Public Opinion on Illegal Immigration: A Test of Seven Core Hypothesis

• NCJ Number: 223202
• Journal: Journal of Crime and Justice Volume: 31 Issue: 1 Dated: 2008 Pages: 113-147
• Author(s): Kevin Buckler
• Date Published: 2008
• Length: 35 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This research study identified and tested seven core hypotheses that make predictions about public opinion toward illegal immigration and illegal immigrants: the economic threat hypothesis; the culture threat hypothesis; the core American values hypothesis; the culture affinity hypothesis; the racial/ethnic affect hypothesis; the contact hypothesis; and the group threat hypothesis.

Abstract

Results of this study generated four main conclusions: (1) the general public is generally very pragmatic when formulating judgments on illegal immigration; (2) for three of the four core American values, there was evidence suggesting that policy preferences and affective attitudes toward illegal immigration were incongruent; (3) stereotypical attitudes toward Hispanics and contact with members of the Hispanic population only impacted affective evaluations of illegal immigrants, not support for policy-related positions; and (4) the core American value of individualism appeared, in this data, to be broadly applicable to both support for tougher immigration policy and affective evaluation of illegal immigrants. Recently, the United States has witnessed massive numbers of illegal immigrants who have entered the country. As a result, illegal immigration issues have begun to enter the political arena as a substantive policy concern for national and State legislators. Thus, public opinion toward controlling illegal immigration and illegal immigrants has become of substantive interest for policymakers and practitioners. This research study used the 2004 National Election Study data to test seven core hypotheses (the economic threat hypothesis; the culture threat hypothesis; the core American values hypothesis; the culture affinity hypothesis; the racial/ethnic affect hypothesis; the contact hypothesis; and the group threat hypothesis) concerning public opinion toward illegal immigration. Tables, notes, references