USING NATIONAL IDENTITY MEASURE AS AN INDICATOR OF MALAYSIAN NATIONAL IDENTITY

Abstract

Conducting research about individuals’ feelings of belonging to a society comprising different social strata is of interest to researchers. National identity as a collective identity has gained salient attention in Malaysia because the country’s social structure is made up of different ethnic groups. To shed light on this topic, this study investigated national identity among undergraduate students of a public university in Malaysia. A survey questionnaire (the National Identity Measure or NIM) was utilized as the data collection instrument. Using a random proportional stratified sampling strategy, a total of 498 undergraduates studying in the University’s 15 different faculties were selected as respondents. The results of the study confirmed that, in a society that embraces various ethnic groups, a collective national identity can be measured.Keywords: Feeling of belonging, Malaysia, measurement, national identity, national identity measure.Cite as: Granhenat, M. & Abdullah, A.N. (2017). Using national identity measure as an indicator of Malaysian national identity. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 2(2), 214-223.