Intergenerational consistency in attitudes towards immigrants
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Venu Gandhi
CoPIs:
Christina Haligowski
College:
College of Liberal Arts
Major:
Psychology/Forensic Psychology
Faculty Research Advisor(s):
Shai Tabib
Abstract:
Previous researchers have argued that older adults exhibit higher levels of prejudice than younger adults. Nevertheless, the existing body of research either supporting or refuting these assertions remains limited. This study aimed to explore the relationship between age and one form of prejudice: attitudes towards immigrants.
The study included a total of 1156 participants who were randomly selected from various regions across the United States as part of the General Social Survey. These participants, aged between 18 and 89 years (M = 48.93, SD = 17.16), responded to questions about their attitudes towards immigrants using a five-point Likert scale. Their responses were aggregated to generate an overall composite score. A Spearman correlation found no significant relationship between age and attitudes towards immigrants. While the question of whether older adults harbor more prejudice than younger adults in general is still unknown, these results suggest that this assertion is not accurate regarding prejudice towards immigrants. Future research should delve deeper into the relationship between age and other forms of prejudice.