Effects of living arrangements on well‐being, perceived conflict, and intergroup attitudes for local and international students: Results from a field intervention

Abstract

AbstractImmigration may be perceived by members of host countries as a threat, with psychological and material impacts on immigrants' well‐being: it may reinforce negative stereotypes, promote discrimination, or even encourage violence. One means of alleviating such prejudice is increased intergroup contact. However, under certain conditions, increased contact can produce harmful outcomes as intergroup contact may provide opportunities for positive and negative relationships between ingroup and outgroup members. Further, relatively little research has examined intergroup contact between native host country members and immigrants in Asian societies, and in particular, in Singapore. To address this gap, the current research examined the effects of separating, clustering, or integrating international students from local ones at two Singaporean universities. We assessed the degree to which different living arrangements impacted local and international students’ intergroup contact, satisfaction with university life, perceptions of conflict, and intergroup attitudes. The findings suggest that those who are interested in improving intergroup relations via influencing the social ecology of majority and minority residents should provide opportunities for integration over separation or enclaves.