Abstracts
Title: Ethnic differences in student-teacher relationships
Speaker: Jochem Thijs – ERCOMER (http://staff.fss.uu.nl/jtthijs)
Date: 1 November 2010
Abstract
Numerous studies in educational and developmental psychology have shown that students’ interactions and relationships with their teachers are important for their academic and social adjustment. Little attention has been paid to ethnic differences in student-teacher relationships. However, the available evidence (all US based) suggests that the quality of the student-teacher relationship is more important for the school adjustment of ethnic minority children compared to their majority contemporaries, and also that (some) minority students are at risk of developing less positive relationships with their teachers. Hence, minority children’s relationships with their teachers seem to involve a double-edged risk, and additional research has the potential to provide important avenues for explaining and narrowing the achievement gaps reported for minority and migrant children in various Western countries. In this seminar, I will discuss fresh research on student-teacher relationships in the Netherlands. The focus will be on Turkish- and Moroccan-Dutch versus ethnic Dutch children in primary school.
Title: Second generation religion and politicised Muslim identity among the children of Turkish and Moroccan immigrants in Europe
Speaker: Fenella Fleischmann fleischmann@wzb.eu
Date: 4 October 2010
Abstract
Recent cross-national comparative survey data of the children of Turkish and Moroccan guestworkers provide new insights into the ways of being Muslim among the second generation. After introducing distinct dimensions of religiosity among the second generation, I focus on a political dimension of religion and ask when and why Muslim identity becomes politicised. Two forms of politicisation are distinguished: support for political Islam, and political actions. According to the Social Identity Model of Collective Action (SIMCA; Van Zomeren, Postmes & Spears, 2008), religious identification should strongly predict the politicisation of Muslim identity. Moreover, perceived discrimination in tense intergroup relations may be a source of reactive religious identity (Branscombe, Schmitt & Harvey, 1999; Jetten, Branscombe, Schmitt & Spears, 2001) and may thus contribute to the politicisation of Muslim identity. Conversely, experiences of discrimination may signal the stigmatisation of Muslim minorities (Crocker & Major, 1989), turning Muslim identity into a spoiled identity (Kamans, Gordijn, Oldenhuis & Otten, 2009) which is not drawn upon for political mobilisation – given the multiple identity options of the second generation. Thus, I investigate the joint impact of religious identification and perceived discrimination on both forms of politicisation. The comparative findings based on analyses of the TIES-surveys reveal simultaneous processes of politicisation and de-politicisation of Muslim identity with reactive religious identification as a crucial mediator (Study 1) and with forms of politicisation as a critical moderator (Study 2). Study 1 estimates multi-group structural equation models of support for political Islam across nine intergroup contexts in Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden: As expected, Muslims who experienced more discrimination identified (even) more strongly as Muslims; and high Muslim identifiers were most ready to support political Islam. At the same time, negative direct and total effects of perceived discrimination suggest the de-politicisation of a stigmatised Muslim identity. Using separate subsamples across four intergroup contexts in Belgium, Study 2 adds political action tendencies as a distinct form of politicisation. As expected, religious identification positively predicts both forms of politicisation, whereas perceived discrimination has differential effects: more experienced discrimination made Muslims weary of supporting political Islam, yet more ready to engage in political protest.
Title: Islamic religiosity of Turkish immigrants and their descendents in six European countries. An investigation of host country context, region of origin, community, and individual level effects.
Speakers: Evelyn Ersanilli (University of Oxford koopmans@wzb.eu evelyn.ersanilli@qeh.ox.ac.uk and Ruud Koopmans (International Migration Institute Social Science Research Centre Berlin (WZB).
Date: 7 June 2010
Abstract: Most European countries have a significant share of immigrants who adhere to Islam. Whereas the majority of European countries have seen a trend towards secularization, studies have shown that the degree of religiosity among Muslim immigrants remains high, also in later generations. In this paper we analyse Islamic religiosity of immigrants from four different angles; host-country context, region of origin, community effects, and individual-level factors. For host country context we investigate the effects the degree of accommodation of Islam and Islamic religious practice and the level of secularisation in the host country. For region of origin effects we look at the influence of GDP and religiosity in the origin region on religiosity after migration. For community effects we look at the influence of the size and origins of co-ethnic community in the region of residence. Finally, we look at the effect of individual level factors such as generation, education, labour-market participation and parental SES. Analyses are done with data on Turkish immigrants and their children in six European countries; France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and Sweden. These countries have accommodated Islam to different degrees and also vary in their degrees of secularisation. Data come from the Six Country Immigrant Integration Comparative Survey (SCIICS). Four different areas of religiosity are investigated: religious affiliation, identification, religious practice (mosque visiting, halal diet, participation in Ramadan, headscarf wearing) and attitudes. The results show no clear connection between the two host-country context factors and degrees of Islamic religiosity. There are however important effects of the region of origin. People who come from more religious regions tend to retain a higher degree of religiosity in the host country as well.
Title: Bonding and Bridging Social Contacts and the Economic Performance of Immigrants: A Panel Study of Immigrants in Germany
Speaker: Agnieszka Kanas
(co-authored Barry R. Chiswick, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA; Frank van Tubergen, UU; Tanja van der Lippe, UU)
Date: 3 May 2010
Abstract: Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel we examined the impact of bonding (i.e. co-ethnic) and bridging (i.e. interethnic) ties on the occupational status and annual income of immigrants in Germany. Results show that contacts with family, friends and neighbours have a positive effect on immigrant occupational status and annual income. We also find that bridging ties increase the occupational status of immigrants, but they do not affect immigrants’ income. Contrary to our expectation, however, the economic benefits from bridging contacts are smaller than those from bonding contacts. The effects of bonding and bridging ties remain when the variables are lagged by one year and when host-country human capital is taken into account. Finally, we show that the economic benefits from bonding social capital are smallest for immigrants with highest levels of origin- and destination-country schooling. Surprisingly, however, bonding social capital increases the economic returns to German language skills.
Title: DOES IMMIGRATION ERODE SOCIAL CAPITAL?
Speaker: Irene Bloemraad
The Conditional Effects of Immigration-Generated Diversity on Trust, Membership, and Participation across 19 Countries, 1981-2000
(co-authored with Christel Kesler)
Date: 12 April 2010
Abstract: This paper is an attempt to qualify existing evidence that increasing diversity is detrimental to a vibrant civil society. We focus specifically on immigration-generated diversity, and we argue that while it may have negative effects on some specific civic and political outcomes in some contexts, these effects vary widely across advanced democracies. Our argument rests on analysis of a cross-national, cross-sectional time-series dataset that brings together individual-level World Values Survey data with country-level variables. With these data, we track within-country changes over time in trust and engagement. We show that immigration can have a negative effect on social trust, organizational membership, and political engagement, but that institutional arrangements shape this relationship in systematic ways. In more economically equal societies and in more multicultural countries (where cultural minorities are recognized and accommodated), the negative effects of immigration on trust and engagement are mitigated or even reversed. We conclude that there is no general link between immigration-generated diversity and collective-mindedness. Rather, the direction and strength of the relationship depend on institutional and policy contexts.
Title: The third age of prejudice? Islamic and cultural threat in post-9/11 France
Speaker: Vincent Tiberj
Date: 1 March 2010
Abstract: 9/11 has reshaped considerably the debates, frames and opinions on immigration in Europe as a whole and particularly in France. Western democracies before the terrorist attacks on the American soil follow more or less the path delimited by the postmaterialist theories (Ingelhart, 1977, Kitschelt, 1995): a growing commitment to libertarian values in general and tolerance towards immigrants and multiculturalism in particular fuelled by the increase of the general level of education and the generational renewal. Even racial prejudices were touched by the "silent revolution" transforming itself from a biological perspective to a cultural one (Taguief, 1992), from blatant racism to symbolic racism (Kinder and Sears, 1981). Nevertheless, as Sniderman and Hagendorn points out for the Dutch case (Sniderman, Hagendorn, 2007), 9/11 and the reactions it has produced in the European publics enlighten a more profound political movement which challenge the "multicultural consensus" based on a perceived clash of values between the general public and Muslim minorities (whether of foreign nationality or foreign descent). To a certain extent the various international (London and Madrid bombings, the Mohammed's cartoon controversy) and national events (the suburb crisis and the second veil affair in France) have gather the necessary components for creating an authoritarian dynamic (Stenner, 2005) on this topic. This paper aims to fulfill three objectives. Firstly, using a set of 6 surveys developed during the 2002-2007 in France, it will demonstrate how the silent revolution on the long run is compatible with a reformulation of racial prejudices through a more acceptable framing produced by political elites and based on cultural and religious arguments. Secondly, it will demonstrate how this framing reshapes the divide on the racial and multicultural issue in the public by displacing the schema used by the public when thinking about the debate. Thirdly it will use the suburb example for describing both how the frame constructed by the elites and the schema used by the general public has modified the political equilibrium in France and creates the conditions for a French authoritarian dynamic.
Title: Are emigrants more religious than those left behind? Religiosity of Turks in Europe and in Turkey
Speaker: Ayse Güveli
Date: 1 Feb 2010
Abstract:
It has often been claimed that immigrants are more religious than those left behind in the origin society. Expect some notable small number of studies, this claim has never been tested due to lack of comparable large scale data. In this study, we compare the religiosity of Turks in Europe and those in Turkey. The European Social Surveys contain a significant group of Turkish origin Europeans and Turkey is included as a separate country. This gives us the unique possibility to make comparison on the religiosity of Turks in Europe and in Turkey with a highly comparable survey data. That is, to what extent are immigrant Turks and their offspring in the European societies more religious than the Turks in Turkey? Our results show that immigrant Turks pray and attend religious meetings significantly less often than non-migrant Turks whereas the second generation Turks in Europe perceive themselves more devout Muslims than Turks in Turkey.
Title: Ethnic, Religious and Economic Diversity in the Neighbourhood: Explaining Quality of Contact with Neighbours, Trust in the Neighbourhood and Inter-ethnic Trust for Immigrant and Native Residents
Speaker: Dr. Jaap Dronker & Bram Lancee
Date: 11 Jan 2010
Abstract:
Several studies conclude that ethnic diversity tends to reduce social capital. There may however be other forms of diversity that affect social capital as well, and their inclusion might make the negative effect of ethnic diversity spurious. Besides ethnic diversity, we identify economic and religious diversity, as well as language proficiency in the neighbourhood. This study explores with data from the Netherlands how these four dimensions of diversity in the neighbourhood affect the quality of contact with neighbours, trust in neighbourhood and inter-ethnic trust for immigrant and native residents. We find that ethnic diversity in the neighbourhood still lowers the quality of contact with the neighbours. For natives, ethnic diversity is positively associated with inter-ethnic trust, whereas for immigrants there is no effect. Furthermore, for natives, religious diversity negatively affects the quality of contact with the neighbours and interethnic trust, whereas for immigrants this effect is positive. Economic diversity positively impacts trust in the neighbourhood and inter-ethnic trust. We do not find an effect of language proficiency. We conclude that besides ethnic diversity, other forms of diversity in the neighbourhood affect trust as well. Furthermore, diversity can undermine, but also build various aspects of trust. Last, diversity in the neighbourhood does not mean the same for immigrant and native residents.
Title: Occupational Enclaves and the Wage Growth of Hispanic Immigrants
Speaker: Ted Mouw
Date: 7 Dec 2009
Abstract:
Does the concentration of recent Hispanic immigrants into occupational enclaves—jobs with large numbers of limited English speakers—restrict their wage growth? On the one hand, the "ethnic enclave" hypothesis, which frames our current study, argues that immigrants who are concentrated in jobs with co-ethnics may have less need to learn English and/or less on-the-job exposure to it, which may isolate them socially and linguistically and limit their subsequent economic mobility. On the other hand, enclave employment can be seen as a "stepping stone" for upwardly mobile immigrants who can find work while they improve their English.
Using longitudinal data from the 1996, 2001, and 2004 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), we test for the effect of occupational level English proficiency on wage growth. We supplement this data with in-depth interviews and observations from immigrants employed in the construction industry. The results indicate that although the proportion of limited English speakers in the respondent’s occupation is associated with lower wages for Hispanic immigrants in the cross section, it is not associated with lower levels of wage growth. These findings demonstrate that occupational enclaves do not "trap" immigrant workers—at least on average—but instead can provide a path for immigrants to familiarize themselves with the U.S. labor market. The qualitative findings also demonstrate the importance of ethnic affiliations for job training and wage growth for immigrants employed in construction.
Title: Do Host Country Education and Language Training Lift Immigrants out of Low Wages?: An Event History Analysis
Speaker: Lisa Kaida, MA
Date: 5 Oct 2009
Abstract:
In the literature on immigrant economic incorporation, the growing incidence of low wages among immigrants is often attributed to their low human capital attained before migration (e.g. low educational attainment, poor host country language skills). However, there has been little empirical evaluation of the benefits of human capital investments made by immigrants after arriving in the host country. This paper addresses this gap by examining the impacts of host country formal education and language training on immigrants’ exits from low wages. I use data from the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada, a three-wave survey of immigrants who arrived in Canada between 2000 and 2001. Results from event history analysis suggest that immigrants do move out of low wages with additional investment in their skills once in the host country. Moreover, the type of post-migration human capital investment makes a significant difference in moving up. In particular, college education is found to have a sizeable impact. These findings are inconsistent with the view that immigrants are unlikely to move out of the secondary low-wage labour market with any additional education/training because of their disadvantageous standing in the host society. Instead, education/training in the host country can provide a pathway out of “bad” jobs even if many immigrants initially face difficulties transferring their origin country skills in the host country labour market. This paper concludes by urging further systematic evaluation of existing education/training programs available for newcomers.
Title: Studies about Hofstede’s culture dimensions
Speaker: Dr. Ludwien Meeuwesen
Date: 7 Sep 2009
Abstract:
Two studies will be presented at the seminar. The first study investigated at a country level how cross-national differences in medical communication can be understood from Hofstede’s culture dimensions, i.e. power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism/ collectivism and masculinity/femininity, together with national wealth. Over 300 physicians, and nearly 6000 patients from Belgium, Estonia, Germany, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland participated in the study. Communicative aspects as well as context information of physicians and patients were the dependent variables. Nearly all hypotheses were confirmed, except the one regarding the masculine/feminine dimension. The study shows that the dimensions have substantial predictive power*.
A second study, which is in progress, is focused on sustainability. The effect of the five culture dimensions of Hofstede (long vs short time orientation included) will be assessed on 22 indicators for sustainability, which together capture five main categories of western approach of sustainability, i.e. a) personal development, b) healthy living environment, c) stabile society, d) sustainable use of raw materials, and e) sustainable world. Data of 70 countries of all continents of the world were included. Strategies for analysis and first results will be presented and discussed, from the viewpoint of level of national wealth.
Abstract
Award for the best Dutch Social Sciences Publication 2005-2006 is given to Prof. Dr. Louk Hagendoorn for his and Dr Paul Sniderman's research in the conformity effect (see abstract below). This special award is given out by Dutch Sociological Association (NSV) in June 2006. This article has been published earlier in Mens en Maatschappij in 2004.
Title: The conformity effect: yielding to persuasive pressure on public policy toward ethnic minorities.
by Louk Hagendoorn & Paul Sniderman
What drives the concerns of majorities about preserving the national identity in the face of immigration? It is neither compensation for low self-esteem, nor pride in those who are Dutch--the two most common explanations. It instead is the extent to which people value social conformity. Crucially, social conformity is not conceived of as a personality trait, but as the importance attached to conformity as a social value. Using computer assisted telephone interviewing (CATI), three experiments are performed. The purpose of the experiments is to gauge the impact of persuasive pressure from the government, peers and political leaders to increase support for or rejection of cultural diversity. The results demonstrate that social conformists markedly yield to this pressure from all three sources, irrespective of which direction it is pushing them. This result exposes an unexpected freedom of maneuver for politicians to guide public opinion about such key political issues as tolerance and support for multiculturalism.