Constructions of identity and belonging in the acculturation process : A weblog case study

International migration is growing continuously. The cultural contact this entails has profound effects on groups and people, known as acculturation. For individuals migrating, these encounters lead to challenges connected to identity and sense of belonging. Scholars call for qualitative studies with an individual perspective and a process focus to collect unique experiences of acculturation, addressing constructions and identity. The aim of this thesis is to explore the developing constructions of identity and belonging in one acculturation process. Using a Grounded Theory approach and a constructivist/symbolic interactionism framework, this case study will exemplify these constructions as fundamental elements of acculturation as a process, through an analysis of one personal weblog. It was found that identity and belonging are interrelated and deeply entwined in relation to the acculturation process. Constructions of these phenomena are continuously contested, negotiated and reconstructed in diverse contexts and multiple social encounters