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Perceptions and Reality: Ten Things We Should Know About Attitudes to Immigration in the UK
Author(s) -
DUFFY BOBBY
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
the political quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.373
H-Index - 37
eISSN - 1467-923X
pISSN - 0032-3179
DOI - 10.1111/1467-923x.12096
Subject(s) - immigration , rhetoric , polling , perception , immigration policy , population , sociology , class (philosophy) , political science , demographic economics , psychology , law , demography , economics , epistemology , philosophy , linguistics , neuroscience , computer science , operating system
Abstract Immigration is one of the most frequently covered issues in opinion surveys—but the volume and type of questions asked has actually obscured many of the key facts about our attitudes. This article summarises a year‐long project to draw together as much of the published polling as possible in one place, in as neutral a way as possible. The overall picture is one of genuine concern about immigration among a large proportion of the population—but more nuance on specific aspects, and a number of important gaps between perceptions and reality. Also highlighted are the increasingly polarised views on immigration between generations and different class and education groupings. The lower level of concern among younger generations and the growing graduate class suggests that immigration may be less of a concern in the future—but that the electoral weight of the more concerned older generations means that restrictive rhetoric and policy on immigration will be a key feature of the 2015 general election.