What Drives Opposition to Social Rights for Immigrants? Clarifying the Role of Psychological Predispositions

Abstract

Why do people oppose granting social rights to immigrants? Previous research indicates that psychological predispositions such as authoritarianism or ethnocentrism are strong drivers, but our understanding of their roles is still incomplete. This is in part because studies have not yet systematically tested different psychological variables against other, but also in part because some other potentially important predispositions such as implicit bias and social dominance orientation have so far been overlooked. We address this gap using original data from survey experiments conducted in six countries (Denmark, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States). We find consistent effects of ethnocentrism and social dominance orientation, a less robust effect of authoritarianism and no effect of implicit bias. In substantive terms, we find that a belief in ethnocentric stereotypes and a desire for dominance are the central factors driving opposition to immigrants’ social rights.