Intergroup conflict and co-construction of identity in the primary school: multi-method research in an inter-ethnic context

Our aim was to identify the main elements of the school experience shaping the affective and cog- nitive memory trace. We interviewed three groups of subjects: a group of 30 Cimbrian speakers (be- longing to the historical minority of Lusérn in Trentino), a group of 30 Trentino dialect speakers (ma- jority language) and a group of 30 young adults (standard Italian native speakers). Data were analyzed using qualitative and quantitative methods (NVivo8 and SPSS16). According to Grounded Theory, we carried out theoretical coding to identify the core category and to determine the relationships and hier- archies among the various categories. The core category represents the semantic memory of the experi- ence, its affective and representational imprint, the climate that characterized the first stable, lasting re- lationship with authority outside the context of the primary relationship. The structure of the model, verified in each of the three different groups, is presented.