The Social Identities journal published an article by members of the project team, prof. UMK dr hab. Violetta Kopińska and dr Klaudia Wolniewicz-Slomka entitled Who we are? Discursive construction of collective identity in youth organisations in Poland: a citizenship orientation perspective. In the article, we can read, among other things, about two options for building collective identity in organisations operating in Poland. The first option focuses on in-groups and out-groups, emphasises the deprecation of “OTHERS” and clear boundaries of collective identification. In building identity, a strong community orientation is visible, which is closed and glorifies one’s own group. However, it is not consistent with universal values ​​and humanist ethics, which indicates nationalist tendencies reflecting broader phenomena in Europe. This orientation is characterised by exclusivity and hostility towards other groups, which leads to the construction of a closed identity. The second option focuses exclusively on in-groups, and “OTHERS” are not an important point of reference in constructing identity. Although “THEY” are noticed, their presence in the identification discourse is reduced, which allows for greater flexibility in defining one’s own identity features. Youth organizations operating in Poland exhibit different features and may present both individualistic and communal elements, which shifts the focus to emphasizing the value of their identity without confronting “THE OTHER.” In the analyzed organizations, differences in the approach to citizenship can be observed: from individualistic, through a critical concept of citizenship, to elements of the liberal and civic republican concepts, which emphasize personal development and social activity.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13504630.2024.2415577