This paper discusses theoretical issues linked to the study of identities and intergroup relations within multicultural societies[ The issues discussed concern how identities acquire meaning in contemporary societies where events in the social context challenge identities and rede_ne the boundaries of the social groups[ More speci_cally the processes involved in the formation of new identity categorisations and the structure of identity are discussed[ Two arguments are developed[ Firstly that within multicultural societies one should study the systems of cat! egorisation and the new psychological boundaries within the wider theories about the world people elaborate and share[ Secondly\ it is argued that since people|s identities re~ect social relationships\ elements of the structure of common identities might be shared[ Finally\ the contributions of the papers of this special issue to the above theoretical debate are presented[ Copyright Γ 1999 John Wiley + Sons\ Ltd[
Key words] multiculturalism^identity^categorisation^social representations
For the months leading up to 0 January 1999\ looking ahead to the new century or looking back on the past 1999 years became a widespread activity[ The media began devoting more and more energy to predicting what the future would be like\ as well as making comparisons with the past and highlighting changes in social structures over the centuries[ Among the anticipations\ one thing that can be predicted with considerable cer! tainty is that while the population of the Earth will double in forty years\ the work force in the more developed countries will diminish[ From this trend\ one can expect that large migratory movement will occur from the less economically developed countries or regions to the wealthier parts of the world[ Communication and travel facilitated by technological developments and the globalisation of the economic forces\ will also challenge the well!known boundaries between nations[ Like most changes\ these trends produce uncertainty because they challenge people|s frames of