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Cited by 287Migration, Refugees, and IntegrationSocial and Intergroup PsychologyPopulism, Right-Wing Movements

Different groups, different threats: public attitudes towards immigrants

Hellwig, Timothy, Sinno, Abdulkader·2017·Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies
DOI 10.1080/1369183x.2016.1202749
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Abstract

Research on attitudes towards immigrants devotes much attention to the relative effects of economic and social-psychological factors for understanding sentiment towards immigrants, conceived in general terms. In this article, we advance this work by arguing that the context framing immigration concerns leads publics to associate different types of immigrants with different threats. An issue context that diminishes support for one ‘type’ can boost it for another. Evidence from an original survey experiment in Britain supports this claim. Security fears affect attitudes towards Muslim immigrants but economic concerns bear on views towards Eastern Europeans. While concern about crime adversely affects sentiment for East Europeans but casts Muslims more positively, cultural threats have the opposite effect. By shifting the focus onto the qualities of different types of immigrants, we highlight the importance of the target immigrant group for understanding public attitudes.

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Crossref · 10.1080/1369183x.2016.1202749

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57 of 57 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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  • Ukrainians have generally not been framed as either a security threat or an economic threat.

    “Despite this emerging hostile climate and the different negative framings of refugee groups, Ukrainians have, generally, not been framed as either a security threat or an economic threat, as was the case in the enlargement of the European Union in 2004, where eight Central-and Eastern European countries were included and given access to the labour market in certain countries (Hellwig and Sinno 201”

    From Ukrainian Refugees’ Differentiated Treatment: A Critical and Systematic Review (2025) · cites this paper as Hellwig and Sinno 2017

  • Muslim refugees are often thought of as a security threat, whereas Eastern Europeans are associated more with economic threats.

    “Moreover, Muslim refugees are often thought of in terms of being a security threat, whereas Eastern Europeans are associated more with economic threats (Hellwig and Sinno 2017).”

    From Ukrainian Refugees’ Differentiated Treatment: A Critical and Systematic Review (2025) · cites this paper as Hellwig and Sinno 2017

  • Different refugee groups are often associated with different types of perceived threats.

    “Adding to these factors is that different refugee groups often are associated with different types of perceived threats.”

    From Ukrainian Refugees’ Differentiated Treatment: A Critical and Systematic Review (2025) · cites this paper as Hellwig and Sinno 2017

  • When immigration is associated with crime, attitudes toward East European immigrants are adversely affected.

    “when immigration is associated with crime, it is attitudes toward East European immigrants that are adversely affected.”

    From Prejudice and Discrimination Toward Immigrants (2021) · cites this paper as Hellwig & Sinno 2017

  • The context framing immigration concerns leads members of receiving societies to associate different types of immigrants with different threats.

    “Hellwig & Sinno (2017) demonstrate that the context framing immigration concerns leads members of receiving societies to associate different types of immigrants with different threats.”

    From Prejudice and Discrimination Toward Immigrants (2021) · cites this paper as Hellwig & Sinno 2017

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Authors
Hellwig, T., & Sinno, A.
Affiliations
Indiana University Bloomington (US)
Corresponding author
Sinno, Abdulkader
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies
Publisher
Informa UK Limited
Published
2016-07-05
Volume
43
Issue
3
Pages
339-358
ISSN
  • 1369-183X (ISSN-L)
  • 1469-9451
DOI
10.1080/1369183x.2016.1202749
OpenAlex
W2461479803
Cited by
285
References
58
Citations by year
2026: 28 · 2025: 42 · 2024: 34 · 2023: 26 · 2022: 40 · 2021: 36 · 2020: 26 · 2019: 25 · 2018: 18 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 1
FWCI
50.51
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
  • Carnegie Corporation of New York (Grant D 09083)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Migration, Refugees, and Integration
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
  • Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Populism, Right-Wing Movements
Keywords
attitudes toward immigrants, public opinion, threat perception, crime concern, economic problems, cultural threat, Muslim immigrants, Eastern European migrants

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