Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic, as a global threat to humanity, is likely to instigate a variety of collective responses in the society. We examined, for the first time, whether the COVID-19 threat perception is related to attitudes towards Syrian refugees in Turkey, theorizing a dual pathway whereby pandemic-induced threat would relate to both pro- and anti-immigrant feelings. Drawing upon integrated threat theory and models of collective-threat regulation, we expected that pandemic threat would lead to more exclusionary outgroup attitudes through increased immigrant threat, whereas we argued that perceived COVID-19 threat would promote inclusionary attitudes through creating a common ingroup in the face of a global threat. Using online search volume data at the province level (Study 1, <em>N</em> = 81) and self-reporting measures at the individual level (Study 2, <em>N</em> = 294), we found that the COVID-19 threat was directly associated with more positive attitudes towards refugees (Study 1 and 2). Study 2 further revealed indirect positive (through a sense of common identity) and negative (through perceptions of immigrant threat) links between COVID-19 threat perception and outgroup attitudes. These results highlight the importance of integrating threat regulation and social identity perspectives when assessing the implications of pathogen-related threats.
Highlights
Social psychological research has established that threatening events, either at the personal or collective level, can significantly affect individuals’ cognitions and behaviors (e.g., Xu & Mc Gregor, 2018)
Overall, Study 1 provided evidence in favor of a potential link between perceived COVID-19 threat and outgroup attitudes, suggesting perceived threat, rather than objective threat, to predict lower anti-immigrant attitudes
In line with pandemic threats’ exclusionary effects on outgroup attitudes (H1), we found that a higher level of COVID-19 threat perception was related to increased threat related to refugees, which was in turn strongly associated with less positive attitudes, lower helping intentions, as well as lower support for pro-immigration policies
Summary
Social psychological research has established that threatening events, either at the personal or collective level, can significantly affect individuals’ cognitions and behaviors (e.g., Xu & Mc Gregor, 2018). Research shows that individuals are likely to stereotype outgroups more after reminders of one’s mortality (see Castano et al, 2002). This mostly right-shift movement as a response to societal threat to safety and perceived control often serves as a psychological mechanism that provides individuals with some adaptive functions and helps in the reduction of anxiety and uncertainty (e.g., Mirisola et al, 2014), it may undermine tolerant attitudes towards outgroups such as immigrants and refugees (Van Bavel et al, 2020). We tested whether and how the perception of COVID-19 threat was associated with outgroup attitudes and behavioral tendencies, focusing on the context of Syrian refugees, who have been increasingly seen as a social and economic burden to local communities in Turkey (e.g., Özden, 2013)
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