“They are going to islamize us”: intergroup conspiracy beliefs shape discriminatory behavior against refugees and migrants through intergroup threat perceptions
Year: 2022
Type: conference-abstract
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: The Intergroup threat theory (ITT) proposes that perception of an outgroup (OG) as threatening to \nthe ingroup (IG) leads to prejudice towards that OG. Prejudice can further result in discriminatory \nbehavior against the OG. Although conspiracy beliefs (CBs) are generally considered an outcome \nof threat perception, some authors argue that CBs about a particular OG can serve as a generator \nof intergroup threat rather than its consequence. Thus, we examined how CBs about refugees and \nmigrants shape behavior. More precisely, we tested the hypothesis that such CBs elicit perception \nof this OG as a threat to the IG that in turn results in higher discrimination intentions. The sample \nconsisted of 798 participants (48% men; age 18-87 [M = 49.3, SD = 16.8]). We constructed four \nintergroup CBs items (5-point Likert scale, α = .82) based on the narrative that was salient in \nSerbian media at the time of data collection. Participants also filled in the following scales (5- \npoint Likert): intergroup threat perception scale that captures symbolic (two items, α = .81) and \nrealistic threats (three items, α = .82), as well as a scale that captures discrimination intentions \nagainst refugees (three items, α = .77). We also registered and statistically controlled for \nparticipants’ religiosity and ethnic identification (both single-item, 7-point scale), and frequency \nof OG contact (positive and negative, four items). Since only 31% of participants reported having \nany contact with the outgroup, we computed two binary variables that indicated presence or \nabsence of (a) positive and (b) negative outgroup contact. To test our hypothesis, we built a \nstructural equation model (SEM) with Intergroup CBs as a predictor and discrimination \nintentions as an outcome. Perceptions of symbolic and realistic threat served as mediators. The \nmodel proved to fit the data well (x2 (58) = 342.63, p < .001, CFI = .936, TLI = .906, RMSEA = \n.078, SRMR = .085). The intergroup CBs predicted discrimination intentions both directly (β = \n.21, p = .034) and indirectly through the perception of refugees as a realistic threat (β = .28, p < \n.001). On the contrary, the indirect effect through symbolic threat perception was not significant \n(β = .19, p = .173). Our results confirm that CBs about a particular OG can make fertile ground \nfor the perceptions of that OG as a threat to the IG, and this threat can further act as a booster of \nthe intention to discriminate against the same OG. This pattern of the effects indicates that \nintergroup CBs should be experimentally examined as a generator of the intergroup threat, \nalthough they are traditionally seen as its outcome. It also points out the adverse outcomes that \nconspiratorial narratives in media can have on people’s behavioral intentions.
Authors: Ninković, Milica, Živanović, Marko, Vukčević Marković, Maša
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7025053199