Xenophobia

The current xenophobic cultural environment in the United States makes it imperative that psychologists understand the nature of xenophobia and recognize its consequences. This article explores sociological, social psychological, and multicultural research to examine the causes of negative attitudes toward immigrants. Xenophobia is presented as a concept descriptive of a socially observable phenomenon. Historical and contemporary expressions of xenophobia in the United States are examined and compared with cross-cultural scholarship on negative attitudes toward immigrants. Last, suggestions are provided for how counseling psychologists can integrate an understanding of xenophobia into their clinical practice, training, research, and public policy advocacy.

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North American Attitudes toward Immigrants and Immigration in the Time of COVID-19: The Role of National Attachment and Threat

The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science ◽

10.1177/00027162211057501 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 697 (1) ◽

pp. 148-173

Author(s):

Victoria M. Esses ◽

Alina Sutter ◽

Joanie Bouchard ◽

Kate H. Choi ◽

Patrick Denice

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

The United States ◽

Negative Attitudes ◽

Attitudes Toward Immigrants ◽

Country Level ◽

National Economic ◽

Immigration Attitudes ◽

National Attachment ◽

National Representative Survey

Using a cross-national representative survey conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, we examine predictors of attitudes toward immigrants and immigration in Canada and the United States, including general and COVID-related nationalism, patriotism, and perceived personal and national economic and health threats. In both countries, nationalism, particularly COVID-related nationalism, predicted perceptions that immigration levels were too high and negative attitudes toward immigrants. Patriotism predicted negative immigration attitudes in the United States but not in Canada, where support for immigration and multiculturalism are part of national identity. Conversely, personal and national economic threat predicted negative immigration attitudes in Canada more than in the United States. In both countries, national health threat predicted more favorable views of immigration levels and attitudes toward immigrants, perhaps because many immigrants have provided frontline health care during the pandemic. Country-level cognition in context drives immigration attitudes and informs strategies for supporting more positive views of immigrants and immigration.

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Addiction Types: A Clinical Sociology Perspective

Journal of Applied Social Science ◽

10.1177/193672440800200107 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 88-93

Author(s):

Jawad Fatayer

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Arab World ◽

The United States ◽

Cross Cultural ◽

Social Psychological ◽

Accurate Analysis ◽

New Approach ◽

The Social ◽

Process Addiction ◽

Psychological Dimensions

This paper presents a new approach to categorizing types of addiction, based on 20 years of clinical sociology practice in the United States and the Arab world. The cross-cultural clinical experience of the author enables him to establish a perspective on addiction that focuses on the social-psychological dimensions of the addictive process. Addiction types presented in this paper are based on clinical practice and treatment since 1986. The purpose of this paper is to put types of addiction in perspective and provide an effective diagnostic instrument for making an accurate analysis, successfully treating the addiction, and enhancing the potential for recovery.

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Concerns About Automation and Negative Sentiment Toward Immigration

Psychological Science ◽

10.1177/0956797620929977 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 31 (8) ◽

pp. 987-1000

Author(s):

Monica Gamez-Djokic ◽

Adam Waytz

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Experimental Methods ◽

The United States ◽

Immigration Policies ◽

Archival Data ◽

Intergroup Threat ◽

Negative Attitudes ◽

Attitudes Toward Immigrants ◽

Discriminatory Behavior ◽

Negative Sentiment

Across 12 studies ( N = 31,581), we examined how concerns about the rise of automation may be associated with attitudes toward immigrants. Studies 1a to 1g used archival data ranging from 1986 to 2017 across both the United States and Europe to demonstrate a robust association between concerns about automation and more negative attitudes toward immigrants. Studies 2a, 2b, 2c, and 3 employed both correlational and experimental methods to demonstrate that people’s concerns about automation are linked to increased support for restrictive immigration policies. These studies show this association to be mediated by perceptions of both realistic and symbolic intergroup threat. Finally, Study 4 experimentally demonstrated that automation may lead to more discriminatory behavior toward immigrants in the context of layoffs. Together, these results suggest that concerns about automation correspond to perceptions of threat and competition with immigrants as well as consequent anti-immigration sentiment.

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Family Matters: How Immigrant Histories Can Promote Inclusion

American Political Science Review ◽

10.1017/s0003055420001057 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-8

Author(s):

SCOTT WILLIAMSON ◽

CLAIRE L. ADIDA ◽

ADELINE LO ◽

MELINA R. PLATAS ◽

LAUREN PRATHER ◽

...

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Perspective Taking ◽

The United States ◽

Negative Attitudes ◽

Family Experiences ◽

Attitudes Toward Immigrants ◽

Survey Experiments ◽

The Media ◽

Almost All ◽

School Curricula

Immigration is a highly polarized issue in the United States, and negative attitudes toward immigrants are common. Yet, almost all Americans are descended from people who originated outside the country, a narrative often evoked by the media and taught in school curricula. Can this narrative increase inclusionary attitudes toward migrants? We draw from scholarship showing that perspective-taking decreases prejudice toward out-groups to investigate whether reminding Americans about their own immigration history increases support for immigrants and immigration. We propose that priming family experiences can indirectly stimulate perspective-taking and induce empathy toward the out-group, which we test with three separate survey experiments conducted over two years. Our findings show that priming family history generates small but consistent inclusionary effects. These effects occur even among partisan subgroups and Americans who approve of President Trump. We provide evidence that increased empathy for immigrants constitutes one mechanism driving these effects.

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Multicultural Assessment of Personality and Psychopathology in the United States: Still Art, Not Yet Science, and Controversial

European Journal of Psychological Assessment ◽

10.1027/1015-5759.14.1.62 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

pp. 62-70 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Richard H. Dana

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Racial Identity ◽

The United States ◽

Therapeutic Assessment ◽

Culturally Competent ◽

Research Attention ◽

The Status ◽

Training Research ◽

Multicultural Assessment ◽

Personality Description

This paper describes the status of multicultural assessment training, research, and practice in the United States. Racism, politicization of issues, and demands for equity in assessment of psychopathology and personality description have created a climate of controversy. Some sources of bias provide an introduction to major assessment issues including service delivery, moderator variables, modifications of standard tests, development of culture-specific tests, personality theory and cultural/racial identity description, cultural formulations for psychiatric diagnosis, and use of findings, particularly in therapeutic assessment. An assessment-intervention model summarizes this paper and suggests dimensions that compel practitioners to ask questions meriting research attention and providing avenues for developments of culturally competent practice.

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