Classification of Nativistic Attitudes as a Tool for Researching Historical Memory

Abstract

Historical memory constitutes a significant area of contention in contemporary politics, which justifies the need for precise theoretical tools to systematically analyse the attitudes and values that shape it. This article identifies this research gap and proposes a multidimensional classification of cultural nativistic attitudes. The study aims to develop a coherent and operationalizable theoretical framework that enhances the analysis of memory politics. This objective is achieved through a critical review of the existing literature on nativism. The review enabled the identification of significant drawbacks in current classification models. They included inconsistent criteria for distinguishing between forms of nativism, insufficient differentiation between attitude and practice, and the omission of forms of legitimation and the performative aspect. In response to these deficits, the article offers an original, four-dimensional classification of nativistic attitudes, encompassing the value attributed to a native culture, the relationship with foreign culture, the function attributed to the past, and forms of action. The proposed model organizes the ways of thinking underlying memory politics, moving beyond the dichotomic approaches that dominate the literature. This study’s contribution to research on historical memory and collective identity lies in providing a modifiable and empirically testable theoretical tool that enables the identification and classification of distributed ways of thinking about one’s own culture, as well as a systematic and comparative analysis of disputes about the past in a public discourse and the mapping of identity strategies.