CONCEPTUAL TRAPS: IDENTITY, INTEGRATION AND INCLUSION/EXCLUSION OF NATIONAL MINORITIES / BEGRIFFLICHE FALLEN: IDENTITÄT, INTEGRATION UND INKLUSION/EXKLUSION NATIONALER MINDERHEITEN

Abstract

In the discourses of politics, of mass-media and of science, the term national minorities is often accompanied by other, even more problematic terms, such as identity, integration, and inclusion/exclusion. The article highlights some of the ambiguities in the usage of these terms, some social and political consequences of the inaccurate communication and combination of these words and the implications for national minority policies. Combining a Luhmannian systems theoretical approach and research findings from evolutionary psychology, the author argues that the complexity of language is of dramatic importance when it comes to avoiding ethnic conflicts and social exclusion of minorities.