Exposure to Immigrants Does Not Moderate the Relationship Between Disgust Sensitivity and Opposition to Immigration

TY - JOUR

T1 - Exposure to Immigrants Does Not Moderate the Relationship Between Disgust Sensitivity and Opposition to Immigration

AU - van Leeuwen, Florian

AU - Aarøe, Lene

AU - Petersen, Michael Bang

AU - Sønderskov, Kim Mannemar

PY - 2024/3

Y1 - 2024/3

N2 - Individuals who are more motivated to avoid pathogenic infection tend to be more opposed to immigrants. Explanations for this relation emphasize lack of familiarity, with people who are more unfamiliar with ethnic outgroups being more likely to perceive them as a possible infection risk and therefore oppose immigration. Exposure to immigrants can increase familiarity with outgroup members. This suggests that exposure to immigrants attenuates the relationship between pathogen avoidance motivation and opposition to immigration. We tested this prediction in four studies using country-level ethnic fractionalization and segregation (Study 1) and proportion of immigrants at the local neighborhood level (Studies 2–4) as indicators of exposure to immigrants. Results showed that intergroup exposure did not attenuate the relation between pathogen avoidance motivation and opposition to immigration. This suggests that long-term exposure to ethnic outgroups is insufficient to make them and their customs nonthreatening for those with strong worries about pathogenic threats.

AB - Individuals who are more motivated to avoid pathogenic infection tend to be more opposed to immigrants. Explanations for this relation emphasize lack of familiarity, with people who are more unfamiliar with ethnic outgroups being more likely to perceive them as a possible infection risk and therefore oppose immigration. Exposure to immigrants can increase familiarity with outgroup members. This suggests that exposure to immigrants attenuates the relationship between pathogen avoidance motivation and opposition to immigration. We tested this prediction in four studies using country-level ethnic fractionalization and segregation (Study 1) and proportion of immigrants at the local neighborhood level (Studies 2–4) as indicators of exposure to immigrants. Results showed that intergroup exposure did not attenuate the relation between pathogen avoidance motivation and opposition to immigration. This suggests that long-term exposure to ethnic outgroups is insufficient to make them and their customs nonthreatening for those with strong worries about pathogenic threats.

KW - disgust sensitivity

KW - immigration

KW - pathogen avoidance motivation

KW - political ideology

KW - prejudice

KW - threat

UR - https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/suppl/10.1177/19485506231164206/suppl_file/sj-pdf-1-spp-10.1177_19485506231164206.pdf

U2 - 10.1177/19485506231164206

DO - 10.1177/19485506231164206

M3 - Journal article

SN - 1948-5506

VL - 15

SP - 193

EP - 203

JO - Social Psychological and Personality Science

JF - Social Psychological and Personality Science

IS - 2

ER -