Social distance and the Roma: intra-ethnic and regional differences

Abstract

The Roma are the national minority that experiences the highest level of social distance in Croatia. With aim of better understanding the social structure of the parts of Croatia’s that are inhabited by Roma, the level of social distance between Roma and selected groups was investigated using the classic Bogardus scale performed on a sample of 203 members of the Roma community from Međimurje County, the City of Zagreb, and Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. The results of the research indicate significant differences in the level of social distance among different sub-ethnic Roma groups in Croatia. There are large regional differences in the level of social distance of Roma living in different parts of Croatia. A significant level of mutual social distance was also observed between the two large subethnic Roma groups in Croatia, the Bayash Roma and Roma who speak the standard Romani language. Great variations were also noted in social distance towards the majority ethnic group in the Republic of Croatia: Croats.