Building National Identity in Newborn Kosovo: Challenges of Integrating National Identity with Ethnic Identity Among Kosovar Albanians and Kosovar Serbs

Abstract

We address intergroup relations in a post-conflict context, Kosovo—where the 2008 declaration of independence led to the creation of a new national Kosovar identity. However, Kosovars still identify primarily with the ethnic identity, central to historical tensions between two main ethnic groups: the Albanian majority (over 90 % of the population) and the Serb minority (5 %). Drawing upon social identity complexity and the common ingroup identity model, we show that the new superordinate Kosovar identity does not yet function as a conflict reducing mechanism as it is conflated with ethnic identity for Albanians, while being a non-identity for Serbs. Improving intergroup relations depends on different strategies: for Albanians a more complex and inclusive identity relates to more positive intergroup outcomes, whereas for Serbs, identification with the Kosovar national identity predicts more positive perceptions of Albanians. Findings are discussed in light of current inter-ethnic challenges and future prospects.