Between two worlds: nationality and identity in Korean immigrants - a qualitative exploration of a sense of belonging in California, the United States.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Korean immigrants are among the top five Asian immigrant groups in California. Many came to the United States with a visa or green card, and later some became U.S. citizens. One's nationality refers to the country of their legal citizenship, but it is often also the country where they were born. As some people renounce their citizenship from their country of origin, the impact of nationality on identity and the influence of identity on nationality have yet to be studied.

Methods

We conducted a qualitative study using semi-structured, in-depth interviews between March 2023 and July 2023. A total of 24 Korean immigrants in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, participated in this study.

Results

Our findings revealed diverse viewpoints on U.S. citizenship a

SUBMITTER: Park C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12465442 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature