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South Asian Young British Muslims: Identity, Habitus and the Family Field

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South Asian Young British Muslims: Identity, Habitus and the Family Field South Asian Young British Muslims: Identity, Habitus and the Family Field Michela Franceschelli School of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences Centre for Research on the Child and Family University of East Anglia Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy January 2013 © This copy of the thesis has been supplied on condition that anyone who consults it is understood to recognise that its copyright rests with the author and that use of any information derived there from must be in accordance with current UK Copyright Law. In addition, any quotation or extract must include full attribution. Abstract Since the 1950s the incoming flows of immigrants have deeply transformed the social composition of British society which has become increasingly multicultural. Amongst other minority groups the position of Muslims, who are the second largest religious group in the UK, is particularly difficult. The 9/11 and London bombings (2005) have increased the moral panic about Muslims perceived as ‘hard to integrate’ and a threat to western democracies. In this context, the thesis aims to explore the negotiation of religious and national identities amongst young British Muslims from South Asian backgrounds as well as the strategies used by their parents to transmit values. The thesis applies and extends Bourdieu’s (1930-2002) theory of habitus and social field to the study of identity negotiation and intergenerational transmission. In so doing, the study adopts a sociological perspective which is sensitive to individual action, and conceptualises identity as the process of individuals assimilating structural conditions, such as Islam and Britishness, to then produce subjective practices, tastes, values and beliefs. The research employs a mixed method approach which started with an in-school exploratory survey (N=560) with young people aged 14-18 years old from different ethnic and religious backgrounds in a inner London boroughs and in Oldham, followed by semi-structured interviews (N=52) with South Asian British Muslim young people and their parents. Visual methods in the form of photographs taken by young people were used as prompts during their interviews. The thesis contributes to the understanding of identity construction in the context of South Asian Muslim communities in the UK. Findings from the survey confirm that Islam was the main source of self-definition for Muslim young people, while qualitative analysis suggests that this emphasis on religion originated in the family field. The concept of Islamic capital was developed to understand the specific role of Islam as a resource for parenting. However, Islam was not the only focus in the family field, and in line with other research on migration, results highlight the importance of education for social mobility within South Asian Muslim migrant families from different socio- economic backgrounds. Finally, the study illustrates that multiple identities are not 2 necessarily exclusive, but rather negotiated through strategies such as those adopted by British Muslim young people and embodied by three emerging typologies: conforming and contesting parental culture and Islam, and combining identities. In the context of multicultural Britain, these findings show how the traditional notions of national identity and belonging are put into question and transformed by the development of new and fluid identities. 3 Acknowledgements The long journey of this PhD was the result of the support and effort of many people who have been involved in different ways and for different reasons. First and foremost, I have to thank all the South Asian Muslim parents and young people who made the research possible by sharing their intimate stories, their thoughts and feelings and for opening their houses to a stranger and making me feel so welcomed. Thanks to Prof. Margaret O’Brien for all her endless patience, encouragement and support from the beginning to the end of this journey, for being a rigorous critic of my work and such an inspiring person to work with. Many thanks to Dr. Jonathan Dickens for his supervision and support and Dr. Fatima Husain, who told me about the opportunity of this scholarship, without her this journey would have not even started. My sincere gratitude goes also to Clem Henricson for her advice and support at the beginning of this journey, and to the Family and Parenting Institute (FPI) for contributing to the scholarship. Thanks also to the research team at FPI, who during my first year contributed with their expertise and skills to the development of the thesis. I also feel deeply grateful to my primary school teacher, Paola, and Professor of History and Philosophy at college, Luciana, for ‘opening my mind’ and making me interested in the social world. The PhD has not been the only journey I had to go through in these last few years and from the diagnosis until the recovery from cancer, I have become most grateful to all the people that stood by my side. I feel deeply indebted to my parents Anna Rita and Franco for being my backbone and my main source of guidance throughout life. I’m deeply indebted to my boyfriend Ali for being there at every step of these journeys, for inspiring me, challenging me and giving so many reasons to get better quickly and finish my research. Thank you also to all my family and friends back in Italy, nonna Maria, Chiara, Gino, Federica, Paola, Marta .G, Marta M., Chiara e Massimo, Romolo, Francesca, Daniela, Elena, Cinzia, Benedetta e Francesco for being there and entertain me: you all made the difficult time going much more quickly. My thoughts also go to my grandfather Nello and aunt Marilia who sadly died a few years ago, and with whom 4 I shared so much. Also, my gratitude goes to the doctors and nurses in Italy and London who looked after me last year and pushed me to get better. I also wish to thank all my friends in London and Norwich particularly Penny for her untiring support, David, John, Ed, Elizabeth and Tariq for believing in me and spending time proof-reading my chapters. Thanks to Joana, Verena, Geni, Laura, Sandra for spending so many hours listening to my worries over many pints and cups of coffee. Thanks also to my colleagues at Inclusion, the ones still there and those who have left, for teaching me about research and for giving so much flexibility to allow me getting to the end of the PhD. I learnt a lot from you all. (I have included the Italian translation of the acknowledgements below so that my family and friends in Italy, who don’t speak much English, can read them. Thanks to my friend Marta G. for the translation and for her never-ending support.) 5 Ringraziamenti Questo dottorato è stato un lungo viaggio ed è il risultato del supporto e dell’impegno di molte persone, coinvolte in misura diversa e per diverse ragioni. In primo luogo, voglio ringraziare tutti i genitori e i ragazzi Musulmani che hanno reso possibile questa ricerca condividendo con me le loro storie personali, i pensieri e i sentimenti, e che hanno aperto le loro case ad un estranea, facendomi sempre sentire cosí benvenuta. Un ringraziamento speciale alla Prof. Margaret O’Brien per la sua infinita pazienza, l’incoraggiamento e il sostegno sin dall’inizio e fino alla fine di questo viaggio, per essere stata al tempo stesso un critico rigoroso e una fonte di ispirazione del mio lavoro. I miei ringraziamenti anche al Dr. Jonathan Dickens per la supervisione e il supporto, e alla Dr. Fatima Husain, che mi ha detto dll’opportuntia’ di questa borsa di studio: senza di lei il viaggio non sarebbe nemmeno iniziato. La mia sincera gratitudine va anche a Clem Henricson per i consigli e il sostegno nella fase iniziale del progetto, e al Family and Parenting Institute (FPI), per aver contribuito alla borsa di studio. Un grazie anche al team di ricerca del FPI, che nel corso del primo anno ha contribuito con la propria esperienza e competenza allo sviluppo della tesi. Mi sento anche profondamente debitrice alla mia insegnante delle elementari, Paola, e alla mia insegnante di Storia e Filosofia del Liceo, Luciana, per aver “aperto la mia mente” all’interesse per la sociologia. Il dottorato non è stata l’unica sfida che ho dovuto affrontare in questi ultimi anni, e, da quando mi è stato diagnosticato il cancro fino alla guarigione, la mia riconoscenza verso le persone che sono state al mio fianco è diventata sempre più profonda. Prima di tutto, voglio esprimere il mio amore e gratitudine per i miei genitori, Anna Rita e Franco, colonna portante e guida insostituibile nel cammino della mia vita. Un ringraziamento speciale al mio ragazzo Ali, per avermi accompagnato a ogni passo, per avermi ispirato e incitato costantemente, e per avermi dato così tante ragioni per rimettermi al più presto e finire la ricerca. Grazie anche a tutta la mia famiglia e agli amici in Italia: nonna Maria, Chiara, Gino, Federica, Paola, Marta G., Marta M., Chiara e Massimo, Romolo e Francesca, Daniela, Elena, Cinzia, Benedetta e Francesco, per esserci stati, per avermi fatto pensare ad altro: grazie a voi tutti i momenti difficili sono passati molto più in fretta. Il mio pensiero va anche a mio nonno Nello e mia zia Marilia, 6 tristemente scomparsi alcuni anni fa, con cui ho condiviso così tanto. La mia gratitudine va inoltre a tutti i dottori e infermieri in Italia e a Londra, cha mi hanno assistito nel corso dell’anno passato e mi hanno aiutato a guarire. Voglio infine ringraziare tutti i miei amici a Londra e Norwich, in particolare Penny, per il suo incrollabile sostegno, David, John, Ed, Elizabeth e Tariq, per aver creduto in me e per il tempo trascorso a correggere i miei capitoli.
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