The essay examines four identity profiles representing four ways through which a sample of young Italian Americans living in the greater New York City area identify with their Italia heritage. The reflections presented in the paper come from the results of a survey conducted in 2013 designed to gather the opinions, attitudes, behaviors and perceptions of young people about Italian descent and culture. The identity profiles have been related to structural data, socialization, values, ethnic self-identification, the image of Italians and Italian Americans, stereotypes, affiliations, memberships and the future. The analyses conducted made it possible to formulate hypotheses on the dynamics of the ethnic identity of Italian Americans that seem to be modulated through a combination of “knowledge” of different cultural aspects and “attachment” to them.
