Ethnic and Republic Identification in the Russian Federation and Ukraine: A Social Dominance Perspective.

Using representative survey data of 5,466 'titular' (i.e. named after the states or republics of residence) and Russian respondents, this study examines the relationship between ethnic and republic identification in 28 cities in five autonomous republics of the Russian Federation, in Ukraine and in the Ukrainian Republic of Crimea. In accordance with Social Dominance Theory, ethnic and republic identification turned out to be positively and more strongly correlated among dominant than among subordinate groups. Group-size ratio was not found to affect identification patterns. At the contextual level, perceived cultural threat and the endorsement of multiculturalism and minority rights moderated the association between ethnic and republic identification of both groups. Intergroup differences in identification patterns were smaller in cities where both support for multiculturalism and the perception of cultural threat were higher. These results also shed light on the developing relationships between Russian and titular populations in the former Soviet Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]