Abstract
Schools can be important for the development of national belonging in students with immigrant backgrounds. Following Contact Theory and prior research on diversity norms, this cross-sectional survey study examined if intergroup contact and perceived diversity norms of teachers and classmates predicted national belonging in ethnic minority (i.e., Turkish [n = 95], Moroccan [n = 73], and Surinamese [n = 15]) versus majority students (n = 213) living in the Netherlands (Mage = 10.53 years; 50.3% female). Minority students reported less national belonging than their ethnic Dutch classmates. Multilevel analyses indicated that their national belonging was affected by the presence of ethnic Dutch classmates and the relationship with their teacher. These results indicate that minority students’ national belonging could be promoted by reducing school segregation and stimulating positive teacher-student relationships.
Highlights
Children with an ethnic minority or immigrant background can experience a weak sense of belonging to (e.g., Fleischmann & Phalet, 2018), or even feel alienated from (Leeman & Saharso, 2013), the countries they live in
Using cross-sectional survey data, the present study tries to make a unique contribution to this emerging literature by examining whether Dutch primary school students of immigrant descent felt a lower sense of belonging to the Netherlands compared to their ethnic Dutch1 classmates, and whether their national belonging could be predicted by the opportunity for contact with ethnic Dutch classmates, the quality of contact with their teachers, and the perceived diversity norms of their classmates and teachers
Unlike the earlier Dutch studies, the present study examined national belonging in ethnic minority students from non-Islamic schools
Summary
Children with an ethnic minority or immigrant background can experience a weak sense of belonging to (e.g., Fleischmann & Phalet, 2018), or even feel alienated from (Leeman & Saharso, 2013), the countries they live in. This may be a logical or even adaptive response to experiences of discrimination and marginalization (Kende et al, 2020) but it may hamper their psychological well-being (Wu et al, 2018) and social adjustment (Berry et al, 2006). Using cross-sectional survey data, the present study tries to make a unique contribution to this emerging literature by examining whether Dutch primary school students (age 9–13 years) of immigrant descent felt a lower sense of belonging to the Netherlands compared to their ethnic Dutch classmates, and whether their national belonging could be predicted by the opportunity for contact with ethnic Dutch classmates, the quality of contact with their teachers, and the perceived diversity norms of their classmates and teachers
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