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Personal contact with refugees is key to welcoming them

Authors :
Hans van Dijk
André Krouwel
Lena Knappert
Shuai Yuan
Jan-Willem van Prooijen
Yuval Engel
Entrepreneurship & Innovation (ABS, FEB)
Faculteit Economie en Bedrijfskunde
Management and Organisation
Social Psychology
IBBA
A-LAB
Communication Science
Network Institute
Communication Choices, Content and Consequences (CCCC)
Department of Organization Studies
Department of Methodology and Statistics
Source :
Knappert, L J, Van Dijk, H, Yuan, S, van Prooijen, J-W, Engel, Y & Krouwel, A 2021, ' Personal contact with refugees is key to welcoming them: An analysis of politicians’ and citizens’ attitudes towards refugee integration ', Political Psychology, vol. 42, no. 3, pp. 423-442 . https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12705, Political Psychology, 42(3), 423-442. Wiley-Blackwell
Publication Year :
2021
Publisher :
Wiley-Blackwell, 2021.

Abstract

Politicians are influential both in directing policies about refugees and in framing public discourse about them. However, unlike other host country residents, politicians’ attitudes towards refugees and integration are remarkably understudied. We therefore examine similarities and differences between politicians’ attitudes towards refugee integration and those held by citizens. Based on the Stereotype Content Model, we expect that political ideology informs stereotypes about refugees, which subsequently shape attitudes towards refugee integration. Based on the Contact Hypothesis, we further argue that personal contact with refugees reduces negative stereotypes about them – in particular for those endorsing a right-wing ideology. We draw on data collected via two surveys with 905 politicians and 8,013 citizens in The Netherlands, to show that (1) residents (i.e., politicians and citizens) who hold a right-wing orientation hold more negative stereotypes about refugees than those with a left-wing orientation, which in turn relate to more negative attitudes towards refugee integration; (2) personal contact with refugees reduces negative stereotypes among residents; and (3) politicians, compared to citizens, reported overall less negative stereotypes and more positive attitudes towards refugee integration. The practical implication of fostering residents’ contact with refugees as well as the implications for future research on politicians’ stereotypes and integration attitudes are discussed.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
0162895X
Volume :
42
Issue :
3
Database :
OpenAIRE
Journal :
Political Psychology
Accession number :
edsair.doi.dedup.....b62356893880054ff390c21fa5a7f44d
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12705