Abstract 抽象
This exploratory research investigates ‘identity capital’ in a multicultural workplace environment. Guided by Pierre Bourdieu's theoretical approach to capital and James Côté's concept of identity capital, we examine the strategic deployment of identity capital among adults in a multicultural immigrant-serving organization in Mississauga, serving the region of Peel, Ontario. The study involves 15 personal interviews with staff of this organization. The findings show that identity capital is deployed in social situations with clients, colleagues, and supervisor in the workplace. Moreover, the deployment of identity capital occurs through greetings, body language, finding connecting pieces, and methods of communication. Finally, the deployment of identity capital is strategic. The paper concludes that identity capital is a useful concept to explain the varied resources individuals have available to negotiate changing workplace environments.
这项探索性研究调查了多元文化工作场所环境中的“身份资本”。在皮埃尔·布迪厄（Pierre Bourdieu）的资本理论方法和詹姆斯·科特（James Côté）的身份资本概念的指导下，我们研究了密西沙加一个多元文化移民服务组织中成年人的身份资本战略部署，该组织服务于安大略省皮尔地区。该研究涉及对该组织工作人员的 15 次个人访谈。研究结果表明，身份资本被部署在与客户、同事和工作场所主管的社交场合中。此外，身份资本的部署是通过问候、肢体语言、寻找连接部分和沟通方式进行的。最后，身份资本的部署具有战略意义。本文的结论是，身份资本是一个有用的概念，可以解释个人可用于谈判不断变化的工作场所环境的各种资源。
Introduction 介绍
International migration to Canada is a driving force of ethnic diversity and population growth. According to the 2006 Canadian Census, immigrants represent one in five individuals of the population (Statistics Canada, Citation2006a). Immigration has been a major contributor to Canada's diversity and the multicultural nature of Canadian society. This paper explores how identities are presented in the workplace setting of a multicultural immigrant-serving settlement organization. This setting is particularly interesting because workers interact with immigrant clients and colleagues of multiple origins and backgrounds. In addition, identity performances are especially important in immigrant-serving organizations (Bauder, Citation2006a).
向加拿大的国际移民是种族多样性和人口增长的驱动力。根据2006年加拿大人口普查，移民占人口的五分之一（加拿大统计局，2006年a）。移民一直是加拿大多样性和加拿大社会多元文化性质的主要贡献者。本文探讨了身份如何在多元文化移民服务定居组织的工作场所环境中呈现。这种设置特别有趣，因为工人与移民客户和来自不同出身和背景的同事互动。此外，身份表现在移民服务组织中尤为重要（Bauder，2006a）。
Guided by Pierre Bourdieu's theoretical approach to capital and James Côté's concept of identity capital, our research investigates the social situations in which individuals deploy identity as a form of capital, the ways they deploy identity capital in these situations, and the ways in which identity performances are strategic. This approach to identity complements other research on identity in a Canadian context, which relates to mixed-race and transnationalism (see, for example, Mahtani, Citation2002; Ghosh & Wang, Citation2003).
在皮埃尔·布迪厄（Pierre Bourdieu）的资本理论方法和詹姆斯·科特（James Côté）的身份资本概念的指导下，我们的研究调查了个人将身份部署为一种资本形式的社会情境，他们在这些情况下部署身份资本的方式，以及身份表现的战略方式。这种身份认同方法补充了加拿大背景下关于身份的其他研究，这些研究涉及混血和跨国主义（例如，见Mahtani，2002年;Ghosh和Wang，2003）。
For the empirical study, we conducted 15 qualitative interviews in an organization located in Mississauga, in the region of Peel, Ontario. The results of this research illustrate how individuals actively and strategically deploy identity capital. In particular, our research reveals how identity capital is deployed in the workplace in social situations with clients, colleagues and supervisors; how identity is performed; and how these performances are strategic.
对于实证研究，我们在位于安大略省皮尔地区密西沙加的一个组织中进行了 15 次定性访谈。这项研究的结果说明了个人如何积极和战略性地部署身份资本。特别是，我们的研究揭示了身份资本如何在工作场所与客户、同事和主管的社交场合中部署;身份如何执行;以及这些表演如何具有战略意义。
Understanding the deployment of identity capital in the workplace of a multicultural settlement organization is important because it is a key element in the successful delivery of services to immigrants and thus the successful settlement of newcomers. In addition, it informs the wider identity politics of Canadian society.
了解身份资本在多元文化定居组织工作场所的部署很重要，因为它是成功向移民提供服务的关键因素，从而是新移民成功定居的关键因素。此外，它还为加拿大社会更广泛的身份政治提供了信息。
The paper is divided into four sections. Following the introduction, we first review Bourdieu's theoretical approach to capital and Côté's conceptualization of identity capital. Second, we outline our research design, introduce the context of the empirical study, and describe the methodology. Third, we present the findings of this research. We end the paper with a discussion of these findings and suggestions for future research.
本文分为四个部分。在引言之后，我们首先回顾了布迪厄的资本理论方法和科特对身份资本的概念化。其次，我们概述了我们的研究设计，介绍了实证研究的背景，并描述了方法。第三，我们介绍了这项研究的结果。最后，我们讨论了这些发现和对未来研究的建议。
Literature review 文献综述
Bourdieu and capital 布迪厄与资本
Pierre Bourdieu's prolific writing and research have greatly influenced scholarship across disciplines (Bourdieu & Wacquant, Citation1992; Sallaz & Zavisca, Citation2007). One of Bourdieu's key concepts is ‘capital’ (Painter, 2000; Thompson, 1991). Bourdieu (Citation1986) conceptualizes ‘capital’ in the following way:
皮埃尔·布迪厄（Pierre Bourdieu）多产的著作和研究极大地影响了跨学科的学术研究（Bourdieu&Wacquant，1992;Sallaz和Zavisca，2007）。布迪厄的关键概念之一是“资本”（Painter，2000;Thompson，1991年）。布迪厄（1986）将“资本”概念化如下：
Capital, which, in its objectified or embodied forms, takes time to accumulate and which has potential capacity to produce profits and to reproduce itself in identical or expanded form, contains a tendency to persist in its being, is a force inscribed in the objectivity of things so that everything is not equally possible or impossible. And the structure of the distribution of the different types and subtypes of capital at a given moment in time represents the immanent structure of the social world, i.e., the set of constraints, inscribed in the very reality of that world, which govern its functioning in a durable way, determining the chances of success for practices. (pp. 241–242)
资本以其客观化或具体化的形式需要时间来积累，并且具有产生利润和以相同或扩大的形式进行自我再生产的潜在能力，它包含着一种持续存在的倾向，是一种铭刻在事物客观性中的力量，因此一切都不是同样可能或不可能的。在特定时刻，不同类型和亚型资本的分配结构代表了社会世界的内在结构，即刻在该世界现实中的一系列约束，这些约束以持久的方式支配其运作，决定了实践成功的机会。（第241-242页）
Different forms of capital exist. According to Bourdieu and his colleague Loïc Wacquant (1992), economic capital, social capital, and cultural capital are the ‘three fundamental species’ of capital. Economic capital refers to financial wealth and economic assets, such as real estate. Social capital refers to membership in a ‘network of connections’ that can be activated when needed or desired. Acquaintances, group membership, school alumni, and family members are examples of an individual's social capital. Cultural capital refers to embodied attributes, material objects, and institutional recognition, which can signify cultural competence (Bourdieu, Citation1986). Bourdieu and Wacquant (Citation1992) also relate cultural capital to information capital, which includes cultural knowledge and interpretation. Bourdieu does not limit his definition to these forms of capital. For example, he has also used the term symbolic capital to refer to prestige, honour, and other forms of symbolic legitimation (Bourdieu, Citation1977a, Citation1998; Bourdieu & Wacquant, Citation1992). Other forms of capital that Bourdieu mentions include political, military, scientific, and technological ‘species’ of capital (Bourdieu, Citation2002) as well as linguistic capital (Bourdieu, Citation1991).
To Bourdieu, the various forms of capital are closely interrelated and intertwined. An important feature of Bourdieu's approach to capital is that different forms of capital can be exchanged with one another (Bourdieu, Citation1986). For example, people can use their social capital when searching for a job and thereby generate economic capital (Thompson, 1991).
The value and worth of capital depends on habitus, the field under examination, and the distribution of capital. Bourdieu's conceptualizes habitus as a ‘system of dispositions’ that individuals acquire ‘through experience of the game’ to gain a strategic ‘sense of the game’ (Lamaison & Bourdieu, Citation1986, p. 111). Individual social practices depend and reflect one's class background. Habitus is thus both the set of and source of social practices (Thompson, 1991); it is the underlying principle that gives capital meaning and thus value.
The field is the social context in which habitus exists and power dynamics are arranged (Thompson, 1991). Capital is particular to the field, such as artistic or medical fields. For example, cultural performances signifying cultural capital that are ‘valuable’ in the academic field may not be considered valuable in politics or in a barroom (Bourdieu, Citation1988, Citation1991).
In addition, the various forms of capital are not distributed equally. Bourdieu often employs the analogy of playing a game to illustrate how capital is structured and applied. For example, when examining the marriage strategies in Béarn in the Pyrenees, Bourdieu (Citation1976) compares the cards, which players are dealt, to the difference in capital each person possesses. Building on the game analogy, Bourdieu and Wacquant (Citation1992) emphasize how a woman's stock of capital influences ‘her relative force in the game, her position in the space of play, and also her strategic orientation toward the game’ (p. 99, original emphasis). The amount and form of capital a person possesses relative to others defines this person's position in the game and influences how the person navigates and strategizes. In a similar way, people's actions and strategies in society depend on the social distribution of capital.
The distribution of capital is connected with Bourdieu's notion of distinction and reproduction. Individuals have differential access to various forms of capital because of their position in society and they use the capital they possess to reproduce the societal structures that have endowed them with capital in the first place. The transmission of capital in the education system, for example, reflects and validates existing power and social relationships (Bourdieu, Citation1977b). Similarly, linguistic capital reproduces the class status of those who have privileged access to the means of learning how to express themselves in ways that differ from lower-status groups (Bourdieu, Citation1991). Important in the context of this paper is that the valorization of capital is neither fixed nor universal. Capital can be discredited and devalued as, for example, when all individuals gain access to a certain type of capital (Bourdieu & Wacquant, Citation1992). Meanwhile, other forms of capital can rise in value.
Instead of reading Bourdieu's works as a set of rigid definitions, they should be understood as ‘a set of sociological dispositions, a certain way of looking at the world’ (Brubaker, Citation1993, p. 217). Bourdieu's writings are historically and geographically specific. Much of his empirical research was conducted within the stratified class society of France. Nevertheless, he provides ‘instruments’ that equip researchers with the ‘thinking tools’ to explore different fields and settings (Brubaker, Citation1993).
Through empirical research, scholars have applied Bourdieu's theoretical approach to the Canadian immigration and settlement context. For example, institutionalized cultural capital has been examined as a mechanism of exclusion in the work environment (Bauder, Citation2003, Citation2006a, Citation2008) and as a form of distinction for migrants (Waters, Citation2005, Citation2006, Citation2007). Bourdieu's concept of habitus has also been used to explain employment strategies of immigrants and ethnic groups (Bauder, Citation2005, Citation2006b) and the emergence of transnational habitus (Kelly & Lusis, Citation2006). In the empirical study below, we apply Bourdieu's framework to a Canadian immigration and settlement context. In particular, we will use the concept of identity capital.
Identity capital
Identity is a complex, flexible, and fluid construction that emerges through human interactions and is shaped by social context and the interests of individuals (Jenkins Citation2004). Richard Jenkins states that ‘interests and identification are intimately bound up with each other … my pursuit of particular interests may cause me to be identified in particular ways by myself and by others’ (p. 178). The idea that identity is contingent on social situations and the interests of the individual illustrates how identity is a strategic category.
This perspective resonates with the concept of identity capital, a concept that was coined and developed by James Côté (Citation1996, Citation1997, Citation2002, Citation2005, Citation2007; Côté & Levine, Citation2002; Côté & Schwartz Citation2002). Identity capital captures a particular set of resources available to people in late-modern society (Côté, Citation1996). Côté suggests that human, social, and cultural forms of capital insufficiently explain how individuals negotiate their lives and social circumstances (Côté, Citation1996, Citation1997, Citation2002, Citation2005, Citation2007; Côté & Levine, Citation2002). Identity capital is an additional form of capital that includes ‘a set of psychosocial skills’ or ‘a set of strengths’, which individuals or groups possess and use strategically in the way they present themselves to others (Côté & Levine, Citation2002). Identity capital refers to ‘the varied resources deployable on an individual basis that represents how people most effectively define themselves and have others define them, in various contexts’ (Côté & Levine, Citation2002, p. 142).
Côté's conceptualization of identity capital is an extension of Bourdieu's framework,Footnote1 in particular, the approach to capital as a resource that permits individuals and groups to strategically negotiate their social situations (Côté & Levine, Citation2002; Côté, Citation2005). Unlike much of Bourdieu's empirical work on capital, however, identity capital is not limited to class distinctions. Identity capital is constructed through multiple social locations and differences, including class, gender, race and ethnicity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, life stage, nationality, religious affiliation, etc. These social categories do not simply ‘add up’ and cannot be ranked (Bowleg, Citation2008; Yuval-Davis, Citation2006). Rather, identity capital intersects at multiple points, enabling individuals to draw from multiple social categories depending on the audience (Ludvig, Citation2006). From this perspective, what constitutes identity capital depends on the individual's perceived membership in social groups and the resources available in a particular social context. Thus, identity capital enables individuals to adjust to and navigate in different social environments (Côté, Citation1996, Citation2007). To employ the game analogy, identity capital is the ability that allows individuals to play different games effectively.
Identity capital comprises two types of resources. Tangible resources are assets that are ‘socially visible’ (Côté & Levine, Citation2002, p. 144). Examples include academic credentials and group membership, which can act as ‘passports’ into various social and institutional arenas (Côté & Levine, Citation2002, p. 144). Intangible resources include psychological abilities, such as the ability to critically reflect, negotiate, and understand another person's character. Both types of resources enable a person to manoeuvre through various social environments (Côté, Citation1996, Citation2005; Côté & Levine, Citation2002). Identity capital is acquired by applying these resources through identity exchanges. In social interactions, a person achieves a common understanding with another person of what constitutes acceptable responses in a given situation. These ‘mutual acceptances’ allow the individual to gain identity capital and thereby increase the stock of ‘who they are’ (Côté & Levine, Citation2002, p. 143). The performative nature of identity highlights the agency of individuals in acquiring identity capital (Bucholtz, Citation2009).
Identity capital encompasses an individual's personality. An individual's sense of self ‘facilitates free movement among diverse groups and contexts. . .; the ability to move, both concretely and abstractly, among groups and networks with diverse interests (a multiplexity); and the adaptive ability to combine diverse resources as the situation dictates’ (Côté & Levine, Citation2002, pp. 158–159). Identity capital is the psychosocial ability to adapt, construct, strategize, and present one's identity depending on the social situation and to recognize and respond to social cues.
The ability to speak multiple languages is an important component of identity capital; it allows an individual access to multiple identities (Liang, Citation2006). Ethnic and personal identities are closely tied to language; however, retaining one's own language is not a sufficient condition of maintaining ethnicity (De Vries, Citation1990).Footnote2 Furthermore, language relates to particular forms of communication and ways of thinking. Speaking multiple languages equips a person with communicative flexibility, that is, the ‘ability to adapt strategies to the audience and to see the signs, both direct and indirect, so that the participants are able to monitor and understand at least some of each other's meaning’ (Gumperz & Cook-Gumperz, Citation1982, p. 14). This ability to conduct face-to-face communication involves language as both a tangible and an intangible resource, in the ability to speak and in a way of thinking, respectively.
Language as identity capital is further complicated by the individual's degree of fluency and mastery. Mah (Citation2005) notes how some second-generation Chinese individuals retain their oral language ability without literacy. Furthermore, in a settlement context, language may be used as identity capital in particular ways. Beynon et al. (Citation2003), for example, found that teachers of Chinese and Punjabi ancestries ‘market’ their language abilities differently, by focusing on tangible resources, such as learning grammatical rules and norms at school, or intangible aspects through communication at home and in the community. Shi and Lu (Citation2007) illustrate how second-generation Chinese adolescents and young adults embrace or reject their Chinese identity based on the perceived benefits and costs in the context of particular identity exchanges. For the second generation, fluency in a non-official language can be understood as an investment in identity capital that can be strategically mobilized.
The concept of identity capital suits the investigation of the Canadian immigration and settlement context in which it is important to manoeuvre in different social environments. Immigrants may bring an identity capital that reflects their place of origin. In the unfolding ‘mosaic’ of Canadian society, individuals benefit from the ability to move fluidly and flexibly in different social contexts. For example, a person's ethnicity can be deliberately framed and used as a resource. A study by Sundar (Citation2008) demonstrates how second-generation South-Asian Canadian youths purposefully used their identity to ‘brown it up’ or ‘bring down the brown’ to achieve their goals. In other words, ethnicity can be used strategically depending on the social environment. This research illustrates how identity capital can be used to successfully navigate and negotiate changing social situations.
Research questions
The field we chose for this research is immigrant settlement services. This field is particularly interesting because settlement workers may apply their own migration experiences and ethnic identities when they interact with their immigrant clients and their immigrant or non-immigrant colleagues. In addition, we explore identity capital among adults, a group that has been neglected in previous research, which has largely focused on youth (Côté, Citation1997, Citation2002; Côté & Schwartz, Citation2002; Sundar, Citation2008). In the following empirical study, we investigate how settlement workers in a multicultural settlement organization present and deploy their identity capital. In particular, we ask the following research questions:
| 1. | In what social situations do individuals deploy identity as a form of capital? | ||||
| 2. | In which way do individuals deploy identity capital in these situations? | ||||
| 3. | How is identity strategically performed? | ||||
Research design
Identity capital has empirically been explored quantitatively (Côté, Citation1997; Citation2002; Côté & Schwartz, Citation2002) and qualitatively (Sundar, Citation2008). This study uses a qualitative approach to investigate how identity capital is used to navigate and negotiate in a multicultural workplace environment in the region of Peel, Ontario. In this section, we briefly introduce immigration and settlement in the region of Peel and our methodology.
The Greater Toronto Area and the region of Peel
Seven out of every ten newcomers to Canada choose to settle in one of the three major gateway metropolitan areas of Toronto, Montréal, and Vancouver (Statistics Canada, Citation2006b). In the Greater Toronto Area, population growth due to immigration affects, in particular, the suburban municipalities surrounding the City of Toronto (Statistics Canada, Citation2007). This area includes the region of Peel, located in the western part of the Greater Toronto Area and encompassing the cities of Brampton and Mississauga and the town of Caledon.
With a population growth rate of 17.2% between 2001 and 2006 (from 988,958 to 1,159,405), Peel is one of the fastest-growing regions in Canada (Mohanty & DeCoito, Citation2009). This growth is attributed mostly to immigration and secondary migration of immigrants from the city of Toronto (Agrawal, Citation2009). In 2006, 43.1 percent of Peel's population were immigrants; mostly recent immigrants.Footnote3 Within Peel, there are differences between Brampton, Mississauga, and Caledon. From 2001 to 2006, Brampton grew the fastest at 33.3 percent, followed by Caledon at 12.7 percent and Mississauga at 9.1 percent. In 2006, Mississauga had the highest proportion of immigrants (51.6 percent), followed by Brampton (47.8 percent) and Caledon (20.8 percent) (Wu, Citation2008).
2001年至2006年间，皮尔的人口增长率为17.2%（从988,958人增加到1,159,405人），是加拿大增长最快的地区之一（Mohanty和DeCoito，2009）。这种增长主要归因于多伦多市的移民和二次移民（Agrawal，2009）。2006年，皮尔43.1%的人口是移民;3 在皮尔内部，布兰普顿、密西沙加和卡利登之间存在差异。从2001年到2006年，布兰普顿增长最快，为33.3%，其次是卡利登（12.7%）和密西沙加（9.1%）。2006年，密西沙加的移民比例最高（51.6%），其次是布兰普顿（47.8%）和卡利登（20.8%）（Wu，2008）。
More than half of Peel's immigrants were born in Asia and the Middle East, and 27 percent in European countries. South AsiansFootnote4 account for the single largest immigrant group in Peel.Footnote5 In 2006, 50 percent of Peel's residents self-identified as visible minorityFootnote6 (Mohanty & DeCoito, Citation2009). South Asians were the largest visible minority group, followed by Blacks and Chinese. Linguistic diversity has also increased because of immigration in Peel. Whereas 68 percent of Peel residents speak only English at home, 27 percent of Peel residents speak only a non-official language at home, with Punjabi being the most common non-official language (Wu, Citation2008).
皮尔超过一半的移民出生在亚洲和中东，27%出生在欧洲国家。2006年，50%的皮尔居民自认为是有色人种6（Mohanty & DeCoito，2009）。南亚人是最大的可见少数群体，其次是黑人和华人。由于皮尔的移民，语言多样性也有所增加。68%的皮尔居民在家只说英语，27%的皮尔居民在家只说一种非官方语言，旁遮普语是最常见的非官方语言（Wu，2008）。
The region of Peel provides an interesting context in which to study identity capital, because the region's ethnic diversity has changed in a short period of time. These changes have attracted other studies, such as the ‘Peel Immigration Project’, commissioned by the Regional Municipality of Peel, which led to a series of discussion papers (Wayland, Citation2009; Galabuzi & Teelucksingh, Citation2009; Wayland & Goldberg, Citation2009).
皮尔地区为研究身份资本提供了一个有趣的背景，因为该地区的种族多样性在短时间内发生了变化。这些变化吸引了其他研究，例如由皮尔地区市政府委托的“皮尔移民项目”，该项目导致了一系列讨论文件（Wayland，2009 年;Galabuzi & Teelucksingh，2009 年;Wayland和Goldberg，2009）。
For our research, we collaborated with a multicultural immigrant-serving organization located in Mississauga. This organization provides settlement services throughout the region of Peel in English and 30 other languages. It offers services ranging from business advice, settlement assistance in the form of document translation or housing searches, language instruction, resource provision for job search, homework and university application, and referrals to schools and community resources, to name a few. The organization follows a philosophy that aims to empower its clients in a respectful and welcoming manner.
对于我们的研究，我们与位于密西沙加的多元文化移民服务组织合作。该组织以英语和其他 30 种语言在整个皮尔地区提供定居服务。它提供的服务包括商业咨询、文件翻译或住房搜索形式的定居援助、语言教学、求职资源、家庭作业和大学申请，以及学校和社区资源的转介，仅举几例。该组织遵循的理念是以尊重和欢迎的方式赋予客户权力。
Method 方法
We recruited 15 participants (10 women and 5 men) who worked in programs serving adults at our collaborating settlement organization. The participants represented a wide range of ethnic and linguistic backgrounds, and included both immigrants and Canadian-born individuals. For confidentiality reasons, we will not identify the ethnic backgrounds of the participants. In the text below, we applied a random numbering system and removed all ethnic identifiers and job titles to protect the anonymity of the participants.
Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured personal interviews. An Interview Guide Approach allowed us to explore specific topics and build a conversation with the participants. Using this approach provided a degree of flexibility and facilitated an elaboration of participants’ experiences and interpretations (Paton, Citation2002). The interviews ranged from 21 minutes to over one hour. Fourteen interviews were audiotaped; one was recorded through notes at the participant's request. Interviews were later transcribed verbatim. Data collection, transcription and analysis occurred simultaneously in order to reflect on and adjust the data collection and analysis processes. Interview transcriptions were first analyzed individually and later collectively in search for themes and patterns using open coding (Neuman, Citation2006). The thematic groupings of responses were directly fed back into the data collection process by adjusting the interview guide.
Results
The findings of the empirical investigation can be summarized as follows. First, in the workplace, identity capital is deployed in social situations with the clients, colleagues, and supervisors. Second, the deployment of identity capital occurs through greetings, body language, and finding connecting methods of communication. Third, identity performances are deployed strategically. We have organized the subsections below to reflect these three major findings.
Identity capital and social situations
The interviews showed that identity is neither fixed nor consistent across social situations. When we asked participants about their identity, the responses indicated that it encompasses and intersects with various factors and situations. In addition, identity itself is a complex and elusive concept, and is seen as constantly changing. Factors outside the workplace greatly influence the meaning of identity. Participants emphasized that they have different identities in the workplace as compared with those they have at home and in the community, and as a staff member and colleague as compared with being a parent, child, or spouse. Participants also used various markers to describe their identities, such as gender, values, educational background, marital status, and immigration history. These markers defined the participants’ stock of identity capital, which participants can deploy in given situations. One respondent astutely remarked:
We are chameleons. Wherever we go, the situation requires this, we are that. The situation requires something else, we change … and by doing that, we change our identity … to suit the situation you are in. (I12)
Despite the changing and contingent nature of identity, there was a sense among participants that certain identity characteristics do not change. Features such as being resourceful, helpful, patient, and reflective are understood as ‘constant’ (I01) and not as a ‘work-hat I just take off and it hangs; it is with me all the time’ (I03). These unchanging aspects of identity interlock with other fluid and contingent aspects of identity.
In the settlement services sector, it is important for staff to establish a sense of trust and comfort with their client.Footnote7 Participants discussed the importance of the first impression in building rapport with clients. In the initial meeting, staff members assess a client when he or she walks in the door and the staff member and client greet each other. At this point, staff members conduct a quick ‘visual scan’ (I08) of the client's body language. Identity capital is deployed in response to these observations and in subsequent meetings as the staff members gain a better understanding of the client's background and style. Furthermore, the use of identity capital occurs right from the start, with the first interaction, and continues to accumulate through subsequent exchanges.
The deployment of identity capital is not limited to clients. Relationships with colleagues and supervisors also require staff members to mobilize identity capital. Participants talked about how past exchanges have helped them learn the style of colleagues and the differences and similarities between them. For example, one participant remarked: ‘We also know where the common ground is that enables us to run the show basically’ (I06). This participant added that at the workplace it is important to know how to give constructive criticism to colleagues, which means knowing each other's sensitivities or ‘soft spots’ (I06).
An important difference between identity exchanges between clients and colleagues or supervisors is the context in which these exchanges occur. When we asked the participants whether they present themselves differently from their clients compared with their colleagues, two staff member answered in the following way:
Yes, probably. Yeah, because for my colleagues, they don't need my help, like personally, they don't need my help. But, for the clients, they need to see the softer side, they need to see the compassionate one. Yeah, it [i.e. identity presentation] is different. (I05)
They are different in the sense [that] usually I need something from the other [staff members], because I need help to help my clients or they to need help their clients. (I15)
These responses illustrate that the deployment of identity capital depends on the social situation and the ‘audience’. Identity exchanges between staff members are different compared with the exchanges with their clients because the individuals’ interests change.
In addition, the interviews suggested that the hierarchical arrangementFootnote8 of the workplace shaped the nature of exchanges. For example, participants described their identity performances when interacting with their supervisor as ‘obeying’ (I11) or adhering to ‘a peer system’ (I06). Other participants confirmed how they adapted their behaviour in light of their position in a hierarchically organized workplace; for example, when the supervisor sets the tone of the interaction. One participant said, ‘I probably will say the same thing to my client as to my boss, but it just the way you say it is different … it is just a different approach, the message is the same …’ (I12). The appropriate identity performance and the application of identity capital enable the relationship with supervisors and colleagues to be cordial and professional and to demonstrate that the staff member is part of a team.
The social situation shapes the style of interaction and the manner in which identity capital is activated. Identity exchanges differ in this respect when staff members interact with clients, colleagues, or supervisors.
Deploying identity capital
The deployment of identity capital in the initial meeting with the client is intended to make the environment feel safe and comfortable. Building rapport is key for staff members to better understand what services each client requires. One participant referred to ‘little strategies’ (I14) at the beginning of the first meeting that are important in establishing trust even though these strategies may appear small and minor. Greetings, body language, finding connecting conversation pieces, and methods of communication exemplify ways in which individuals deploy identity capital.
Several participants specifically mentioned greetings as a trust-building strategy that requires identity capital. For example, some staff members said that they need to know when to present what clients may view as ‘basic’ greetings, such as whether or not to shake the client's hand. Performing such greetings with confidence can convey respect, recognition, and cultural sensitivity to the client. How to perform a suitable greeting is not always conscious or planned. To many participants, these performances are intuitive. One participant explained, ‘I don't plan it, but my body actually, my way of attitude, the way of approaching them, is definitely adjusted to base on my experiences … And your body is already aware of it’ (I07).
After the initial greeting, continuing identity exchanges enable staff members to further assess their clients and interpret their behaviour. One participant compared the process of acquiring identity capital with the relationship between an animal and its trainer. It is like ‘Taming each other. Taming, it is like [with an] animal <laughs> it [is about] understanding each other’ (I07). Another participant explained how identity exchange is a personalized matter:
Every person is different … I try to do like a visual assessment, very superficial, to see if they are a little bit closed off in terms of body language, if they are a little more open, then I know that I can sit closer to them … so I know how close I can get to them … so there are different techniques depending on the person that walks in the door. (I08)
The examples of greeting and assessing a client's body language highlight several important characteristics of identity capital: first, the ability to judge when to deploy identity capital; second, the ability to perform the corresponding practices in the given situation; and third, the fact that these practices may be performed consciously or unconsciously.
Participants who speak the same non-official languages as their clients noted that cultural practices are closely tied to the use of language. In many cases, the language of communication activates identity capital. For example, a participant explained, ‘There are certain mannerisms, certain customs in [culture] you do not do in English’ (I02). When staff members interact with these clients, they are not only speaking a common language, but also deploying the communication style that is appropriate. These practices often occur unconsciously, for example, when a staff member uses a style that demonstrates an understanding of how conversation should ‘flow’ (I02). Another participant noted that language is bound up with particular mind-sets, or concepts in a person's head:
What I mean by linguistic behaviour, everybody talks differently, everybody has different concepts in their head … So, let's say with my Spanish colleague … I speak in one way which is more Spanish. But with my Japanese colleague, I speak in a more Japanese way.Footnote9 (I12)
Our interviews revealed that speaking a non-official language and using corresponding practices and mind-sets raises the comfort level of interaction. One respondent, for example, remarked: ‘My cultural clients, personally, from my experience, do not like [staff] to be too professional. They like to be able to have that comfort level, to be able to talk to us’ (I09).
The accumulation of identity capital in the form of conversational style is not limited to individuals sharing the language. Individuals who do not share the same cultural background or language can nonetheless acquire identity capital through identity exchanges. For example, even though staff members may not speak the client's non-official language, they still can learn to interpret and use facial expressions and mannerism styles by ‘acting’ (I12) the appropriate identity capital. Through identity exchanges, individuals accumulate identity capital to recognize the contextual cues and learn to apply the corresponding cultural codes.
The participants stressed that they treat all their clients similarly in terms of being respectful and giving correct information. However, participants also discussed that speaking the same language and observing shared cultural rules improves communication and thus helps them to perform their jobs. The deployment of identity capital – whether conscious or unconscious – is a useful practice for staff members.
Strategic performances of identity capital
In the interviews, participants presented examples which illustrate how identity capital is used strategically. In particular, participants explained how they build rapport with clients using age, language, humour, and immigration history.
Age is an aspect of identity that participants strategically mobilize to relate to clients. Individuals who considered themselves ‘older’, said that they could draw upon an age-related image of being life-experienced that evokes a sense of possessing special insights into the clients’ needs and knowledge about the challenges they are facing. Other participants suggested that the label of being ‘young’, which clients and some colleagues placed on them, is a hindrance to effective communication. Yet participants also reported that youth presented an opportunity to bond with older clients. For example, participants talked about how some older clients projected an image of a role model for the children onto the younger participants. Especially participants who speak a client's non-official language – whether they immigrated here as a child or were born in Canada – indicated to some clients that their children can also maintain their language and culture. Thus, age is an aspect of identity capital that individuals can use strategically to achieve a desired outcome.
Language is another strategic identity aspect. Participants discussed the intricacies of local dialects, specific sayings, and the speed of communication. Participants mentioned how clients were able to quickly pick up these intricacies, such as phrases or words used only in a particular region. Through past identity exchanges, one participant, for example, acquired the ability to pick up specific dialects that clients use and respond in that dialect.
I actually have catered my [language] to meet their needs. So, I would use, for example, [a certain] dialect, or forms of words [when speaking to clients from one area] … and I have picked out words that they have used and I would use it to replace the ones I have so that they understand it better, so I modified it in that sense … it is automatic now. (I15)
The ability to judge and employ the proper dialect requires tangible and intangible resources to present oneself according to the social situation. Although staff members may make such choices ‘automatically’, they also make them strategically to establish common ground with the client.
Some participants mentioned mixing non-official-language words with English. This ‘mixing of language’ created a bond between the staff member and the client. Participants who spoke two or more languages talked about thinking in one language and having difficulties translating words or phrases off the top of their head. In conveying these experiences to the client, they can create another connection with the client.
The third example of the strategic deployment of identity capital relates to humour. To use humour requires the ability to know what kind of humour the client understands. Using humour is risky, because the other person may take offence. One participant talked about the sensitive nature of making jokes:
[The jokes may be the same, but] it is how you say them, do you mean it. If you say it sincerely, and mean it, people would know. People would know what is real and what is fake. They would know [a joke] comes from you, or is it just a show to put on. (I12)
The delivery of the joke – the way the joke is presented – is a matter of a person's identity capital. The intangible resources of body language, timing, and tone are judged by the clients, not just the content of the joke. The risk of delivering a joke improperly or offending the client through a joke's contents requires an assessment of the social situation and a strategic decision on the part of the staff member. By knowing the styles of their clients from past identity exchanges, participants deploy the respective identity capital accordingly.
The fourth example is immigration history. Whether the participants are foreign-born, came to Canada when they were younger (1.5 generation) or older (first generation), or were born in Canada (second, third, or fourth generation, etc.), they were often able to relate to the struggles and hardship newcomers experienced. The identity of being an immigrant gives these staff members a connection with the client and an intangible resource to relate to the client. Belonging to a visible minority group represents a similar resource. These resources allow staff members to talk about their experiences in Canadian society, including discrimination. One participant reported about building rapport with visible minority clients, but also how this effort is selective and strategic:
If they are not white … [and they experience discrimination], I would relate to that as well, so that is another shared experience. I try not so much to emphasize culture, nationalism, or religion, because for myself, they are not set, static identifiers, they are so flexible and fluid. (I02)
Although particular aspects of identity build trust with a client, these aspects are chosen strategically to establish common connections.
Conclusions and future research
Guided by Bourdieu's and Côté's theoretical approach to capital, our research explored and documented how staff members in a multicultural immigrant-serving organization exercise their identity capital. Our findings revealed that in the workplace, identity capital is deployed in various social situations (with clients, colleagues, and supervisors), in different ways (including through greetings, body language, or connecting methods of communication), and strategically. Our research further illustrated how staff members acquire and possess identity capital, and how they deploy this capital in varying situations and with different clients. Overall, identity capital is a useful concept to understand the wide range of tangible and intangible resources available to staff members, enabling them to strategically negotiate their workplace and interact with their clients.
Our findings build on existing research on identity capital. Complementing Sundar's (Citation2008) study, which illustrated how people deploy identity capital within the same cultural group, our research suggests that identity capital is also important in the exchanges between individuals of different cultural background. In particular, the acquisition and accumulation of identity capital facilitates the strategic and fluid movement of people in different social environments.
As Bourdieu has argued, one form of capital can be converted into another form of capital. Similarly, identity capital can potentially be converted into other capital forms; identity exchanges between people can create social capital in the form of social networks. In addition, identity capital can be strategically executed, for example, when clients who feel that staff members showed cultural sensitivity and awareness may refer this worker through word-of-mouth.
However, identity capital is not limited to individuals who possess a specific background or an inherited ‘culture’. Valuable identity capital also refers to the learned ability to connect to different clients when negotiating different social situations. As one participant remarked: ‘It is up to us to cater to our clients’ (I15). People with different experiences are able to acquire and accumulate identity capital through identity exchanges. These exchanges should be encouraged and cultivated in immigrant-serving organizations. Employers and service providers must recognize these ‘soft skills’ as important enhancements of workplace performance and service delivery (Grugulis & Vincent, Citation2009).
In this way, workplaces are reflections of Canadian society as a whole, which continues to include people of varying background and with different experiences. Fragmented and multifaceted identities are a feature of contemporary Canadian society. As one participant observed:
Canadian identity is a mix of all identity. And you have to be open … That way, you'll benefit, the other person will benefit, and the community would definitely benefit. (I12)
The fact that Canada does not possess a singular identity renders identity exchanges and the accumulation of identity capital particularly important not only as a workplace issue but also as a societal issue. The ability to be open and ‘perform’ this openness enriches workplaces and Canadian society. Identity capital can be used to create a sense of community and cohesion in these contexts.
Power in social relationships needs to be considered. Following Dhamoon (Citation2009), who directs our attention to the problem with using ‘culture’ as a social identifier of difference, it is important to examine the contexts in which variations of identity capital occur. The social categories of the immigrant and the Canadian staff member in this multicultural workplace represent a specific context and power arrangement. How identity capital is constructed and how it varies relates to the historically specific power arrangements. In Canada, the making of the national identity has an underlying reproduction of difference through exaltation (Thobani, Citation2007). As such, power is crucial to the framing of identity and identity capital.
Finally, we have suggestions for further research. Our study examined only one multicultural immigrant-serving organization. Investigating other settlement organizations or one that is not ‘multicultural’ would provide additional insights into the role of identity capital in the workplace and whether the resources accumulated are similar or different. For example, if the workplace was located in another part of Canada, such as rural Alberta, what would be the difference in the deployment of identity capital? Using Bourdieu's game analogy, workers may ‘play’ a particular identity in one game and location, but not in another. In addition, we explored identity capital only through staff members’ perspectives. It would be interesting to examine clients’ perspectives on how identity exchanges occur. Moreover, our research demonstrated that identity capital is acquired and strengthened over time. Future research could therefore use longitudinal studies to capture how identity capital is accumulated.
Acknowledgements
We thank CERIS – The Ontario Metropolis Centre in Toronto, Canada, for supporting this project with the Graduate Student Research Award. We also thank Mehrunnisa Ali, Farishta Dinshaw, Sutuma Ghosh, Allen Tyyskä, the settlement organization and all research participants, who will remain anonymous to protect their identities. Finally, we appreciate the comments made by the anonymous reviewers
Notes
1. Although a separate form of capital, identity capital interrelates with cultural and social capital (Côté & Levine Citation2002). For example, identity capital can encompass cultural capital when belonging to multiple groups relates to personal identification and group validation (Côté, Citation1996; Côté & Levine, Citation2002).
2. For example, Myhill (Citation2003) has argued against ‘native language and identity’ ideology because it gives an impression of a ‘hierarchy of authenticity’.
3. Recent immigrants are individuals who immigrated to Canada in the five years prior to the 2006 Canada Census.
4. ‘South Asian’ includes India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal. This term conflates diverse groups of people who differ linguistically, ethnically, and culturally.
5. Differences within Peel are also apparent in the immigrant composition of the three municipalities. For instance, 52 percent of the immigrants in Brampton and Mississauga were born in Asia, compared with Caledon, where 73 percent were born in Europe (Wu, Citation2008).
6. Under the Employment Equity Act, the ‘visible minority’ category refers to individuals, besides Aboriginal persons, who are ‘non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour’. The categories are: Chinese, South Asian, Black, Arab/West Asian, Filipino, South East Asian, Latin American, Japanese, Korean, and Other (Statistics Canada, Citation2008).
7. The word client refers to newcomers who are accessing services at the organization. Some participants stressed that ‘client’ is misleading because the relationship can be described as a partnership between the staff and immigrant.
8. This ‘hierarchical arrangement’ can refer to the formal organization of the workplace and the social and cultural expression of authority.
9. For confidentiality reasons, we altered the languages.
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