netherlands in the year 2014. 99000
of them are man and 58000 women. 26% are unemployed. More men (16%), than woman (10%)
are unemployed (CBS, CBS). Figure 3 shows a comparison of unemployment rates between
native Dutch and the major minority groups in the Netherlands. Turks are the minority group
with the lowest unemployment rate.
The low number of Turks with a university degree and poor school performance of
Turkish pupils can be explained by the lower education level of their parents. After all, parental
30
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
first generation’s education level is lower than that of the parents of Dutch natives (Crul &
Heering, 2008).
Figure 3 Unemployment sorted by origin, 2013
(Autochtonen = native Dutch, Westerse allochtonen = western foreigners, Niet westerse
allochtonen = Non-western foreigners, w.v. = of which, Turken = Turkish, Marokkanen =
Moroccan, Surinamers = Surinamese, Antillianen/Arubanen = Antillian/Aruban, Overige niet
westerse = other non-western), (CBS, CBS, 2013).
Contradicting expectations, the second generation of Turkish immigrants goes to the
mosque more often than their parents. The following figure (4) also reflects the fact that women
go to the mosque less often than men. Until the year 2003, the first generation had a higher
percentage of members visiting the mosque. However, since then this number has declined and
the second generation began going more often. The researchers had assumed that the first
generation would be more religious due to their lower level of education. In this case, the second
generation who has higher education and acculturation levels would be expected to go to the
mosque less often (Maliepaard, Gijsberts, & Lubbers, 2012).
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
Figure 1 Mosque attendances
(Maliepaard, Gijsberts, & Lubbers, 2012)
Chapter 4 Method
4.1. Research design
In this study the empirical qualitative approach is used to investigate the research
questions: ‘What are the differences of identity constructions of local Turkish (LT) students and
Turkish exchange (ET) students? How do they differ?’ and ‘How do they describe the respective
other in contrast to themselves? ` In order to do so, individual interviews with members of both
groups were conducted. The non-standardized interview format allowed space for individual
answers and a deeper insight into the nuances of personal perceptions of the identity of the
informants. Such a subject is best approached by gathering qualitative data because structured
surveys limit data collection to specific responses and can influence responses. Numbers can
often draw a too general picture wherein the individual gets overlooked. Although the
32
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
participants are members of a specific group, they are different from each other which will be
reflected in their answers.
4.2. Informants
The aim of the research is to compare the two groups, LT (local Turkish students) and ET:
exchange or degree seeking students from Turkey. The informants are all students at the
University of Tilburg and the majority is completing a master. As a result, the differences in age
are rather little. Depending on when the parents came to the Netherlands the LT are of the
second or third generation. The goal was to find students that grew up in the Netherlands,
regardless of their specific generation. The informants of both groups never met any of the
members from the other group, however within their own group some of the informants are
friends. For this reason, they were asked to not speak about the content of the interviews to avoid
influencing their friend’s answers. Different Turkish student organizations on Facebook were
contacted to find local Turkish students. However, only a few of the informants are members of
these organizations. The persons that participated in the interviews were only suggested by
members of the organizations. It was easier to find ET participants since the interviewer had
personal connections with many of them. Interviews were conducted in the academic buildings of
Tilburg University after participants gave informed consent. The majority of both groups has met
members of the respective other group (ET or LT) or was able to observe them from afar.
33
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
34
Table 1
Overview Informants of the Interviews
Informants
Code
Age
Language of
Interview
Gender
Residence
Informant 1 ET
ETI1
23
English
male
Tilburg
Informant 2 ET
ETI2
23
English
male
Tilburg
Informant 3 ET
ETI3
22
English
female
Tilburg
Informant 4 ET
ETI4
23
English
male
Tilburg
Informant 5 ET
ETI5
23
English
male
Tilburg
Informant 6 ET
ETI6
26
English
female
Tilburg
Informant 7 ET
ETI7
23
English
male
Tilburg
Informant 8 ET
ETI8
23
English
female
Tilburg
Informant 9 ET
ETI9
23
English
male
Tilburg
Informant 10 LT
LTI1
24
English
male
BOZ
Informant 11 LT
LTI2
20
English
female
Tilburg
Informant 12 LT
LTI3
26
English
male
BOZ
Informant 13 LT
LTI4
24
Dutch
female
LOZ
Informant 14 LT
LTI5
24
English
female
Tilburg
Informant 15 LT
LTI6
28
Dutch
female
R.
Informant 16 LT
LTI7
24
Dutch
male
Tilburg
Informant 17 LT
LTI8
24
English
male
Tilburg
Informant 18 LT
LTI9
20
English
male
unknown
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
4.3. Data collection
To collect the necessary data, 18 semi-structured interviews lasting between of 24 to 35
minutes were conducted. For each interview the responses of the informant was recorded. The
records were then transcribed. Nine of the participants were Turkish students of the Tilburg
University that were born and raised in the Netherlands. The other nine were Turkish students
who came to Tilburg from Turkey seven months ago in order to obtain a master degree. All
interviews were conducted in English except for three that had to be conducted in Dutch because
of the very limited knowledge of English of the local Turkish informants. Two different
interview guides with concrete questions and the order of them were developed to examine the
differences between the groups. Nevertheless, adaptations to the interview guide were made from
respondent to respondent so every interview is unique and does not necessarily include all
questions because they were often answered within the context of a previous question.
Furthermore, every individual had a different understanding of the questions so some questions
needed to be reformulated. The only questions that both groups were asked was about the
perception of the respective other including common things, differences, and questions about
identity.
In order to create a more relaxed atmosphere, the interviews were started with general
questions about the studies of the informants and their living situation. Then the key areas were
explored in different orders one by one: Attachment to Turkey and the Turkish culture, contact
with the other group and their picture of them, differences and similarities, experiences abroad
(only for the ET) and with the Dutch, friends and hobbies, religious and individual identity, life
perspectives and the future after the studies . The interviews with the local Turks were more
focused on their lives in the Netherlands, personal attributes, and goals in life. In the interviews
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
with the degree seeking Turkish from Turkey the emphasis was on the experience of living
abroad, culture clashes and whether they like the life in the Netherlands and intend to stay.
Depending on the individual the length of the interviews varied. The intentions of this study were
revealed at the end and the informants could ask questions. Because personal subjects were
addressed, all the interviews were made anonymous.
4.4. Data analysis
As a first step, I identified several issues based on the theories mentioned in the literature
review, as main topics. They include social, ethnic and religious identification. This meant
creating new definitions of Turner´s categories of personal and social identity. I found that he
included hobbies, goals, education and expected achievements of the informants as well as their
perception of the respective other group into the category of personal identity. The category
social identity is mainly represented in the religious identifications of the informants. I added
insightful topics from the interviews, for example the question of how the two groups see each
other appeared to be of central importance because it reflected the subscribed identities of the
groups. I paid special attention to gathering as much information as possible from the informants
when they were answering this question. The sum of the mentioned topics was used as different
codes for the analysis of the interviews.
In a second step I examined the collected data in general, which was in the form of
transcripts of the interviews, with a focus on the three aspects of identity and on the view one
group had of the respective other. I identified the most relevant answers from the informants to
answer my research questions and was lucky to find what I had expected.
In a third step the most important aspects in each interview were highlighted. Afterwards,
the codes were used to categorize the results and to get a deeper insight in the answers.
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
The themes that came up repeatedly, so in most of the interviews within one group, were
identified and categorized into the major structuring codes. I then analyzed those topics in order
to show the differences and similarities between the groups. Each informant gave key quotes
about his identity which were used to support the analysis. I created a table for each group in
order to be able to compare how each informant answered to specific questions within one group.
This way, I got an overview of how many informants answered in a specific way. In the results
section I will talk about the majority of informants, so when six of the nine informants per group
mentioned similar things about a specific topic. If there were smaller numbers of corresponding
answers, the exact number will be mentioned.
I made a characterization of each group in order to get a major idea of the issues that were
common in each group and to see the differences more clearly. Then a contrasting juxtaposition
was made which is reflected in the result section as ‘The perspective of local Turks on Turkish
exchange students’ and ‘The perspective of Turkish exchange students on local Turkish students’.
Furthermore, I made an overview of what it means to be Turkish for each group of informants
and what identities they ascribe to one another.
With the help of the method of contrasting juxtaposition, misconceptions of the groups
were revealed. In the end the results were broadly structured into the three main categories:
Ethnic, religious and individual identity.
In the following chapter I will present the results of the analysis and the answers to my
research questions: ‘What are the differences of identity constructions of local Turkish (LT)
students and Turkish exchange (ET) students? How do they differ?’ and ‘How do they describe
the respective other in contrast to themselves? `. I will start by giving an overview of the
informants and then go into detail concerning the differences of the groups by explaining their
identities and perception of each other.
37
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
Chapter 5 Results
5.1. Characterization of the two groups
The Turkish exchange students are in many ways European, open minded and western.
They go out to Dutch bars and international parties. With regard to their clothing style and world
views they do not stick out from the mass of European students. However, their ideas and beliefs
about Europe are more idealistic and even euphemistic. A reason might be that the current,
extreme situation in Turkey (in the year 2014) influences their opinion. The contrast changes
their perception so Europe becomes a place where people can have and reach almost everything
they want. Within that space the Netherlands is regarded as an especially liberal and open minded
country.
Most of the exchange students from Turkey are not religious or practice their religion
rather liberally. Especially the girls do not wish to follow the rules of Islam because they perceive
them as limiting their personal freedom in everyday life. They have the explicit wish to explore
the world and to get in touch with other cultures. The fact that they went abroad to study
underlines this. It is important for them to have international friends but also to get to know the
Dutch culture and to adapt to its rules and rituals. The picture that they have of the Netherlands
and of Dutch people is very positive. They feel welcome and report positive experiences. Some
even learn Dutch and want to stay in the country for an extended period of time after graduation.
It is curious that only male exchange students report being friends with local Turks that
they did not know beforehand or that are not related to them. Still, male and female students visit
places of the local Turkish community like bars and supermarkets. Depending on the individual,
the contact is more or less intense and also depends on whether they are religious or not. Some
went to visit the mosque in Tilburg with different reactions. Even though for one informant it
38
DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
creates a feeling of home, others tend to stay away from the mosque and other Turkish places
because they fear being judged by the locals for being different in any way. Their opinions about
the local Turkish are mixed but their overall impression is rather negative. It can best be
described as confusion or irritation. They perceive them as extremely religious and conservative
which seems to unsettle and bother them a lot. The experience of meeting people from their own
culture that live in a different way seems, in several cases, to be unpleasant and leads them to
keep the contact limited to a minimum.
For the local Turkish students it is of the utmost importance to preserve their Turkish
origins. They strive to be and to communicate to others that they are Turkish in the first place.
Although a good education is perceived as essential, religion and family ultimately have a higher
value for them. They are open to the influences of the Dutch culture, however they also report
mixed feelings or the feeling of being caught between the Turkish and the Dutch culture. Local
Turkish students have adapted to a more individualistic way of thinking and integrate it into their
lives which are otherwise dominated by traditions. To have Dutch and international friends is
natural for them but often the closest people in their lives are also of Turkish origin or are
members of their family. They seek to preserve the Turkish language and speak it at home with
their family. Compared to the Dutch society they have conservative values and lifestyles which,
for example, is visible in the fact that they all mostly still live with their parents. They are proud
of being Turkish but also see themselves as a part of the Dutch society. The majority of local
Turkish students describe themselves as calm people who like spending time with friends and
who don´t go out to Dutch places.
There is a certain curiosity among the local Turkish students about the Turkish exchange
students, about how they live and what they know about life in Turkey. Some negative
39
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perceptions are that they are western, rich, non-traditional, modern, and too liberal in their
exercise of religion.
From both perspectives it is the Turkish language and culture along with certain values
that the two groups have in common. Another aspect is that they consider themselves to be more
emotional than the Dutch. The students of both groups feel attached to Turkey as their home
country and show their patriotism, for example, by being a fan of the Turkish soccer team. The
exchange students are more concerned about their countries´ difficult current situation than the
local Turks. They try to follow the events and if something drastic happens in Turkey it affects
their feelings. In contrast, the local Turks have a more distant perspective despite of being
attached to Turkey. This is mainly because they live in the Netherlands and the political situation
in Turkey does not affect their lives directly. The majority has no intention of spending a longer
period of time in Turkey which also explains why they have a more superficial interest in the
current news.
Both groups place a high value in their family and friends. Their family is very essential
in defining who they are and they have strong connections between each other. Having friends
from the same culture helps to consciously or subconsciously, as in the case of the Turkish
exchange students, maintain their culture while living abroad. In other words, both groups are
highly collectivistic although they accuse each other of being individualistic.
Furthermore, a good education and a safe job are common goals. When measuring their
own success their academic degree is of central importance. They invest a lot of time and energy
in their academic performance so that they can have a good future. This might be more valid for
the locals because they do not have the opportunity to find a good position in Turkey in their field
of study and also need to compete with the Dutch. All in all, both groups are very eager to
achieve as much as possible in life.
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Religion and the place of birth might be the two factors that differ most drastically and
have a major influence on the individual’s character as well as on their collective identity within
each group. Furthermore, the perception of Europe differs from one group to the other. For the
locals Europe is simply the space they grew up in. As a result they are critical of it. In contrast,
the exchange students have a very positive picture of the EU as a source of opportunities, where
wealthy people live, where things are organized, and where people have human rights. In some
aspects, it is perceived as the opposite of Turkey because it promises to be mainly filled with
people that are nice and open minded.
5.2. Different perspectives on each other
How the two groups see each other gives meaningful insights into their own identity. It
tells us who they are and how they are. First, the focus will be on ethnic identity and what it
means to be Turkish, according to the locals and the exchange students. To explore the identity of
the informants more in depth, I will expose the impressions that the groups have of one another
and the identity that they ascribe to the respective other. Then, I will go into detail about religious
and individual identity and also reveal misunderstandings and paradoxes. The intention is to
show which ideas about the other are true and which ones are just prejudices that arise from a
lack of contact with one another.
5.3. Ethnic identity-What does being Turkish mean?
The main point that both groups fight about indirectly is who the real Turk is. They
accuse each other for not being ´real` Turkish. One local informant summed the issue up with the
following words:
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
Wie ben ik? Een keer voel ik mij meer Turks andere keer, als ik kijk na die jongen na de
houding dan heb ik sowieso...zijn zij dan Turks? Of ben ik dan Turks? Ja ik of zij? Daar
heb ik nog enkele twijfels (55I6, LTI6).
Who am I? Sometimes I feel more Turkish than other times when I look at the boys, at
their attitude than I have anyhow…so are they Turkish? Or am I then Turkish? Yes me or
them? I still have doubts in this point.
According to the Turkish constitution only people with a Turkish citizenship, with a
Turkish father, or a Turkish mother are Turkish (Evren, 1982). This applies to all of the local
Turkish students but they are also Dutch citizens. Still they define themselves as Turkish or
partially Turkish but not necessarily as Dutch. The position of being in between or a combination
of Dutch and Turkish is dominant: ´It is a mix of Dutch and Turkish but more Turkish ` (LTI4,
48I4). Some do not feel accepted by Turks or Dutch while others clearly state that Turkey is their
country and not the Netherlands. This is quite strange because only a third of the questioned
students intend to spend a longer time in Turkey. These are the ones that stated that they have a
mixed or dominant Dutch identity. A few locals categorically exclude Turkey from a list of
possible places to live and a large part of them even chose studies a field of study that would
disenable them to find work in Turkey:
[…] daar heb ik volgens mij de verkeerde opleiding gekozen denk ik. Want ja met
Nederlandse rechten kan ik niet zo veel met in Turkije (LTI3 36 I3).
In my opinion I have chosen the wrong education for this I think because yes I can´t do
much with Dutch law in Turkey.
According to their own judgment they could not survive in all parts of Turkey or would at
least have difficulties in adapting to the lifestyle because of their Dutch identity.
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Yes I could but for a month or a couple of month but not for the rest of my life. I couldn´t
because I think I have implemented the Dutch system of thinking and the order in my
whole lifestyle so I don´t think I can survive in Turkey (LTI1, 40I1).
The connection that they have with the Netherlands is not based on culture. However,
they did grow up in the Dutch system with its norms and values which differ strongly from
Turkish ones: ´I am Turkish but I also cannot leave Holland, for example, because I am born here
and I am connected to the Dutch. Not the culture but the system ` (LTI8, 62I8).
The bond with Turkey becomes mainly visible when they watch Turkish soccer or when
drastic events happen there. Otherwise, Turkey is a holiday country where a part of the family
lives. ´I might be a ´Netherlandse` but a bomb goes off in Istanbul, I think fuck it had hit me `
(LTI9, 64 I9).
Their Dutch identity manifests itself when it comes to an individual and open minded
perspective on the world and other people. They want to combine individualism with the
collectivistic culture of their parents and pass this combination on to their children. It is
remarkable that for only three informants the Dutch language has more importance than the
Turkish language. Five informants chose Turkish whereas only one claims that both languages
are equally important to him. In other words, the Turkish culture, traditions, and language, along
with the Islamic religion build the foundation of their identity: ´Well they say I am more Dutch
but religion, culture, the language is from Turkey ` (LTI8, 68I8). For the locals being Turkish
means following and preserving the traditions that their parents or grandparents brought from
Turkey to the Netherlands. As a consequence they have a rather conservative lifestyle that has its
own rules and places the wellbeing of the family at the center. They, for example, only intend to
move out when they get married or as in half of the cases when they finished their studies.
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Furthermore, to them being Turkish means mostly spending time with local Turkish
people, eating Turkish food, listening to Turkish music, going to Turkish events, going regularly
to Turkey, choosing a clothing style that is considered Turkish and practicing religion. The locals
are proud of being of Turkish decent and put a lot of effort into keeping their cultural identity but
they also integrate the Dutch lifestyle in their everyday life. Consequently they are presumably
always aware of their Turkish or mixed identity. The membership in the Turkish minority is
constantly activated. In other words, they have a fixed image of what being Turkish means. When
they see that the exchange students deviate from these expectations they are not considered to
really be Turkish: ´Yes there are a lot of Turkish students coming here but for some of them you
cannot say that they are Turkish ` (ETI8, 48I8).
In contrast the exchange students do not think about being Turkish or not being Turkish.
For them it goes without saying that they are Turks. Only the experience of being abroad and
meeting other Turkish people made them slightly aware of their cultural identity and roots. For
them living in Turkey and knowing about the rules of daily interactions makes a person Turkish:
´I asked them sometimes ´You know how it is in Turkey, how it is done in Turkey? `. They are
not familiar with that ` (ETI7, 81I7).
Since the locals do not follow these rules, many exchange students do not consider them
to be Turkish. For the majority of the exchange students being Turkish does not include being
religious or following traditions: ´I think they are confusing being religious and being Turkish`
(ETI3, 30I3)
On the contrary acting, thinking and looking modern or western is essential to them.
However, they also state that only parts of Turkish society are like this and that especially people
from the country side differ in their lifestyle. (ETI9, 34I9) It is considered very important to be
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collectivistic, to help each other and to be polite. According to them this does not contradict their
individualistic orientation in life.
Speaking the Turkish language properly is furthermore regarded as a sign of being
Turkish. The locals´ limited knowledge of Turkish is, in some cases, viewed as disqualifying
them from having a Turkish identity. The exchange students´ identity is not strongly defined by
their Turkish origin and they are willing to adapt to the Dutch culture during their limited stay in
the Netherlands.
5.4. The perspective of local Turks on Turkish exchange students
Unintentionally, the locals mostly have rather limited contact with the exchange students.
However, all of them have had experience with young Turkish people during their visits to
Turkey. Their impression of them is one of people who want to be European and who are more
modern and western than they are. This perspective of Europe is believed to be naïve and
idealistic. More specifically they say that the students from Turkey are rich and just come to the
Netherlands to go out and party and not for educational purposes. The stereotypical student life is
more common for the exchange students than for the locals, because they have lived their entire
lives in the Netherlands.
Furthermore, it was mentioned that the students from Turkey are looking for contact with
internationals rather than for contact with the locals and that they speak better English. One of the
circumstances under which friendships between members of the two groups can arise, is if they
are both religious. They believe that if this is not the case, it is possible to become friends but it
may be much more difficult. On the one hand locals rate the exchange students as not very
different from them but on the other hand there are locals that see drastic disparities.
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Because we are not same we feel not attracted to each other. […] if you work with them
get in touch with them then they are actually calm. But it is also the case because they
want, when they come to Holland they don´t want to see any Turkish people anymore.
They want to go hang out with Dutch or other international students (LTI8, 56I8).
However, the differences between the two groups are comparable with the differences that
exist between Turkish people in Turkey that live in big cities and those living in the countryside.
The probability of being modern, rich and atheist are considered higher in the big cities. The
locals know that the exchange students mostly come from big cities and assume therefore that
they are not as religious as they are. They also observe this fact in their interactions with the
international students.
There is the paradox that the locals are more conservative than the students from Turkey
although they grew up in a more modern country. Both groups are aware of this phenomenon.
Wij zijn meer gebonden aan ons cultuur en aan ons godsdienst en aan onze familie maar
hun zijn vrijer. Dat zie je wel terwijl je niet zou denken dat het zo zou zijn, terwijl je zou
denken dat wij vrijer zijn en meer westers zijn. Maar nee want wij hebben van uit thuis
het niet zo meegekregen, in ieder geval over het algemeen. Hun zijn meer westers zie ik
wel, heel erg apart […] (LTI5, 48I5).
We are more committed to our culture, to our faith and to our family but they are freer.
You can really see that although you wouldn’t think that it would be like that. Whereas
you would think that we are freer and more western. but no, because we haven’t learned
that from our parents, in every case in general. They are more western from what I see,
very unusual.
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Nevertheless it is commonly thought that the exchange students are less tolerant than the
locals: ´ […] we're so open for everything, about everything, about religion, sexual choices etc. I
think they are different than the way they think like that ` (LTI9, 42I9).
5.5. The identity of Turkish exchange students ascribed by local Turkish students
The locals do not think that the identity of the exchange students is very different from
their own because their language, religion, norms and values and the way they both grew up are
considered to be very similar. Furthermore, the students from Turkey are assumed to be equally
bound to Turkey by nationalistic feelings as the local Turks. They emphasize that the general
identity is more or less the same but that depending on how strongly the degree seeking students
are bound to the Turkish culture and Islam they are more or less modern and western:
[…] als ik zij zou beschrijven dan zijn zij eerder een wereldmens dan ik. Dus ik voel mij
iets identieke dan zij (LTI6. 39I6).
When I should describe them, then they are rather a world citizen than me, so I feel a bit
more identic than them.
5.6. The perspective of Turkish exchange students on local Turkish students
The picture of the locals that the exchange students have is much less positive. Especially
the female informants have quite extreme opinions about them. As a matter of fact, they all agree
that they are too conservative and religious compared to themselves and to the Dutch society.
According to the exchange students this is, among others, one of the main reasons that make it
hard for them to bond with each other.
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They don't behave like us. You know, I cannot be a very close friend with, yes I can be
with some of them but, I don't think I would be a very close friend with someone a Turk
living here. They're just different I cannot communicate very well with them (ETI4, 34I4).
It could be assumed that the common language would facilitate the contact. In some
cases, it does but usually the Turkish of the locals is considered be weird, mixed with Dutch, old
fashioned, incomprehensible or limited. One informant even stated that the locals should not
speak Turkish but Dutch because they mix it too much and are not able to speak proper Turkish
(ETI3, 30I3).
Religion is the topic that separates the two groups in the most extreme way. The
religiosity of the locals makes the exchange students keep a distance from them because they are
afraid to be judged:
I mean if you say that you're Turkish, you should be Muslim. You should not be drinking
alcohol. You should not be doing things with girls and all those stuff. Getting judged is
really tiring sometimes, all the time they judge you. And if a person judges you tend to
judge that person in return (ETI4, 40 I4).
Indeed, they do not want to have anything to do with extremely religious people because
to them being religious also implies closed mindedness, a strict life overshadowed by rules,
antiquated opinions, conservatism and intolerance.
I didn't want to get in touch with them because I'm thinking that some of these people are
so conservative and I feel that I cannot be friends with them. I'm not thinking that they are
thinking in the same way that I'm thinking, so I didn't try to contact or meet with them
(ETI5, 20I5).
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Religion plays a considerable role for the locals. This becomes visible in an exchange
students´ story about how ordering pizza with a local Turk made their encounter quite unpleasant:
I order my pizza. They are like ´ Ah yes, we don´t have pork` but maybe I am eating!
They try to interact with Turkish people just those like ´Ah we are coming from same
religion` Religious things are too strong and I didn´t like it (ETI6, 26).
Mainly the female, but also the male, exchange students report that they are not religious
but instead liberal which led to the impression that the everyday life of the local Turks is too
strongly influenced by the rules of the Islam: ´My religion doesn´t control my lifestyle. But for
them it´s something like that ` (ETI6, 50I6). As a result religion does not play an important role
in self-identification for the majority of the exchange students: ´I am Muslim I am that but my
religious is not most important thing that made me like that ` (ETI6, 28I6). Nonetheless, this
differs from individual to individual. One informant stated that it is not possible to separate
religion and being Turkish completely because they are both parts of the culture (ETI7, 73I7). It
is, in fact, not only being religious per se which makes the exchange students feel uncomfortable
about the locals but the conservative way in which it is practiced. For the exchange students
wearing a headscarf does not contradict being modern (ETI7, 28 I7).
It´s kind of weird to see that they are still so connected to really the traditional aspects. I
mean I understand being religious but after living in other country you expect them to
change some of their opinions on something or their lifestyles. I mean it is not like the
generation for me it is not assimilation it is adaptation. Apparently they don´t see it like
that. Maybe it is understandable maybe they want to protect their culture. That´s how they
define their identity (ETI8, 48I8).
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It is clear from this statement that they can also understand the motivations of the locals to
be the way they are and to live the way they do, namely to preserve their cultural heritage and
their ethnic identity. In actuality, this is the cultural identity that their parents or grandparents
brought to the Netherlands. However, one informant also connects being religious with level of
education.
I met some of them, my mother's friend is having a hobby garden and they're still living
like the people that's not educated. I mean, they are living in Europe, they have a chance
to see what's going around there outside of Turkey, but they are still continuing to live
like in Turkey. They are not learning something. You can see when they are talking about
religion, when they are talking about government issues, that's why (ETI5, 22I5).
In fact the impression of educated locals at the university is more positive than that of
local Turks with lower levels of education.
5.7. The identity of local Turkish students ascribed by Turkish exchange students
When asked to define the identity of the locals different concepts came up. Generally,
they are seen as a subgroup of the Turks with their own norms and values or as a weird mixture
of Turkish and Dutch, as foreigners to both countries or simply as in between both cultures.
I would say it's a bit new culture that's a bit mixed up culture, a bit shallow. They have
some Turkish flavors in it but the main dish is actually Dutch. It's just the flavor is
Turkish. When you think of the Dutch cuisine, Turkish flavor on ´krokante` or ´frikandel`
doesn't really make sense right? (ETI1, 26 I1).
However, the exchange students also call them ´Muslim Dutch`, ´Dutchers`, ´aliens`, and
a different species that has nothing to do with Turks from Turkey because of the influence of the
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Dutch culture: ´but here it is getting much more individualistic for the people here. They become
much more selfish than a regular Turkish person in Turkey ` (ETI2, 26I2). One informant
explains why he has this negative image of the locals:
These ´Dutchers` come back to Turkey with their cars bought ´Deutche Mark` or Euro,
with their chocolates, candies and their over-privileged sons and daughters. They would
just show off to people and come back and live their ordinary middle income lives again.
Which is not really different than between each but this created a really awful vision of
them in Turkey (ETI1, 48 I1).
Others have mentioned different reasons for this negative impression. Among other
things, they say that the locals isolate themselves, stay in groups and do not integrate as much as
they could: ´They force themselves to be ´Turkish` (ETI6, 24 I6). Moreover, they accuse them of
not using their opportunity for education which is higher in the Netherlands than in Turkey. Of
course the opinions differ depending on the individual´s experiences with the local Turks. The
general impression is that they are different and that they follow their own style but that they
nevertheless have things in common. The Turkish language, a collectivistic lifestyle, religion and
food were some examples that came up. Some of the exchange students said that they accept the
locals the way they are and search for contact with them because they give them the feeling of
being safe and at home. In general, all exchange students have gone to at least one local Turkish
place and some have even found friends in the local community. In addition, it was repeatedly
mentioned that the locals are very friendly, helpful and open to contact and friendship with the
students from Turkey.
In the university I don´t know why for example when we are, when we go out for
smoking if we are speaking Turkish they definitely notice recognize our face. Some came
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
to me in the toilet saying ´You are Turk right? ` and then they talk all the time they see us
( ETI3, 26I3).
Several times, the older generation of Turks living in the Netherlands expressed to the
informants that they are proud of them for studying abroad and that they are hope for Turkey.
They felt responsible to take care of them and invited them to eat together and share drinks.
5.8. Religious identifications
On the one hand, almost all local Turks describe themselves as religious and follow the
rules of Islam. On the other hand, not everyone strictly practices their religion. There is, for
example, one informant who is part of the Alevi group so he exercises his religion more liberally
than the others. It is often the case that the informants grew up in very religious families but are
now more liberal than their parents. Most of the students from Turkey are not religious. Only two
of the informants go to the local mosque in Tilburg but even they do not follow the religious rules
strictly: ‘I am Muslim I am that but my religion is not most important thing that made me like
that’ (ETI6, 28I6)
Consequently the religious identification of the two groups differs quite drastically. The
exchange students mostly do not name religion as a part of their identity whereas it is
unquestionably of central importance to the local Turks. Several of them even remarked that
investing in the afterlife is the most meaningful element in their life. As a consequence their life
is dominated by religion.
The most important thing in this life for me is to follow the rules of Islam that means to
have a good life here, to do good things and also to hopefully go to the paradise in the
afterlife. It is connected for me. That is the most important thing (LTI7, 72I7).
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Another aspect is that they mainly want to get married to Turkish people but if they are
Muslim or not is also crucial. It often goes back to the parents’ wishes and is depends less on
their own.
My parents wouldn't accept it. They would want me to have a Turkish girl. I think it's
more important if she's Muslim or not. She's a Muslim and if she's Dutch, she can be open
for me. If she's a Muslim, there could be a chance. 20% to 10% or so 25 maybe (LTI9,
74I9).
Religion enters many domains of their lives. Especially male informants emphasized that
they do not go out to clubs, party like the Dutch, or ever drink alcohol.
I've never. I never go I think it's more religious reason. Not being Turkish. I don't drink
alcohol, that's because my parents always said you don't because religious reasons. That's
same for going out, I always think like why, why would I. You could say it's pretty fun,
but I think why would I don't need that (LTI9, 68I9).
Therefore, the local Turks have difficulties making friends with the Dutch. However, this
seems to bother them less than it does the Dutch. Their religion takes priority over engaging in a
maximum contact with the Dutch and they feel that they have more in common with others who
follow their own religion: ‘Most important is my religion. I want to live up to it. That is actually
the most important. I do not want to go outside my religion and do things that are forbidden for
example’ (LTI8, 87I8). The reason for their choice is that their religion has so far determined
their identity and life style.
Geloof is toch wel iets wat bepaald hoe jij leeft, wat je allemaal doet en het is ook een
belangrijk onderdeel van mijn leven ja (LTI3, 84I3).
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Religion is actually really something that defines how you live, everything you do and it
is also an important part of my life yes.
Several locals claimed that they became more religious as they grew older and think it is
possible to become even more religious when they are married, have children and have settled
down: ‘When I became older I became closer to my religion’ (LTI2, 50I2). One informant made
it clear that she is not practicing her religion much at the moment but that she nevertheless
believes in the most significant aspects of Islam. She also thinks that religion may become more
important to her when she is older but that she is, for the moment, more comfortable this way
because not wearing a headscarf allows her to adapt more easily (LTI4, 50I4).
5.9. An inaccurate impression of Turks in the Netherlands
Four of the informants blame the local Turks for creating a bad image of Turkish people
because of the way they act in the Dutch society. Their position in between two cultures seems to
be conductive to becoming an odd representation of Turkish people.
I think because in here they are strangers but when the go to Turkey still they are
strangers. They are in the middle all the time. I think this is hard for them, but sometimes
it is a bad reputation for real Turkish people (ETI7, 16I7).
Consequently the Turkish exchange students have been complimented by the Dutch for
not being like the local Turks or for being nice Turkish people: ´Because of those people Turkey
has a bad reputation because much of the Dutch people just judge us in terms of their experience
in here with Turkish people ` (ETI7, 24I7).
The experience with local Turkish people has led to a one dimensional picture of Turkish
people in the Netherlands. The exchange students from Turkey assume that the reasons for this
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are insufficient integration and adaptation of the local Turks to the Dutch society: ´You are not in
Turkey, you are in here. You should live by their rules and their culture ` (ETI4, 48 I4).
The exchange students were partially disappointed by the way the locals represent
Turkish culture: ´They represent my culture in a total different way, in a really wrong way. I am
not happy ` (ETI6, 40I6). What has probably led to the creation of a ´wrong` picture, is the
traditional and conservative lifestyle that the local Turks lead. A female exchange student gave a
very critical statement concerning this topic: ´They think that they are a Turk so they need to be
conservative about some cases which is not the same in Turkey ` (ETI3, 30I3).
By following the rules that their parents and grandparents brought to the Netherlands
they are actually living outside their time because their way of living is neither common in the
Netherlands or in Turkey anymore: ´I have always learned those really cultural things from my
parents and grandparents ` (LTI2, 86I2). An informant of the students from Turkey describes this
with the following words:
I have always thought of them as the nostalgia. Because they were being raised with a
Turkish idea in their heads but there's nothing to support that, except for the 2-3 week
holidays that they spend in Turkey, probably in the villages that their parentsgrandparents come from. So that I would say, as I'm trying to go forward, they are kind of
living with the illusions of past, which they have learned about their actual nationality
which also creates the identity of the person in my opinion (ETI1, 42I1).
5.10. Misconceptions and comprehensions in the perspective of each other
In fact, some of the things that the two groups think about each other are true. For
instance, the students from Turkey are more modern and less religious than the local Turkish
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students. The locals are aware of their conservative lifestyle and express that they consider the
exchange students to be freely in their lives. However, it is not true that the students from Turkey
only came to the Netherlands to party and that the locals do not use their chances of education.
From the data gathered it has become clear that both groups value education a lot and work hard
to finish their studies in order to find a good position later on in life.
Also, the exchange students do not know that the locals mingle much more with Dutch
than other minorities living in the Netherlands and internationals. It is true that they spend a
considerable amount of time in their Turkish cultural circles but they are also active in Dutch
society and consider themselves to be integrated. Although it might not be visible at first, both
groups are open minded and seek contact with other nations. In addition the exchange students
tent to surround themselves with other exchange students from Turkey. A few do not have a
single Dutch friend.
It is, however, ironic that they accuse the respective other of being individualistic while
they are both in their own ways highly collectivistic. The same applies for the assumption that the
other group is richer than their own group. As mentioned before by one exchange students, both
have similar lives but because they are in different countries, their living standards may appear
different in relation to each other. In contrast to the exchange students, the locals are aware of the
impression that Turkish people have of them:
They are coming from the rich regions of Turkey and they see themselves as the real
Turkish people. If we go to holidays as Dutch/Turkish people than they see us as ´That´s
the European Turkish`, they are not Turkish anymore they are just assimilated or they are
just coming here for holidays and then they are leaving again. ´They betrayed us` some
people think (LTI1, 54I1).
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5.11. Individual identity of Turkish exchange students and local Turkish students
The main identity of all informants is that they are students. However, the local Turkish
students have an individual identity which is, in some cases, highly dominated by their religious
and cultural identity. Values, like living up to the own religion and flowing the traditional
conservative lifestyle of their parents, are common amongst them. Several locals have the goal in
life to get married and to have a family. Family is of such vital importance for them that
belonging to that particular group of people defines their role and identity in life.
It should be mentioned, that for some of the informants their mixed identity causes inner
turmoil. On the one hand, there are those who seem to be still searching for their own identity
because they feel that they have none at the moment: ´Calm and a thinker, at the moment
searching for different things. Searching mentally, searching what is the right and to getting my
own position in my own life. That´s what I can say now ` (LTI7, 87I7). On the other hand, there
are those who chose one side because they found it in themselves when they got older:
Then I explored my identity more and I had more Turkish friends and then I had also
Dutch friends but then I just knew that I am Turkish. I am very Turkish I came to that
conclusion but I do also have the need to put a little bit of the Dutch culture in me so to be
a little bit of more modern thinking (LTI4, 46I4).
A third identification amongst them is an independent one. They want to be accepted as a
person with principles, norms and values rather than only being connected to their cultural origin.
As a human being I want to be seen as a world citizen. I don´t give much about which
country you are from, what relation you have or where you are living. Everybody is equal
for me (LTI1, 62I1).
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In other words, some of them are subscribing a mixed, some to a purely Turkish, and
some to an independent identity of themselves. However, they tend to be seen as one group with
one common ethnic identity by the Dutch. The awareness of their Turkish background is often
activated but they nevertheless follow their own ideas which differ in many ways from those of
their parents. Their identity is mainly defined by their own ambitions and activities.
If 99 people say no I am the one that says yes. I am not looking at what everybody else
thinks, I have my own fuel of stuff, I do things my own way. That´s always, my sight will
help me out because if you follow people like a sheep I don´t think you will come
anywhere. You won´t achieve your goals (LTI1, 82 I1).
Character trait that most of the locals share, are being collectivistic, enthusiastic,
determined to achieve things, being open minded and tolerant. The group around them, be it
family or students, defines them but they work hard to get a high education and a good job in
order to prove that they are more than their cultural background.
My college level it is just the bottom of the schools and because I was very shy, when I
was in the first eight years of your school. I was very shy I wasn´t very sane so they
thought I should begin at the bottom. So well ok, then finally I just than university. I will
finish it and then they see if I am a good or a bad citizen (LTI4, 54I4).
The exchange students that came to the Netherlands in order to get a degree mostly do not
mention their ethnic, cultural or religious identity. Instead they prefer to think of their education
as an indicating factor of who they are and will be: ´First I want to be successful in my education
and then I'm open-minded. I want to improve myself (ETI5, 44I5). The wish to have a career and
to be successful in their position defines them as ambitious. They mention, however, that they
have Turkish characteristics and that they see themselves as Mediterranean (ETI1, 40I1). Some
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
even express that they are very attached to Turkey and that they are therefore nationalists: ´I am a
nationalist one. I really love my country. […] I am not an extraordinary one. I am just random
Turkish ` (ETI6, 40I6). As this statement shows they do not regard themselves as special or
unique.
What their identity is and how they identify themselves differs because not all parts of the
identity of a person are equally important and activated in the moment of an interview. The
experience of being abroad has also not yet led to a higher awareness of their ethnicity. However,
they do not want to be considered to be the same as the local Turks because they subscribe
themselves to a different Turkish identity than the Dutch ascribe to them.
The individual identity of the informants was actually revealed in their free time
activities. Some, for example, are musicians or athletes. It is remarkable that especially the
female informants have very individual plans for their lives and want to follow their own path
freely: ´Freedom. The most important thing for me is freedom. I don´t like that people are leading
my life. I should do my own decisions. That´s the most important thing for me ` (ETI6, 77 I6).
The exchange students are, like the locals, bound to their family and want to take care of them.
However, after going abroad, they have also discovered how to stand on their own feet. As a
consequence they have become more individualistic and independent.
All in all, it was difficult for everyone to say what their identity is. This fact was revealed
in their answers because factors that might be considered as identifying like ethnicity or gender
were not necessarily mentioned in the first place. However, this applies more to the exchange
students. Being Turkish is more eminent for the local Turkish students. They talked about ´their`
nationality and country and meant, naturally for them, Turkish and Turkey respectively.
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
Chapter 6 Discussion
My findings in the analysis showed that the two groups have different mind-sets and
attitudes and that their ethnic identity is far from being the same. The hypothesis stated that the
identity construction of the two groups of Turkish students would differ due to the different
conditions of the environments that they grew up in. The results suggest that this assumption can
now be confirmed because the results of the analysis support that the two groups formed
identities which are influenced by their direct surroundings. The Turkish students who grew up in
the Netherlands have an identity which is highly influenced by their cultural origins and religion.
They have learned the Turkish culture and language from their parents and simultaneously started
acquiring aspects of a Dutch identity because they grew up in the Netherlands. The result is a
mixed identity which is very different from the identity of the exchange students which grew up
in a culturally homogeneous surrounding.
This has led to the paradox that both groups claim to be the more authentically Turkish.
They have very different opinions on what it means to be Turkish although they both identify
themselves as Turkish. In other words, the two groups differ along the dimensions I outlined in
the literature review. According to Tajfel and Turner (Turner & Tajfel, 1982) people adapt their
identity and behavior depending on the situation and context they are in. The local Turkish
students have reported that they, indeed, connect their self-conceptions in connection to the
language of their environment. In the university their Dutch identity is active and they speak
Dutch. The same goes for working spaces. The family and their home represent a different
cultural space in which their Turkish identity is activated. Being aware of the permanent identity
switches, they manage to be very flexible. Nevertheless, this special situation may also result in
the problems outlined previously. The combination of two identities is not easy which was
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
confirmed by the informants that all said that they feel in between two cultures. This relates back
to Verkuyten and Yildiz´s assumptions that it is a hard and complex process to form a general
identity when two ethnic identities are present in one individual (Verkuyten & Yildiz, 2007).
As for ethnic identification, Liebkind defines it as belonging to one ethnicity or sharing an
ethnic. In other words, this means commitment to that group and shared values (Liebkind, 2006).
Verkuyten further mentioned that common history and heritage are elements that work as
effectual aspects like a family does (Verkuyten, 2005). As a result, I conclude that family is of
central importance in the formation of an ethnic identity. From the data gathered it can now be
confirmed that the local Turks indeed learned the Turkish part of their identity from their parents
and that it is their family that reminds them of their roots in everyday life. They are raised with
the feeling that the history of Turkey and the Turkish culture are their only heritage. The
commitment to the local Turkish community differs in strength from informant to informant but
they feel like they all share the same norms and values. This is only unusual because they live in
a society that has very different norms and a different heritage.
The exchange students were raised similarly in the sense that they learned their culture
from their parents. However, in contrast to the locals their direct surroundings also reflected and
shared that culture. That is why it appears to be more natural that they feel a bond with the
Turkish culture. This is also the reason why they are not aware of their ethnic identity. Although
both groups grew up with a form of the Turkish culture, its form differs because the locals are
brought up with outdated ideas that have been modernized since their parents or grandparents left
Turkey. In addition, their ethnic identity is more visible because it stands in contrast to the
identity of the Dutch majority. This supports Deschamp´s statements that groups only become
groups when they meet other groups (Deschamps, 1982).
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
Some informants confirmed Azmita’s theory that commitment to one group and the
exploration of other groups are parts of the process of identity formation (Azmitia & Syed, 2008).
The local Turks commit themselves to the Turkish community but they are also in touch with the
Dutch culture and integrate parts of it into their ethnic identity. Nevertheless, it is their Turkish
ethnic identity which is dominating their identity as a whole. As a consequence they also prefer
their Turkish community slightly more. It could not be confirmed that the local Turkish students
doubt themselves more than the exchange students because they are in competition with the
Dutch majority. However, it is a fact that half of them had to work their way up to the university
from a lower level of schooling (MBO) to which they were first admitted.
Additionally, the religious identification of the two groups could be explained by the issue
of growing up in different environments. The locals do, in fact, emphasize their religious identity
because they are surrounded by Christian and atheist Dutch who they perceive as a threat.
However, they believe that they are generally not part of the negative image of Islam in the Dutch
media and politics. Very few informants mentioned that they feel offended by how the Dutch
media portrays the Turkish people. They rather persist that it is more the Moroccan community
that is the focus of attention.
In contrast the exchange students that grew up in a country where 99% of the population
is thought to be Muslim are very liberal or not religious at all. They do not need their religion as a
marker of their identity because it goes without saying that they are Turkish.
Turner said that group membership is established by deciding on the categories that one
wants to part of (Turner & Tajfel, 1982). The informants themselves are very individual but it
must be pointed out that the identity within the local group is more one dimensional than the
identity within the exchange group. They have made decisions regarding their degree of
religiousness, degree of being modern or conservative, degree of being collectivistic and
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
individualistic in their life, degree of involvement with the family, degree of importance of
education and own goals etc. This has led to the formation of unique identities rather than to the
formation of extreme group membership.
There are too many groups that an individual belongs to. Superdiversity in group
membership leads to superdiversity in the own identity (Blommaert, 2013). This generally means
that within the two groups of informants there are many nuances and that they are all different. It
actually does not do any of them justice to put them into the categories of this research because of
the variance that is already detectable in this small sample size. It is true that both groups share
the common norms and values of their respective group which can be used to distinguish them
from other groups. But regardless of how much they have in common it is not their ethnicity that
shapes their identity but how and where they grew up.
It has been shown that the Dutch majority use the ethnic lens, to use Herder’s
terminology, when considering the Turkish minority in general (Wimmer, 2009). They are often
surprised that the Turkish exchange students are so “untypical” for Turkish people. They simply
put all Turks in one category by ascribing the same identity to them. However, their astonishment
about the actual differences shows that this is not true. One ethnic group can be totally different
depending on the country it lives in. It was also mentioned several times by the informants that
the Turks within the borders of Turkey are themselves extremely diverse. In other words,
Wimmer´ s ideas about a more diverse concept of ethnicities seems to apply also to ´the Turkish
ethnicity` (Wimmer, 2009). In addition, it is often overlooked that the local Turkish subscribe to
a partially Dutch or mixed identity. Still they are all perceived as different from the Dutch and are
therefore not really accepted by the Dutch society. As explained before this can and does lead to
worse academic and professional performances.
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
After the analysis of the interviews it has become clear that my predictions and
assumptions about the assumptions the Turkish exchange students have about the local Turks
were right. They are indeed considered to be strange and different from them in the same way as
return migrants. First they all have different norms and values, which is in line with Dumon´s
ideal (Dumon, 1986). Second they are certainly more conservative than the Turks living in
Turkey. Finally they undoubtedly speak an old fashioned and limited Turkish and see the Turkish
culture through the eyes of their parents and grandparents. As a consequence, the Turkish
exchange students label them as outsiders that cannot fit into the Turkish society of today. The
exchange students categorize the locals according to stereotypes that developed out of the
experiences with Turks living abroad that come back to Turkey for holidays. Thus, the outcome
of this study is in line with what Sussman pointed out. The local Turks would need to adjust to
the Turkish culture in Turkey in quite drastic ways in order to live there (Sussman, 2000). We
have seen that some of them understand this necessity and do not wish to ever live in Turkey.
From the theoretical point of view it appeared logical to assume that the local Turks are
influenced by collectivism and individualism while the exchange would only be influenced by
collectivism. Yet the exchange students are more individualistic than the locals. Additionally, the
locals do not appear to be less collectivistic in spite of growing up in the Netherlands. Another
point that proved to be not supported by the data is that nationality, gender and age are crucial
identification factors. They may be good categories to distinguish between people in general but
the informants did not mention them when they were asked to describe their identity. Rather, they
indicated features of their character and goals in life.
6.1. Implications
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
My study contributes to the theories of identify formation in that they findings show that
it is not ethnicity that shapes the identity of people but rather the interactions with the
environment in a specific cultural space.
Furthermore, this study covers a significant gap. The existing studies deal with the
Turkish minorities in different countries and analyzing acculturation processes, language loss,
and return migration. Hence, they miss out on the comparison of the minority living abroad with
the Turkish people of the homeland. There is no attempt in the studies about identity and ethnic
identification to show that there is more to the identification of people than ethnicity. Social
identity theory enables us to go beyond common thinking patterns because it claims that there are
different parts of identity that different from context to context. Unfortunately, it seems that
Herders theories are still so widely accepted that it comes as no surprise that minority groups are
often not accepted in their host cultures.
6.2. Limitations and future research
The limits of this study are that the nine people per group are not representative of them
as a whole. However, the in depth interviews uncovered very personal aspects of the identity of
these informants. Additionally, the study is limited to the environment of Tilburg University and
to its master students. The advantage is that master students have already a relatively fixed
identity and are able to reflect upon themselves and the topic of identity better than younger
pupils. A last point of attention is that the majority of the local Turks that served as informants
are not part of a Turkish student association or organization and none of the female students wear
a head scarf.
For future research it would be interesting to broaden the focus of informants and to
include students who are in a local Turkish organization or wear a head scarf. Another possible
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
way of continuing the research on the topics is to investigate different cities in the Netherlands
where local Turkish and Turkish exchange students coexist. The results could then be compared.
In addition the same research could also be done in different countries, for example in Berlin or
Vienna where big Turkish communities live and many Turkish exchange students are studying.
My study can be treated as the beginning of a new way of investigating the identity of
ethnicities living abroad. Specifically by comparing ethnic minorities to the natives still living in
the home land.
Chapter 7 Conclusion
Turks have more than one ethnic identity. There is a diversity of feeling Turkish within
the borders of the country and an even larger diversity of mixed Turkish minority identities in
different countries of the world. The superdiversity of identities in a more and more globalized
world is a phenomenon that needs to be studied more extensively, especially because Herder´s
ideas are still widely spread (Wimmer, 2009). It is necessary to reveal the true dimensions of
ethnicity and identity by conducting more qualitative research in this field. This study attempts to
make a start in this new direction. As a matter of fact it was possible to prove, within the
boundaries of this investigation, that the context of a persons´ life shapes the individual´s identity
rather than only their ethnicity. The informants showed that they are individuals and very
diverse.
This contradicts the commonly held view of the Dutch society that sees both the local
Turkish and the Turkish exchange students as one group of Turks. However, this is not only the
case in Dutch society minorities in any country are assumed to be very similar to the people of
their home land. This assumption was shown to be wrong. The critical voices of informants have
shown that the understanding of what it means to be Turkish can develop in very different ways.
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DIFFERENCES IN TURKISH IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION
The prejudices that are attached to the locals because they live outside of Turkey show that it is
not easy to live abroad and to remain Turkish. The exchange students that now think about
staying in the Netherlands should be aware of this. Additionally, a first step would be to start a
more differentiated dialogue with the locals. Both groups could benefit from opening up to the
other rather than maintaining the distance and creating boundaries.
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List of Figures and tables
Figure 1 Immigration of persons with Turkish or Moroccan citizenship……….……………….26
Figure 2 School dropout (22 years old and younger) sorted by origin………………..………….30
Figure 3 Unemployment sorted by origin, 2013……………………………………...……….….31
Figure 4 Mosque attendances……….……………………………………...…………………….32
Table 1 Overview Informants of the interviews…………………………………..…….……….34
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Appendices

Appendix I Interview guides
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Appendix II Transcripts of the interviews with ET (Turkish exchange students)

Appendix III Transcripts of the interviews with LT (local Turkish students)
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Appendix I Interview guides
Interview guide ET
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Explain the aim of your research as an interest in cultural experiences of various people
living in the Netherlands.
Talk about your life here as a Master’s student.
Since when are you here? Where do you come from? Why Tilburg? Why this program?
Talk about nice surprises or some cultural misunderstandings.
Did you participate in the top week? Are you in a buddy group? Do you do sports here?
(Talking about friendship networks)
Do you have many international friends? Are they from your study?
Who is studying what, what do you have in common?
Where do you live? In Talent square?
I observed that Turkish girls from Ankara who came here for the master all don’t wear
any head scarf …
So you go out together with girls/ drink alcohol?
In the area where I live here in Tilburg there are many Turkish families and supermarkets.
Do you ever go there to buy special food?
What do you think about the big mosque in Tilburg? Where you surprised?
Do you have Turkish friends born in the Netherlands?
In general, how do you think the Dutch would think about the Turks living in the
Netherlands? (Have you seen something on TV or on internet?)
Did you have any strange encounters with Dutch people because you are Turkish?
Education language deficits of LT
How do you see yourself?
Now that you have been abroad for a while how did you feel when you came back home
for holidays? Can you imagine working here or doing an internship after the master? Do
you want to stay?
What is your general impression of the local Turkish?
What differences did you observe between you students coming for a master and the
local Turks?
What would you say do you have in common with them?
How would you describe what defines you? What makes you you (religion / language/
nationality….)
Do you do any Dutch language classes?
Would you like to make an internship or work in the Netherlands?
How would you describe your identity?
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Interview guide LT (Dutch/English)
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Wat studeer je en waarom?/ What do you study and why?
Woon je in Tilburg? / Do you live in Tilburg?
Wat zijn jouw hobbies/ What are your hobbies?
Ga je graag uit? / Do you like going out ?
Reis je graag? Waar natoe? (Turkije?) / Do you like traveling? Where to? (Turkey?)
Heb je eens een langere tijd in Turkeije geleefd?, Wil je dat graag in toekomst ?, Ga je
regelmatig na Turkeije ?
/ Did you live in Turkey for a longer time? Do you want to in the future? Are you going to
Turkey on a regular basis?
Heb je veel contact met jouw familie of frienden in T.? Do you have a lot of contact with
your family or friends in T.?´
Heb je verschillen kunnen opmerken tussen jouw en de Turken die nu voor hun studie na
Nederland komen? / Could you observe differences between you and the Turkish students
coming to the Netherlands for their study?
Wat denk je van hun? Wat is jouw beeld? / What do you think of them? What is the
picture you are getting of them?
Heb je vrienden in deze groep?/ Are you friends with one or more?
Wat zijn jullie overeenkomsten? Wat zijn verschillen ?/ What do you have in common?
What are differences?
Voel je een band met de Nederlandse of de Turkse cultuur ? Voel je Nederlands, Turks of
.../ Do you feel connected with the Dutch or the Turkish culture? Do you feel Dutch,
Turkish or…?
Met welke nationaliteit of groep voel je snel een bond? / With which nationality or group
can you connect easily?
Denk je dat de T. die voor hun studie komen dezelfde identiteit hebben als jou ?/ Do you
think the Turkish who came to study here have the same identity as you?
Voel je geaccepteerd door hen ?/ Do you feel accepted by them?
Wat is hun cultuur/ identiteit in tegenstelling tot jouw cultuur? What is their culture or
identity in contrast to yours?
Welke talen spreek je ? Welke zijn voor jou persoonlijk het meest belangrijk?/ Which
languages do you speak? Which ones are personally the most important for you?
Hoe zou je jezelf defineren? Wat maakt je uniek? / How would you define yourself? What
makes you unique?
Ben je religeus? How belangrijk is jouw geloofde voor jouw? / Are you religious? How
important is your religion for you?
Wat is het meest belangrijke in jouw leven? What is most important in your life?’
Wat wil je graag bereiken ( doelen)? What do you want to achieve (goals)?
Wat denk je van het beeld van T in de Nederlandse media en politiek? Hoe zie je jezelf
tegenover dit beeld? / What do you think of the picture of T people in Dutch media and
politics? How do you see yourself in contrast to that?
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Appendix II Transcripts of the interviews with ET (Turkish exchange students)
Interview ETI1
IN: Interviewer Nina
I1: Informant ETI1
1 IN:
2 I1:
3 IN:
4 I1:
5 IN:
6 I1:
7 IN:
8 I1:
9 IN:
10 I1:
11 IN:
12 I1:
13 IN:
14 IA:
What do you study here?
I'm studying Finance masters.
And why did you choose to come to TU?
Well, I was applying for universities in Europe and also in Canada. Canada simply
rejected me, so I didn't have any options rather than finding a university in Europe or try
the options in China or Singapore. Then I realized that Tilburg University has a bilateral
agreement with the university I graduated from, so they were making some discounts and
they didn't want anything other than my bachelor degree diploma and transcript from
Bilkent University. And then I said why not take the shortcut, and I came to Tilburg.
How do you like it so far?
There are two different aspects of liking Tilburg, the student life here in Tilburg. One
aspect is the city and the second aspect is the university. For the city I cannot really say
that it's a city and it feels so small after living in a city that has more than 5 million
population and actual highways and roads going inside the city which makes it easier for
transportation, but still the idea of riding a bike is nice. I have lived in a city smaller than
this before but it was more lively to be honest. The studying part in TU is, well, I can say
that it didn't give me what I was hoping for at the first place. I was hoping for more model
oriented more hands-on approach in Finance but so far nothing is going further than the
theory. I just maybe, I took the wrong elective but what I've seen in is only one course
managed to meet my expectations a little bit.
How is your experience with the people?
With the people, it's really nice actually. In the beginning I didn't have much interactions
with the others, other people.
Who are the other people?
I came here with very close friends we didn't know that we are going to come to the TU.
When we were talking in Turkey, we just realized that we're going to the same school,
same city, same university, so why not hang out there as well. In the beginning we were
hanging out together, I didn't really socialize with the others. Internationals or the local
people, but after that I started to get some connections, some friends. The people here I
like them, I really like them.
But you're still friends with this close group?
Yes, living in the same house makes it hard to drift away from each other.
That answers my next questions as are you living in the talent square.
Before coming here we had some family connections to find a Turkish agency here.
Which in return tried to get our money and give us nothing in return but then we realized
that we can do it with other people, with other agencies, we don't need connections. So we
arranged something out of the blue and now we're just basically in my opinion much more
better than living in the talent square.
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15 IN: Do you have apart from the connection with this agency, other contact to the Turkish
people who lives here?
16 I1: We were going to a Turkish pub to watch the games, the huge games between
´Fenerbahce` and ´Galatasaray` and those derbies and the champion’s league matches. So
I met with some people there and one of them continuously insisted on that I should go
see him sometime during the day, because he is really bored at his desk work. He thought
I was sharing the same name with him which is kind of an instant connection between
Turkish people. It's as if your name is Ali, my name is Ali, let's become best friends
forever! This 50 something years old guy thought I shared the same name with him but
after that was just a bit humiliating for him and me as well.
17 IN: Did you notice differences between you and him? Or in general the people living here?
18 I1: Generally I felt the difference. Is it between me and the Turkish here or the locals?
19 IN: Locals Turkish living here in general.
20 I1: Actually, I noticed this, I can relate to the first generation. I can understand why they are
like that.
21 IN: The first generation, the older?
22 I1: The old, the oldest generation that came here or the generation after them to some extent.
But the generation that's really new, I think it is called the third generation now, I find
them something completely different. I cannot tell that they are Dutch I cannot tell that
they are Turkish, but I cannot deny them being Dutch or Turkish anyway. They just have
a different culture, but I find it really difficult to relate to. The first movers here, I can
really understand them. I can really get on well with them because my grandparent were
like them and seeing that how they would preserve their traditions. I know that it's going
to be like that with them. Because I know that in Turkey, the traditions which died out I
can still see them with my grandparents. When the generation gets newer I can say that
they try to preserve some Turkish aspects but they think that some other cultures are in it
as well. So it creates a vegetable soup.
23 IN: Their identity is a vegetable soup?
24 I1: Yes!
25 IN: And what would you say that it consists of?
26 I1: I would say it's a bit new culture that's a bit mixed up culture, a bit shallow. They have
some Turkish flavors in it but the main dish is actually Dutch. It's just the flavor is
Turkish. When you think of the Dutch cuisine, Turkish flavor on ´krokante` or ´frikandel`
doesn't really make sense right?
27 IN: What is the Turkish flavor then, what is left of what you say of that culture?
28 I1: What is left is, in my opinion is just the weird language they are speaking and the
preserved traditions of the older generations. The new generation takes these preserved
ones, but I think this cannot be coincidental, I think they are deliberately doing this but
they are always taking the dying out traditions from their past.
29 IN: Like what for example?
30 I1: Like, for example the ultra, highly religious traditions that were in Turkey which died out
more than 50 years ago. They are trying to pick that up from their grandparents and try to
impose it to their lives, which is impossible. When you think of the environment that
you're living, especially in a country like this, you cannot just go on taking those religious
traditions and try to use them still. I got to be honest in Turkey people got wiser and got
rid of those traditions really fast. Maybe we were just waiting for Europe to ask for
worker and just sent the worst ones. We just got rid of the tradition that way somehow.
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31 IN: Alright, that's quite extreme.
32 I1: No, no, you should know the grilling Turks in the parks. That's another topic, not religious
of course, but the grilling Turks are being lived in here. They are dying out in Turkey their
numbers are thinner in Turkey.
33 IN: Could you imagine to be friends?
34 I1: I can imagine being friends with them, but I think I would be able to be friends with if
they are more assimilated into the Dutch culture or they kept the Turkish culture, the
wiser part and live like that. Common ground is not that appealing.
35 IN: You said that you talked to that older guy, what was his perception of you?
36 I1: This is a common with the Turks who live abroad, who call themselves to be foreigners of
Turkey. The common thing is that when they know that you are from Turkey and studying
here, they instantly accept you. They treat you like you are their son or daughter. It
happened like that he took ownership of me like his kid. He felt more proud than my
father is about me when I said that I'm doing a master´s degree in Finance in here and I'm
actually from Turkey. It was this instant connection with him again. He was kind of proud
of the kids that are studying which are away from their parents. There is one aspect of the
Turkish culture the kids don't get kicked out of the house once they are grownups. The
family still tries to nurture them to adulthood.
37 IN: You said that the young generation is quite different, but would you still call them
Turkish?
38 I1: I wouldn't, I will most probably call them Muslim-Dutch.
39 IN: If you had to define your identity and their identity, what would you say that it consists
of? What makes you, you?
40 I1: It's the new stuff, innovation. I'm sorry for speaking in business language but it's
innovation in life and personality that makes me unique and maybe a bit of chaos as well,
because Mediterranean are unorganized right?
41 IN: Well, and what would you say it's important for the local Turks for their own identity?
42 I1: I think I have always thought of them as the nostalgia. Because they were being raised
with a Turkish idea in their heads but there's nothing to support that, except for the 2-3
week holidays that they spend in Turkey, probably in the villages that their parentsgrandparents come from. So that I would say, as I'm trying to go forward, they are kind of
living with the illusions of past, which they have learned about their actual nationality
which also creates the identity of the person in my opinion.
43 IN: Do you think that the nationality is important?
44 I1: To some extent. If you are taught about it well, it really matters. It makes you understand
how your past, by past I mean the ones who are older than you are behaving that way in
your family or in your friends or other relatives. But if it's taught in a bad way, that the
people remember, that the people somehow messed it up and that creates a blurred vision
in you. That's what I think is happening with the Turkish Dutch here. In both ways it is
incredibly important, the middle ground or never teaching them is not important because
they don't have an idea one way or the other. So they can just grow up and get their
identity on their own and continue their lives. I think that's much more beneficial, that's
kind of like observing the people in the society so they fit in rather really well even
though their color is different than the other Lego bricks in the construction.
45 IN: The picture in the media of them is quite negative. Maybe you've heard of this one
politician that is really extreme against Moroccans and Turkish.
46 I1: Yes, I think the people's right party or the right wing conservative party.
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47 IN: Yes, how do you feel about this perception in the media?
48 I1: Well, I cannot really blame the media but with the stuff that's happening in Turkey right
now, I can blame the media and it is the easiest way. But the perception that's created in
the minds of the people, that's coming from the past. There's also a perception in the
minds of the Turkish who are in Turkey about the Dutch Turks. Can I call them
´Dutchers`? That's easier, I related to this more because it's a bit of a racist slang on
German Turks and Dutch Turks. These ´Dutchers` come back to Turkey with their cars
bought ´Deutche Mark` or Euro, with their chocolates, candies and their over-privileged
sons and daughters. They would just show off to people and come back and live their
ordinary middle income lives again. Which is not really different than between each but
this created a really awful vision of them in Turkey.
49 IN: I mean of the ones here, they are often portrait as quite scoring bad at school or to be more
aggressive.
50 I1: I was going to come to that actually. This is a two edged blade. Now, they are, I will
again go with the nostalgia but, it might be something that's wrong with our genes as well.
Because people are aggressive once you put the Turkish gene in them, or maybe it's just
the suppression of the society on them. But I have no idea about those stuff, I'm not a
sociologist. Here I think the ones who should be actually blamed are the Turks, the
´Dutchers` the first generation. They didn't know any better, but they should have acted
more to encourage their children to integrate into the society rather than leaving them
outside. The first generation should have integrated more into the society.
51 IN: I have to say something to that, most of them intended to go back to Turkey. This might
be a reason.
52 I1: This might be a reason but you can do it with that. Of course 3 month holidays and getting
back to Turkey is not something that will help but just a week or two, holidays in Turkey
with your relatives. You see them, they see you, you just say that how much you missed
them and after that you just back home to Holland. Well, then you continue living like a
Dutch, not like a Turk. When you can balance that should create something that's more
acceptable in a society in a country because you are not isolating yourself from them. You
are not feeling that you are isolated, because of the barriers that you have created around
your society, around your own community.
53 IN: So you say that they are isolating themselves.
54 I1: Yes, I have observed this a lot. They tend to stay in packs. I don't know how to say, I don't
want to sound like I'm talking about wolves or anything. But there is a pack leader, the
alpha, and it just isolates the pack from the others. You can apply this to a lot of aspects to
how they interact with other people and when they create these barriers, of course the
society is just going to isolate them. Because once you don't get your barriers down, it will
always seem like the society is attacking you and you build stronger, higher, wider
barriers around yourself.
55 IN: Did you observe something similar within your friends' group?
56 I1: Actually no, I didn't see that way.
57 IN: Because you said that in the beginning you were quite a group and didn't interact with
others.
58 I1: It was just because we didn't have the time in the beginning to interact with the other
internationals. Because well we have rented the place from an agency, it wasn't furnished
so we had to go find stuff that we knew no one that could help us. So we were just trying
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59 IN:
60 I1:
61 IN:
62 I1:
63 IN:
64 I1:
65 IN:
66 I1:
67 IN:
68 I1:
69 IN:
70 I1:
71 IN:
72 I1:
73 IN:
74 I1:
75 IN:
76 I1:
77 IN:
to run after it the help of our landlord and one of the relatives of one of my flat mates. So
they helped us a bit, that took around 3 weeks.
Can you imagine yourself doing an internship here or working here?
Yes, I can imagine that, but first I have to really understand why Dutch are speaking
Dutch.
Do you take Dutch classes?
Yes, I'm following the most basic one offered in the university. So far so good I got to
say.
Do you plan on staying for some years here or go back?
I actually never thought of going back to Turkey. Once I can find a job anywhere, I can
work anywhere. I actually realized this when I was on Erasmus in Finland, that I can live
anywhere, because when I went there I didn't feel like I'm not at home. It was more like
home. Now that I'm here it's not feeling like somewhere that's foreign. This is again home.
If I cross the border and go to Belgium, it will again feel like home. It goes on with many
other countries except some Asian ones where I have to play rock-paper-scissors for a rat
but you get my point right? But I don't have intentions of staying in the Netherlands for
longer than 5 years.
Did you go back to Turkey?
No, I didn't want to pay for the plane ticket. I could just travel.
Did you question yourself or do you feel different since you're here?
I feel more free. I can say that, but other than that I'm not feeling any different. Maybe I
feel more responsibility but that's all.
Did you have any strange encounters with the Dutch people because you're Turkish?
Yes, actually yesterday I was travelling around with a Dutch guy. I was just
complimenting his Willem II fan ship, hooliganism. Well, he said at one point, ´Yes, dude
you are really a nice guy. It's not like this with the Turks here`. And I was just in a joking
mood, so I just said ´Yo, what did you think? I'm coming from Turkey mate! ` That was
all. I got complimented for not being a Dutch Turk. This also happened a couple of times
before when I was waiting for my girlfriend in front of places. I'm a smoker, and I'm the
walking example of smoking like a Turk as the Italians say. When I'm smoking, people
would come to me and ask for a cigarette or a lighter, I just give it to them and they ask
how much. I just say, as I'm not used to that, dude smoke it don't ask. When they ask
where I'm from because I'm talking English, when I say Turkish, they say you don't talk
and behave like Turkish. This is how.
Do you think it is nice to have for example your food here, a lot of Dutch appreciate
kebab for example?
It's not really my food. I got to say this first.
Let's say, there are supermarkets, there are restaurants...
Yes, it is nice to have the ingredients for making traditional food but I'm not a cook who
can cook those. I'm really indifferent about that and I can do those meals with the regular
stuff that Dutch use. So I shouldn't need them.
Do you go to the Turkish supermarkets?
No, I just went to one of them once, to buy ´tomaten puree` which is really made
differently in Turkish cuisine. So that's once. I ended up buying a lot of sweets from
Turkey.
Why didn't you come back to the supermarket?
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78 I1: Because, everything I'm looking for is actually in the Albert Heijn, or Jumbo, or in Plus. I
also have to add this. There is also a religious questioning part when you talk Turkish in
those stuff. Like, ´Are you going to come to the Friday prayers? ` I cannot just go there
and show my tattoos or anything to say that I cannot.
79 IN: Alright, there's this big mosque in town, were you surprised to see that?
80 I1: I actually flinched the first time I saw that because it's, let's not call it ugly but, it's
something special like the special kids. It doesn't really fit.
81 IN: Did you ever go there?
82 I1: No, but I heard there is a Turkish supermarket in there and they have the Turkish toilet
system. Which is in our toilets we have a tap that washes you with water. That squirts
water to clean.
83 IN: Alright I didn't know that.
84 I1: It's really handy you got to try that one time.
85 IN: Alright, that will be all. Thank you.
Appendix III Transcripts of the interviews with LT (local Turkish students)
Interview LTI7
IN: Interviewer Nina
I7: Informant LTI7
1 IN:
2 I7:
3 IN:
4 I7:
5 IN:
6 I7:
7 IN:
8 I7:
9 IN:
10 I7:
11 IN:
12 I7:
13 IN:
14 I7:
15 IN:
16 I7:
17 IN:
What do you study?
Business studies in Dutch ´bedrijfseconomie`.
Why did you choose that?
Why did I choose that? It is a good question. It was an individual study so you don´t have
to do much things in groups and I like that. It is also a big study. Not much interaction
with everyone. I like that, doing my own thing, thinking that I can do other things. That
played a great role.
Do you live in Tilburg?
I live in Tilburg yes.
With other students or with your family?
With my family. I am living with my parents.
Are you planning to move to your own place after your study?
Ja, my home place is Tilburg so ja of course when I am finished maybe doing my master
in another city then I will move, maybe Rotterdam.
I can only recommend to doing a master somewhere else.
I have enough of Tilburg you know primary school in Tilburg, high school in Tilburg,
university in Tilburg so time to go somewhere else.
Yes true. Do you travel a lot?
Yes I have visited some countries but mostly Turkey. Germany sometimes, we have
family in Germany. Let´s see Bosnia but you can´t call it much travelling but that are
countries that I visited.
Do you go regularly to Turkey?
Ja, once in two years.
Are there still strong bonds with the family?
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18 I7: Yes we try to keep that bond especially I have uncles there and nephews so I am calling
them, I am Whatsapping them, I am Facebooking them and visit. It is nice.
19 IN: You have also family in Germany do you also go there regular?
20 I7: Yes my aunt lives in Germany. Also once in a couple of years we go to Germany. They
come to the Netherlands.
21 IN: Did you ever have the wish to stay for a longer time in Turkey?
22 I7: You know our vacations are long sometimes six weeks, seven weeks but I didn´t stay
longer than that.
23 IN: And in the future maybe an internship or so?
24 I7: It is possible to keep the doors open. Why not? I am speaking Turkish I am speaking
Dutch so it is a possibility for job for study it is possible yes.
25 IN: Which language is more important for you?
26 I7: Both are important. Turkish I try to keep my Turkish language to speak and to write good
Turkish but also Dutch and English, yes they are important.
27 IN: It is nice to have the possibility of speaking two languages fluent.
28 I7: Yes it is nice and now with Turkey´s upcoming economy it is getting only better.
29 IN: Yes that´s why I asked if you want to stay there.
30 I7: Yes I don´t know what the future shall show me but it is a possibility for sure. I like
Turkey, you know sunny. We will see in the future.
31 IN: What are your hobbies?
32 I7: What are my hobbies? I played basketball for nine years I stopped now with basketball.
Hobbies yes I am playing now indoor football twice a week, sometimes outside, thinking
about life. I am a really thinker not a doer but constantly thinking about all kind of things.
You can call it a hobby yes.
33 IN: Are you in a soccer club or basketball club?
34 I7: I played in a basketball club, not anymore and soccer is with friends, two times a week
with only friends.
35 IN: Are you a fan of Willem II?
36 I7: Willem II not really. I like to play football but I don´t spend much time watching f
football.
37 IN: Are you in a student organization?
38 I7: Yes in a Turkish student organization, Stichting NBS. Stichting nieuw Brabants
academicie. I am active there.
39 IN: Are most of your friends also in there?
40 I7: Yes I have friends also who are a member of that.
41 IN: There are a lot of students that come from Turkey now to do a bachelor or a master here.
Did you meet any?
42 I7: Yes I have met some.
43 IN: How do you think about them?
44 I7: How do I think about them? I had with someone a good relation not only one person but
some of them you can have a good relations, you can play football, you can, gaming, you
can go to somewhere with them. They are different like everyone else. You have some
you can have a good time with them but you have some who are totally different. You
have no click. It is like everyone else.
45 IN: Different how? Is there a general thing?
46 I7: I like to speak with a lot of people also from different cultures. They are Turkish people. I
like to keep contact but some people who are coming from Turkey, they don´t want to
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47 IN:
48 I7:
49 IN:
50 I7:
51 IN:
52 I7:
53 IN:
54 I7:
55 IN:
56 I7:
57 IN:
58 I7:
59 IN:
60 I7:
61 IN:
62 I7:
63 IN:
64 I7:
65 IN:
66 I7:
67 IN:
68 I7:
interact much with Turkish people because they say ´I have a lot of Turkish people where
I came from so I want to improve my language skills to learn the other culture` so they
don´t spend much time with Turkish people. That are the guys where you cannot have
regular contact with.
And what would you say do you have mainly in common with them?
Mainly in common? Ja, we are Turkish, religion, education that kind of things.
When you go to Turkey do you feel accepted by your surroundings?
Yes. It is two sides you know. When you go shopping they know you have money so they
can see you are European and they know you have money. You are accepted very well but
sometimes they try to sell things much more expensive than it actually is but with
family... I live in Anatolia, center of Turkey so when I go to anywhere in Anatolia yes of
course I am accepted very well.
Yes because you grew up here so.
I kept my Turkish culture I think. You have guys who are really Dutch, Turkish/Dutch or
Turkish/German they act like I don´t know. I am not like that. I kept my Turkish culture
so I don´t have problems in interaction with them so we are the same and that´s why I am
also accepted easily not much differences.
Also with the ones that come now?
You know with the ones, who come to the Netherlands, they don´t come from Anatolia
mostly. They come from families who have much money maybe that´s a point. Also in
Turkey my family is not rich otherwise they wouldn´t have come to the Netherlands, my
grandparents but the guys who come to study because also Turkey is not a member of the
European Union. They have to pay more so you need money to come to the Netherlands.
If you are rich you are a member of a different social group so yes they have their own
things. That´s where you can see the difference.
So it is more rich and poor or let´s say rich and normal average.
Yes that´s what I see yes.
You said you kept your Turkish culture. What does it mean?
What does it mean? A good question. It means that I don´t have much differences with
my family in Turkey, with my nephews for example. Of course I am different but I don´t
have much differences. That´s the best way I can explain it.
Would you say you are Dutch or you are Turkish or you are are mixture?
I am both. I like the Netherlands. I can proudly say I am Dutch. I must admit I am also
Turkish. It is a mixture.
So you feel connected to both?
Yes I feel connected to both.
You also have Dutch friends and international friends?
Yes.
Do you think they have the same identity, like what makes them the ones that come here.
Would you say that they are defined by the same things?
In comparison with me. It differs. Religion plays an important role for me, more
important than my Turkish culture because of that it also plays a role with the people who
I am in contact with. If that guy from Turkey or whatever country is a bit religious, is
Muslim. That makes it easier for me. For me that plays a role. If he is religious we have
more in common, if he is not religious than we have much differences.
So you go regular to the mosque here?
Ja, I go regularly to the mosque.
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69 IN: I was surprised to see such a big mosque in a rather small city.
70 I7: Yes Tilburg is also a big city. Tilburg is the 5th, 6th city. But we have a nice mosque here
yes.
71 IN: What is the most important thing for you in life?
72 I7: In life? I am Muslim so I also believe in an afterlife. It goes together. The most important
thing in this life for me is to follow the rules of Islam that means to have a good life here,
to do good things and also to hopefully go to the paradise in the afterlife. It is connected
for me. That is the most important thing.
73 IN: I guess you don´t go out to bars?
74 I7: No.
75 IN: Well there are religious people and there are religious people you know?
76 I7: Yes of course. We believe that when you are death that you have to tell where you spend
your time, where you spend your money and if you can handle it, if you think it is no
problem for you, it is ok. It is between you and god.
77 IN: Do you have special goals that you want to achieve in life?
78 I7: Do I have special goals? Yes I have goals, I need to finish my study first, my bachelor and
then my master, marrying. Special goals? For me to be a good human being and also to
help other people, to do as much as good as possible, to invest in the afterlife, that´s my
special goal.
79 IN: It is a nice goal. What do you think of the picture of Turkish people in the Dutch media
and politics?
80 I7: Yes Dutch media they show it the way they want it. It is nice to speak both languages and
it is nice to follow the news in Turkey and to follow the same news in the Netherlands so
you can see which view they are showing you. Sometimes there are strange differences. It
is the media it is not only with Turkey and the Netherlands but it is everywhere. It´s nice
if you can view it on both sides than you know hey this one is telling it like this and the
other one is showing you something different. What is the right or what are they trying to
do? In the Dutch media especially the last month I say it was, they showed Erdogan, the
prime minister of Turkey like a dictator but they can change very easily, that is strange. If
they want to show someone bad that he is a dictator, if they need Turkey or if they want to
yes then it is different.
81 IN: And this politician Geert Wilders? I mean I saw some things that he said and read and
thought that is pretty harsh. How do you think about that?
82 I7: About Wilders?
82 IN: Well there is a group around him and what they say.
83 I7: Wilders is a good guy (laughing). Wilders is, every bad thing has it´s good side. Let´s
start with that. Wilders is not telling the truth, absolutely not. He is not a guy who is open
for something. He is blocked. He has a view and he is blocked with that so you can´t give
him information or you can´t try to tell him what is the correct thing or what is the wrong
thing. He has it´ s own thing, he is blocked according to me of course and that´s his way
of doing, especially the Islam and Moroccans. He is putting them on a real negative thing.
Turks not much I think. I think he also called the prime minister like a monkey two years
ago, something in that way. Yes not exactly a monkey but you know he has his own kind
of using the words to humiliate someone but then saying ´I didn´t meant that`. Politicians
you know? If you can say something like that to a prime minister of another country, you
don´t make things better for the Turkish people in the Netherlands for the integration. You
are only making enemies. It´s not good for all Dutch people, for all the people in the
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84 IN:
85 I7:
86 IN:
87 I7:
88 IN:
89 I7:
Netherlands if it is Turkish or Dutch. We are there. My parents came here I couldn´t do
anything of it. I didn´t choose where to be born in the Netherlands or Turkey. But I like
the Netherlands, I am living here, I like Tilburg so yes I want to give the Netherlands
something. To do good things, yes it is also my country but that guy is not making it easy
sometimes.
One last question. How would you describe yourself?
How would I describe? In what view?
In whatever, your personality, your lifestyle...
Difficult question. A calm person. Calm and a thinker, at the moment searching for
different things. Searching mentally, searching what is the right and to getting my own
position in my own life. That´s what I can say now.
That´s it. Thank you very much!
You are welcome.
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