The Identity Complexity and Multiple Identities of Children in Interethnic Families

This study was conducted to identify the features of complexity and multiplicity identities among children from interethnic families and mono-ethnic families. It studied the relationship between the identity complexity, the multiplicity identity and the index of group identities with the psychological well-being. The participants of the online survey were schoolchildren of the last years of study and students (N=168) from interethnic families (N=83), where parents belong to different ethnic groups, and from mono-ethnic families (N=85), where both parents belong to the same ethnic group; the average age of the subjects is 21 years old. The results of the study showed a higher level of identity complexity in children from interethnic families compared with children from mono-ethnic families; representatives of interethnic families tend to be members of more social groups than representatives of monoethnic families; multiple identity has a positive impact on life satisfaction and self-esteem, regardless of the ethnic diversity of the family. The main achievement of the study is that the level of psychological well-being of children from interethnic families does not depend on multiple group identification (the number of groups with which they identify themselves). On the contrary, a large number of social groups for members of monoethnic families adversely affect life satisfaction as a component of psychological well-being. This study has expanded the theoretical knowledge of the concept of social identity. His conclusions will be the basis for further work within the framework of this construct.