Level and change of group-focused enmity in Germany: unconditional and conditional latent growth curve models with four panel waves

Abstract

In this study, we investigate and explain the level and change of six elements of group-focused enmity (GFE; see Zick et al. in J. Soc. Issues 64(2):363–383, 2008) in Germany between 2002 and 2006: racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, homophobia, exclusion of homeless people and support for rights of the established. For the data analysis, a representative 4-year panel study of the adult non-immigrant German population collected during the years 2002–2006 is used, and the development of each GFE component is tested by using an unconditional second-order latent growth curve model (LGM) (with full information maximum likelihood, FIML). We find that the level of 5 of the 6 components (racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, homophobia, exclusion of homeless people) displays an increase at the beginning of the observed period followed by a decrease. However, the sixth aspect, rights of the established, displays a continuous linear increase over time. The different developmental pattern stands in contrast to Allport’s (The nature of prejudice. Perseus Books, Cambridge, 1954) hypothesis for the strong link between the components and their development over time. We try to explain this different developmental pattern by several sociodemographic characteristics. This is performed by using a conditional second-order latent growth curve model.