Transcultural practices and inter-generational dynamics among migrant youth

Abstract

This paper explores intergenerational dynamics affecting second-generation migrant youth transcultural identities within a global context of increasing mobility, diversity and interconnectedness. Drawing on in-depth interviews of first and second-generation migrant youth across three research sites, this paper explores how migrant families in Melbourne (Australia), Toronto (Canada) and Birmingham (UK) maintain and transmit their heritage culture and associated values, skills and knowledge–a critical component of transcultural capital–to the next generation. The young adults’ narratives illustrate the socio-cultural processes that enable opportunities for inter-generational relating and cross-cultural belonging. The ensuing critical awareness, cross-cultural knowledge, and social engagement with one’s own culture(s) enhance intercultural openness, an important orientation in today’s hyper-connected and super-diverse world. Importantly, within this ethno-culturally pluralist framing, migrant youth act less as passive recipients of culture(s) and more as agentic drivers of multi-dimensional cultural adaptation. In mobilising selectively and agentically transcultural capital, migrant youth are then able to negotiate and critically engage with aspects of their heritage culture. This forms enabling strategies conducive to individually driven social empowerment and intercultural engagement.