Cultural Estrangement Revisited: A Contemporary Adaptation with Reference to Gender, and to Ethnic and Racial Foci

Abstract

Cultural estrangement was originally formulated as a measure of alienation, and operationalized as the extent to which one's opinions differ from those of primary and secondary identifcation groups. In the original empirical measure, four items measured the consistency of one's opinions with those of relatives, friends, coreligionists, and co-citizens, respectively. This study added three items deemed salient to group identity in contemporary society: gender, ethnicity, and race. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability data are presented for the original and modified versions of the scale, supporting the new scale format. Differentials among the correlations are discussed with regard to the role of friendships within the context of alienation. It is argued that the basic construct may well be reconceptualized as entailing cultural independence or emancipation instead of estrangement.