“Not Racist, But…”: Beliefs About Immigration Restrictions, Collective Narcissism, and Justification of Ethnic Extremism

Abstract

Surveys conducted across multiple countries show that most people view seeking lower immigration to help maintain the majority group's population share as a sign of racial self‐interest—as opposed to racism. We investigated whether the belief that it is not racist to want immigration restrictions for cultural reasons is associated with ingroup identification (a positive attachment to and solidarity with one's group) or collective narcissism (a conviction that the ingroup is exceptional and deserves special treatment). We argue that if this belief reflects concern for the ingroup, it should be linked to ingroup identification. However, if it is a defensive justification of the ingroup's privileged position, it should be linked to collective narcissism. Across four studies, national (Study 1: United Kingdom, N = 467; Study 2: Poland, N = 1,285) and ethnic (Study 3a: United States, N = 2,000; Study 3b: United States, N = 2,938) narcissism emerged as predictors of the belief that ethnoculturally motivated immigration restrictions are racial self‐interest (vs. racism). This belief was also associated with justifying collective violence against migrants (Study 2) and supporting the alt‐right (Studies 3a–3b). We found less consistent evidence for an association between ingroup identification and immigration‐restriction beliefs. We discuss implications for intergroup relations and political extremism.