Pride, not prejudice: national identity as a pacifying force in East Asia

Pride, not prejudice offers an innovative approach to the role of national identity and collective memory in east Asia. Eunbin Chung adopts an interdisciplinary theoretical framework and investigates the extent to which ‘the history problem’, a term used to refer to the existence of an unresolved past, still affects the interactions between the Chinese, Japanese and South Korean governments and society (p. 20). In contrast with conventional views on national identity that see it as an obstacle to dialogue between individuals and countries, Chung argues that these identities can act as tools for promoting ‘peace and cooperation’ in the region (pp. 18 and 219). Consistent with the social psychological theory of self-affirmation, Chung builds on the assumption that the stronger a people's national identity, the greater the trust established between countries, as it contributes to mitigating biases towards the other(s).