ifkad articles

Diversity Potentials or Diversity Challenges? Attitudes towards Refugees under the influence of Intercultural Contact and Acculturation Strategies

Petia Genkova, Anna Groesdonk

Because of the development of migration during the last past years, this paper’s objective is to identify and/or confirm factors, which predict the development of prejudices. With Germany as a preferred destination of many refugees, the research focuses on German students and their attitudes towards people with migration background. This study examines if the construct of social identity is a possible predictor for prejudices. Thereby, it also examines if there is a moderator effect of contact quality and contact quantity. The results indicate the importance of contact quality und contact quantity in reduction of prejudices, but the effects were only significant for some of the tested models. Because of the relatively weak manifestation in the study at hand, alternative instruments should be used for investigation. Based on the obtained results this paper finally tries to give some guidance for the facilitation of diversity and reduction of prejudices at higher education institutions.

IN: Proceedings IFKAD 2020 – Knowledge in Digital Age
PP: 1494-1508