Airport immigration and customs sign. | Image: asiandelight/Shutterstock
Publication: Can Political Speech Foster Tolerance of Immigrants?
Politicians frequently use political speech to foster hostility toward immigrants, a strategy that shapes political preferences and behaviour and feeds the success of the populist right. We examined whether political speech can foster tolerance of immigrants in the US when it stresses Americans’ commonalities with immigrants; emphasizes inclusiveness as an American norm; and provides information that counters anti-immigrant stereotypes. Using quotes from US politicians in two survey experiments, we find that pro-immigrant speech that stresses inclusive norms or counters negative stereotypes about immigrants leads to more tolerant attitudes (but not behavior) toward immigrants. These effects are small and detectable only in large samples.
Team: Petra Schleiter, Margit Tavits, Dalston Ward
Find out more about the Centre for Democratic Resilience.
Professor Tarik Abou-Chadi is Professor of European Politics at the University of Oxford.
Hear more from Tarik on the Migration Oxford Podcast talking about the German and American far right and the issue of immigration. https://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/immigration-policy-transatlantic-perspectives