Multiculturalism

What Multiculturalism covers

Diversity as something to endorse rather than tolerate, the politics of recognition, and the arguments over assimilation, integration, segregation and where cohesion policy shades into pressure to conform.

The 7 subtopics

Each one has its own page.

• Multiculturalism and the Politics of RecognitionRecall questions on multiculturalism as description and as doctrine, on the politics of recognition and on why diversity is said to strengthen a society.Open →
• Assimilation, Integration and the Melting PotRecall questions on assimilation, integration and the melting pot, the multicultural view of human nature and the state, toleration and recognition, positive action, and the main criticisms of multiculturalism.Open →
• Integration and SegregationRecall questions on what integration means and why it is two-way, and on segregation imposed and voluntary.Open →
• Interculturalism and Civic IntegrationRecall questions on interculturalism, the charge that cohesion policy slides into assimilation, civic integration and the place of faith schools.Open →
• Berlin and KymlickaRecall questions on Berlin's negative and positive freedom and value pluralism, and on Kymlicka's societal culture, national minorities and immigrant groups, and group-differentiated rights.Open →
• Taylor and ParekhRecall questions on Taylor's politics of recognition, misrecognition and the presumption of equal worth, and on Parekh's cultural pluralism, the limits of diversity and Britain as a community of communities.Open →
• Modood: Multiculturalism and CitizenshipRecall questions on Modood's definition of multiculturalism, religion and moderate secularism, his criticism of cosmopolitanism and assimilation, and multiculturalism as a civic idea that extends liberal values.Open →

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Take Multiculturalism further

The same content, four other ways.

Commonly confused

Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.

• Integration vs Assimilation

  Integration: minorities participate while retaining cultural differences. Assimilation: minorities adopt the dominant culture.

• Direct discrimination vs Indirect discrimination

  Direct discrimination: explicitly less favourable treatment. Indirect discrimination: neutral rules disproportionately disadvantage a group.

Questions from this topic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   What does multiculturalism mean when used simply to describe a society?

   Model answer

   Used descriptively it means a society that contains two or more communities with distinct cultural identities living alongside one another.

2. 2

   What does multiculturalism mean as a political doctrine?

   Model answer

   As a doctrine it is the positive endorsement of cultural diversity, holding that minority identities deserve public recognition and support rather than mere toleration.

3. 3

   Explain the politics of recognition.

   Model answer

   It is the claim that people need their cultural identity to be publicly acknowledged and respected, because being ignored or demeaned damages their sense of self-worth.

4. 4

   Why do multiculturalists argue that diversity strengthens a society?

   Model answer

   They argue that exposure to different ways of living broadens outlooks, enriches culture and encourages the mutual understanding on which a plural society depends.

5. 5

   What do multiculturalists mean by equality of opportunity?

   Model answer

   They mean that everyone should have a genuine chance to succeed, which requires removing the cultural and structural barriers that leave minorities starting from behind.

6. 6

   Why may treating everyone identically fail to deliver equality of opportunity?

   Model answer

   Because rules framed around the majority's customs, such as dress codes or the working week, impose burdens on minorities that the majority never has to carry.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

Multiculturalism revision questions

What does Multiculturalism cover in AQA A-Level Politics?

7 subtopics: multiculturalism and the politics of recognition, assimilation, integration and the melting pot, integration and segregation, interculturalism and civic integration, berlin and kymlicka, taylor and parekh and modood: multiculturalism and citizenship. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.

How is Multiculturalism organised?

By the AQA 7152 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.